Pumpkin Pie Crumble Bars

I am one of pumpkin pie’s biggest fans. I’m still on the hunt for my favorite vegan pumpkin pie recipe, but these crumble bars are also an amazing dessert with an incredible crust.

If you’re one of the very few who read the text before the recipe (I almost always “jump to recipe”– food bloggers have to write a certain amount of text in a blog post for it to show up well in search engines), here’s a story for you. I was born 6 weeks early, and had holes in my heart. I was born in February, but by the following Thanksgiving I had just had open-heart surgery and was a very tiny 9-month old. My family was at my grandparent’s house for Thanksgiving, and they gave me a taste of pumpkin pie. I loved it, and ate and ate. My grandma whipped up the custard part and baked more for me, and everyone was happy that I seemed to have an appetite for pumpkin pie. I started gaining weight after that, and have loved pumpkin pie ever since.

I have been avoiding gluten lately because it seems to help me not get stomach aches, so as I researched a gluten-free oil-free pie crust, I decided to try something like this, made of nuts and oats. It’s the yummiest part, that’s why it’s on the bottom AND top!

They are best the next day, after the flavors can deepen and the custard set up more. So, if you can, bake it the day before you want it (or at least let it cool more than 2 hours). Eat them as is, or with a scoop of nice cream or vegan whipped cream on top.

For more whole-food plant based pumpkin recipes, check these out!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies  (low-fat!)

Pumpkin Spice “Latte”

Pumpkin Pecan Pancakes with Apple Syrup

The Best Healthy Pumpkin Muffins 

Creamy Herbed Pumpkin Pasta

If you make any of these recipes, don’t forget to post a picture and tag me on Facebook or Instagram! @faithful.plateful

5 from 1 vote

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Pumpkin Crumble Bars

Prep Time

20 mins

Cook Time

50 mins

 

A delicious crust and crumble makes these bars the perfect fall dessert!

Course: Dessert

Keyword: gluten-free, oil-free, pumpkin bars, pumpkin pie, wfpb

Servings: 16 squares

Author: Faithful Plateful

Ingredients

Crust/Crumble

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 3 TBSP ground flax seed
• 2 TBSP runny almond butter (or peanut butter)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup chopped pecans

Filling

• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup coconut milk cream (cream from top of can of regular coconut milk--not light)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 3 TBSP cornstarch or tapioca starch
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp allspice

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Get a 8x8 inch square pan out, and line it with parchment paper for easier clean up, if desired. No need to grease it.

2. Combine the crust ingredients together in a bowl until well-mixed. Take out 1 cup of the mixture, and press the rest evenly into the bottom of the pan. Bake for 10 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, whisk the filling ingredients together. Pour it over the crust, and sprinkle the remaining 1 cup of crumble over the top.

4. Return it to the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool, preferably for at least 1 or 2 hours, or overnight, to fully set up and for flavors to deepen.

5. Cut into squares and serve with plant milk, nice cream, or vegan ice cream or whipped cream. If desired, drizzle warm almond butter and maple syrup over the top. Not needed though.

   You can whip up the remaining coconut cream from the can of of coconut milk (not the watery part) for several minutes until fluffy, and mix with a little powdered sugar for an easy whipped cream.