Pumpkin Pecan Crunch Bars
Fall is all wrapped up in these Pumpkin Pecan Crunch Bars. Buttered cake mix is combined with pumpkin and autumn spices for a wonderful fall flavor!
With a combination of packed pumpkin, buttered cake mix, pecans, sugar, and cinnamon, these Pumpkin Pecan Crunch Bars will have you coming back for seconds…and maybe even thirds 🙂
How many times have the words, “There just aren’t enough hours in the day” entered your mind?
For me, it’s a weekly thing. Here are some of the things (in no particular order) that I would accomplish if the days were longer:
- Everything I cook would be homemade (from pasta noodles to sandwich bread to salsa).
- My house would be completely clean from top to bottom.
- Everyone’s laundry would be finished and put away every single day.
- I would have time to watch all 80 episodes of The Pioneer Woman and Trisha’s Southern Kitchen on my DVR.
- My family and I would have ample time to spend together after everyone’s homework and after school activities were done.
If only there were enough hours in the day…right? Truth of the matter is, I do have the time to implement some of these tasks, however the hours just aren’t long enough. What would you accomplish if there were more then 8 hours in a day?
Lucky for us, this dessert doesn’t take much time to make….and is so darn deliciously good.
There are three layers to it: the bottom layer resembles pumpkin pie filling, the middle layer is buttered cake, and a crunchy nutty layer finishes off the top.
It resembles a pumpkin pie, except in cake/bar form. Pair this with my homemade recipe for whipped cream and you will have one awesome dessert for the holidays (or for any occasion).
My seven year old son LOVES this recipe, as do Husband Man and I. My nine year old daughter on the other hand, does not like it. Mainly because it has pecans in it.
You can eat this dessert warm (the way I prefer it) or place it in the fridge to chill overnight and eat it cold the next day (the way hubby likes to eat it). It tastes wonderful either way you choose 🙂
Ingredients
For the Filling:
- 15 ounce can of packed pumpkin puree' (not to be confused with pumpkin pie filling)
- 12 ounce can of evaporated milk
- 3 large eggs (room temperature)
- 1 1/2 cups of granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
For the topping:
- 1 package of yellow butter cake mix
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup melted unsalted butter (2 sticks)
- Whipped cream for garnish
Equipment You'll Need
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray nonstick spray into a 13x9 inch baking dish.
- Using an electronic mixer, mix the pumpkin puree', evaporated milk, eggs, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a medium bowl until well blended.
- Pour into greased baking dish.
- Sprinkle evenly with dry cake mix.
- Add the pecans. Drizzle the melted butter on top of the pecans.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the dessert comes out clean.
- Cool for 15 minutes or place in the refrigerator to chill.
- Serve with whipped cream to garnish.
I like the way your husband took the picture. I think a lot of people take food shots from different angles. I love that he gets into it and helps you photograph, it's cute!! I wanna try the pumpkin bars so bad, but no one but my mom and I will eat them. They look delicious and I'm excited that you got to use your freshly pureed pumpkin in them.
I am making these today!!!YUM Figtreeapps
OH.. those bars are just so good! My family loved, them, glad you did too!
I'm making these today too! Will put most of them on plates for a bake sale tomorrow…but this way I can taste them without eating too many. ;-} LOVE this idea – and the picture is great too!
I hope you enjoy them Marsha 😉 These would be gerat to make for a bake sale 😉 Good idea!
Love this recipe! Pinned to my Pumpkin board!
Yay! Thanks for the pin 😉
Do these need to be refrigerated?
Yes. I refrigerate them 🙂
Thank you for the quick response 🙂
You are very welcome 😉 Enjoy the recipe 😉
I won first place in the cookie/bar contest at our church’s annual chili-dessert cook-off last week with this recipe.
This recipe is so easy and soooo good!
I’m so happy to hear this Nanette. Congratulations! We really enjoy this recipe around this time of the year!
I couldn’t find pumpkin purée, but I did find a can the said 100% pumpkin. Should I add something else to the recipe?
No. The 100% pumpkin is pumpkin puree 😉 You want to use that can and not the can that reads ‘pumpkin pie filling.’ You are on the right track 😉
I made these and they were really wet and squishy even after 70 min in oven. Should I bake longer? What did I do wrong?
There could be a number of reasons why they didn’t turn out right. If you want, you can send me an email at: olivias@cookingwithlibby.com and I can try to troubleshoot things.
Have you ever frozen any leftovers?
Unfortunately no because they never last long enough to freeze. You can try it and see if it works though. I would be interested to know. 🙂
In your recipe better than pumpkin pie cake, you note to crumble cake mix on pumpkin. Don’t you sprinkle it or do you make up the cake with eggs etc. before?
I am not sure which recipe you are referring to. However, if it is like this one, then yes…you sprinkle it. No need to bake the cake first.
Had this recipe pinned for some time, we are not big dessert or baked good eaters, but thought I was going to make them for a fundraiser. I was worried about the consistency of the liquid and had to reread the “pour” and then after scrolling down I read that the consistency would be a liquid consistency – whew. Thank you for sharing this easy and delicious recipe.
Very welcome! I am glad you enjoyed them!