Cinnamon-Sugar Pumpkin Blondies — Soft pumpkin bars, cinnamon-sugary snickerdoodles, and buttery blondies rolled into one! Super good!!
This recipe for pumpkin blondies is the dessert trifecta jackpot. It tastes like three favorites in one. Soft pumpkin bars, cinnamon-sugary snickerdoodles, and buttery blondies rolled into one easy recipe.
Lately I’ve been going nuts with pumpkin recipes, snickerdoodle recipes, and I’ve got 25+ blondies recipes and counting. It was high time to marry my favorites.
The bars are super soft, moist, and full of robust pumpkin flavor. The cinnamon-sugar topping lends an awesome texture contrast to the density the pumpkin creates.
And make no mistake, they’re dense like blondies should be, rather than cakey or light. They’re for those of us who relish a thick, fudgy texture. I could see where some people would want to add baking powder or soda for some lift, but I prefer them without.
I modeled them after my Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars. It’s an easy, no-mixer, one-bowl recipe that takes just minutes to whisk together. Melted butter, brown sugar, pumpkin puree, plenty of pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon-sugar are the key ingredients.
They’re such a perfect bar for me. Simple to make, packed with flavor, and the tooth-sinkingly dense texture is amazingly satisfying.
Ingredients for Pumpkin Blondies
In addition to being super easy to prepare, these pumpkin spice blondies call for very few ingredients — meaning you can make them even on a busy weeknight when a pumpkin craving hits!
To make this pumpkin blondies recipe, you’ll need:
- Unsalted butter
- Egg
- Light brown sugar
- Pumpkin puree
- Vanilla extract
- Pumpkin pie spice
- All-purpose flour
- Granulated sugar
- Cinnamon
How to Make Pumpkin Blondies
I may have given these pumpkin snickerdoodle blondies a fancier sounding name, but the prep work is minimal. Multi-steps desserts with lots of layers are delicious, but impractical for me and my family. Hence why I have so many blondie recipes on my site already!
Here’s an overview of how these insanely easy pumpkin blondies come together:
- Whisk together the melted butter, egg, brown sugar, pumpkin, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice.
- Mix in the flour.
- Turn the mixture into a greased 8×8-inch baking dish.
- Sprinkle evenly with cinnamon sugar.
- Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
Scroll to the very bottom of this post for the full recipe card!
How to Store Leftovers
The pumpkin spice blondies continue to get softer and moister for about 3 days after baking, noting that the cinnamon-sugar coating will melt (liquify) as time passes rather than stay granular due to the moisture from the bars.
The bars will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Can I Double This Recipe?
Yes! You can double the recipe and bake the pumpkin snickerdoodle blondies in a 9×13-inch baking dish.
Can I Make This Recipe in a 9×9-Inch Pan?
You can bake the bars in a 9×9-inch pan, but they will be thinner (very thin, actually), therefore the cooking time will be reduced.
Can I Freeze the Blondies?
Yes, these blondies freeze well. To thaw, place on your counter for a few hours. You may need to sprinkle a little more cinnamon sugar on top before serving.
Can This Recipe Be Made in Advance?
Absolutely! In fact, the blondies taste better on the second day after the flavors have married. As a bonus, the bars get softer and moister on the second and third day, but I doubt they’ll last that long.
Tips for Making Pumpkin Spice Blondies
Make sure to use pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling (which has been sweetened and spiced).
I sprinkled the top of the blondies with cinnamon and sugar, but you’re welcome to replace the cinnamon with more pumpkin pie spice if you have some that needs to be used up.
The recipe only makes an 8-inch pan and if you have pumpkin fiends in your house, the bars will probably be gone in a day.
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Cinnamon-Sugar Pumpkin Blondies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, 1 stick, melted
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¾ cup pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, for sprinkling
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-by-8-inch baking pan with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray; set aside.
- In a large, microwave-safe bowl melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power.
- Wait momentarily before adding the egg so you don’t scramble it. Add the egg, brown sugar, pumpkin, vanilla, pumpkin pie spice, and whisk until smooth.
- Add the flour and stir until just combined, don’t overmix.
- Turn batter out into prepared pan, smoothing the top lightly with a spatula; set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar, cinnamon, and stir.
- Using a small spoon, evenly sprinkle cinnamon-sugar mixture over the prepared pan. Looks like a lot but it sinks down and soaks in while baking.
- Bake for about 25 to 27 minutes, or until done. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. The moisture content in pumpkin varies, as do climates and ovens; bake until yours are done.
- Allow bars to cool in pan for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. I find the bars taste better on the second and third day after the flavors have married.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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More Easy Pumpkin Desserts:
If you haven’t already ordered it, Cooking With Pumpkin: Recipes That Go Beyond the Pie is my second cookbook and the official release date was on Monday, October 6. There’s over 50 pumpkin recipes including sweets, savory, drinks, and a photo for nearly every recipe. I’d be super grateful if you headed over to Amazon.
Soft Pumpkin Bars (with Cake Mix!) — SUPER soft pumpkin bars studded with chocolate chips, candied pecans, and plenty of pumpkin pie spice!!
Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars — Super soft and are like biting into a piece of rich pumpkin fudge! Loaded with chocolate and crazy good!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bundt Cake with Chocolate Ganache — One of my favorite cakes of ALL TIME! A must-make!
Cream Cheese-Filled Pumpkin Bread — Pumpkin bread that’s like having cheesecake baked in! Soft, fluffy, easy and tastes ahhhh-mazing!
The Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread — Super soft, moist, rich pumpkin flavor, and loaded with chocolate chips! Easy, no mixer recipe that’s the BEST!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Brownies — Rich, fudgy brownies topped with pumpkin and chocolate chips!
Pumpkin Crumb Coffee Cake – A FAST and EASY no-mixer coffee cake with rich pumpkin flavor!! Super soft, tender, and topped with the BEST crumble topping that you’ll fall in love with!
Pumpkin Poke Cake — Easy and the BEST PUMPKIN CAKE ever!! Two kinds of CARAMEL sauce, TOFFEE bits, CHOCOLATE CHIPS, whipped topping and more!! A total WINNER you must make!!
I made these last night to take for a funeral reception, and I was very disappointed. They turned out very rubbery and the taste was mostly cinnamon. I followed the recipe to the letter and they looked just like the picture, so I don’t know what happened. I threw them away and will stop at the store to purchase something else. I have been cooking for over 50 years, so I usually know when a recipe is not going to work, but not this time.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m sorry they tasted rubbery to you. They are a very dense bar, given the pumpkin in them, but sounds like something beyond that took place. Maybe too much flour? Hard to guess from afar but thanks for giving the recipe a try.
These look amazing!Any chance they freeze well on top of looking delicious?
They freeze really well! You would likely want to reapply some cinnamon-sugar to the top though.
These are amazing!!! I can’t wait to get your pumpkin cookbook.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! And I hope you get my cookbook, thank you!
I plan on making these today for thanksgiving. I don’t have a 8×8 pan. Could I double it and bake it in a 9×13 pan? How long would I cook it for in that size of a pan?
I haven’t tried doubling the recipe but generally 8×8 recipes double fairly well for 9×13. Baking time will likely be similar.
these were fantastic! my only regret is not having chocolate chips in the house, because the chocolate chip version of this recipe looks soooo good.
Thanks for trying the recipe and I’m glad it came out great for you! And make the chocolate chip version next :)
Averie: well what do you know! Several day s later, square bars heated up in the microwave, with a dollop of whipped cream…were so good. The topping finally melted in (even before the microwave) and was so tasty. I will now make this again, but several days ahead of time for maximum deliciousness.
So glad that the flavors developed over time and you’re happy now! Pumpkin desserts are often like that (kind of like chili), it gets better over time!
Sigh. I really wanted these to be good. But, they weren’t. The color was not “blondie,” the texture was not “blondie,” and the taste was not snickerdoodle.
I’m sorry you didn’t care for the recipe. The color you see in the pictures is the color they are when I make them. The pumpkin turns them a darker shade and also the texture is denser, which I mentioned in the post. Thanks for trying the recipe.
Have you ever made any of your pumpkin recipes with coconut oil? I’m contemplating swapping it for the oil/butter in either this recipe or your pumpkin oatmeal muffins, but I’m not sure if the coconut flavor would taste off with the pumpkin. I’m open to try it, but thought I’d check with the expert first! :) Either way – these are going in the oven tonight! Yum!!!
You can totally use coconut oil in place of veg/canola oil. Don’t swap oil for butter (because that’s a whole other animal) but yes, swapping for regular oil is fine and I actually love the pairing of the coc oil w/ pumpkin. If you already like coc oil, you’ll love how it pairs with pumpkin.
In the oven now! Just took the Mrs. Fields copycat Snickerdoodles out. Fun afternoon baking!
Awesome! :) Enjoy!