These Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookie Bars are soft, chewy and filled with a bit of pumpkin and lots of pumpkin spices! Topping these cookie bars is a fluffy pumpkin buttercream frosting and a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar!
I don’t know whether it’s the super hot and humid weather or the fact that school’s started around here, but I’m ready for all things fall. And that, of course, means pumpkin.
I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t wait to open that first can of pumpkin puree! I’m doing better than last year. I barely made it through the middle of August before I was ready for fall!
This year it’s been cooler and summer has been super busy so that I haven’t had time to really think about what season it is! But now I’ve thought about it, and I’ve made pumpkin snickerdoodle cookie bars.
These bars are a variation of my favorite sugar cookie bars. The sugar cookie bars provide the perfect base for lots of pumpkin flavor. These soft, chewy cookie bars are filled with a bit of pumpkin and lots of pumpkin spices.
We can’t forget the pumpkin buttercream frosting. It makes way too long of a name if I stuck it in the title, but it is too good to be forgotten! If you aren’t a fan of frosting, you could leave off the frosting and the bars would still be great.
But if you’re a fan of pumpkin buttercream, you’ll want to make sure to add the fluffy frosting! A sprinkling of cinnamon sugar rounds off the snickerdoodle flavor. Ready for fall or not, you’ll want to make these bars soon!
- ½ C butter, room temperature
- ¾ C sugar
- 3 tbsp pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2½ C all-purpose flour
- 1½ tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp ginger
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 tbsp milk**
- ½ C butter, softened
- 2½ - 3 C confectioner's sugar
- 3 tbsp pumpkin puree
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- ⅛ tsp ginger
- cinnamon sugar, for garnish
- Preheat oven to 350. Lightly spray a 9x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or with an electric hand mixer), cream together butter and sugar. Add in pumpkin, egg, and vanilla extract. Beat until creamy.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and beat until combined. Press dough into the bottom of prepared baking dish.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until toothpick comes out mostly clean. Do not overbake. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While bars are cooling, prepare frosting. Beat together butter and confectioner's sugar. Add in pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Beat until creamy. If more confectioner's sugar is needed, add 2 tablespoons at a time up to another ½ cup.
- Spread over cooled bars. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Cut into pieces.
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These bars sound amazing, Jessica! Combining pumpkin and snickerdoodles sounds like the best combo ever. Can’t wait to try this out! Pinned!
These bars look wonderful. I just adore the combination of flavors and that frosting looks amazing!!!
Woo hoo! I say bring on all things pumpkin!!! Love that you added pumpkin to a snicker doodle bar! And that frosting is killing me!!! Yum!
Oh my husband would die for these bars. I may have to be a good wife and make them for him!
I love these cookie bars! I also couldn’t wait to open that first can of pumpkin puree for today’s recipe! Great minds think alike and hooray for Fall and Fall baking!
Jessica – these are so delicious! I love that you combined pumpkin and cookie bars!! YUM! Pinned 🙂
My husband’s grandpa LOVES snickerdoodles so these would be perfect for him.
Oh my goodness, these look awesome! I am SO ready for fall and pumpkin everything . . . in fact, I wrote about that today! Ha. And even started decorating . . . so it’s certainly not too early for delicious cookie bars!
I love these! You totally combined two of my faves – pinned!
Pumpkin is delicious year round. This a really fun version of pumpkin bars. Who doesn’t love snickerdoodle cookies. It combos most excellently with pumpkin.
I am so ready for fall (in dessert form, especially :)). Also the frosting to cookie ratio on these? PERFECT.
I’ve never had pumpkin buttercream frosting before. I just recently became a fan of pumpkin after hating it for all my childhood, so I think I’d be willing to give it a try!
Ooooh these look so thick and fluffy! Can’t wait for Fall 😀
I am SO ready for fall. I haven’t been able to force myself to make anything fall flavored yet, though. But when I do, I think it needs to be these cookie bars! I absolutely love snickerdoodles, and I love that you combined the cookies and the frosting with pumpkin! Yum. 🙂
I would have to make a double batch of these as my hubby would eat them all! Delish!!
I love these flavors and these bars are gorgeous!
What a great combo Jessica!
I will take a bowl of that pumpkin buttercream and a spoon, please and thank you!
I am soooo ready for fall. It just needs to hurry up and get here already. I need to start buying me some pumpkin! These look so so good … with snickerdoodle, I bet that’s such an awesome pairing.
I’m ready for all things fall too! Probably because it is over 100 degrees here and I could use a litle bit of cooler weather. I’m always ready for the start of pumpkin season and love these cookie bars!
And here come the pumpkin recipes 🙂 I am just loving these cookie bars Jessica – just perfect for Fall! Pinned!
This looks like an ideal way to start my pumpkin baking this season!!
I am all for pumpkin year round and these cookie bars would make me VERY happy!
I love the fall when the pumpkin recipes come out!
Who isn’t a fan of pumpkin buttercream frosting?! I’m sad summer is coming to a close, but fall flavors are great 🙂
You officially have me finally craving fall flavors. These sound too good!
Made these today and they tuned out GREAT! I bumped up the amounts of the spices just a bit but I always do that with my pumpkin recipes! Lol Definitely one I’ll be bringing to Thanksgiving! Thanks!
So glad you liked them! Thanks for letting me know!
These look fantastic! Especially with that thick layer of frosting. I can’t wait for fall and pumpkin recipes to come in full force!
I love pumpkin all year round so these cookie bars are totally calling my name! I love that you combined snickerdoodle with pumpkin, sounds amazing!
These bars look so delicious! I love pumpkin…its taste so good and is so nutrient rich. I’m am noticing the weather is changing and I am ready for Fall.
As much as I hate to see summer come to an end, I am ready to start doing some baking with pumpkin. These cookie bars look amazing! The pumpkin butterceam frosting sounds out of this world!
Girl . . . these sound so dang good!!!
Delicious! I subbed out the animal products to make it vegan (Ener-G Egg Replacer for the egg; Earth Balance for the butter) and they were delicious! I’ll definitely make these again soon.
I’m so glad you liked them Shelby!
I think I’ll split the batter into a larger dish, or two separate 8×8 dishes next time. I cut the frosting recipe in half, too, so it wouldn’t overpower the cookie bars. But very delicious and perfect for fall!
Thanks Nicki!
These look amazing and I am bout to make a batch, but I am curious as to why the Cream of Tartar. Will these not rise with just baking powder and soda? What is the purpose? I’m honestly too lazy to drive to the store for a little container of it!
Sorry for the delayed response. Your comment somehow ended up in my spam folder. The cream of tartar gives the bars the classic snickerdoodle flavor. Feel free to leave it out, though, if you don’t have it on hand.
Where do you find pumpkin puree? I looked for it and couldn’t find it.
Thanks…the recipe sounds wonderful!!
It is usually in the baking aisle near the pie filling. Just make sure you’re grabbing plain pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling! 🙂
These were so good, and satisfied my sweet/pumpkin cravings! I loved the texture of it – Probably could have baked another minuet or two, but I like my brownies a little gooey, so I figured these would be good that way too. 🙂 I did add a little extra pumpkin puree and spices to the icing, trying to take away some sweetness and then I just put cinnamon on the top, without the sugar. VERY GOOD! Someone suggested trying to put sea salt on top. I think I would leave it as is, but for those salty-sweet eaters, I’m sure it would be great. Definitely will make again!
I’m so glad you liked it, Jenny! Thanks for letting me know!
how do you get 24 servings out of a 9×9 pan???
These bars are very rich, so most people are satisfied with a small piece! Hope that helps!
I’m surprised there’s no brown sugar. My snickerdoodle recipe calls for 2 cups. Just wanna be sure the recipe is correct.
Yes, this recipe just uses 3/4 cup white sugar. Hope that helps!
I tried this recipe for the first time. I changed it up a bit. I feel like it should have more pumpkin.
Great pictures!
My husband doesn’t like pumpkin but he LOVES snickerdoodles … I bet I can make him eat pumpkin by making these. LOL. Pinned and can’t wait to try soon! Beautiful photos, by the way. <3
These look amazing! I can’t wait to make these!
Looks amazing!!
The base turned out too cake like. By the photos I thought it would be more dense. I do live at high altitude so maybe that is why. The flavor is good and I love the idea…back to the lab.