Pumpkin chocolate chip bars - moist vegan pumpkin spice cake bars filled with chocolate chips. This is the perfect snack cake for Autumn!
These vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cake bars are somewhere between a cake and a blondie - moist, chewy, lightly spiced and totally addictive!
I know that pumpkin based desserts are usually only reserved for September/October, but given that pumpkin puree comes in tins I see no reason to not indulge in pumpkin treats year round. Or at least when the weather is cold.
These vegan pumpkin chocolate chip bars are easy to make and so delicious. They have a warm, spiced flavour and a soft, moist texture and are packed with chocolate chips.
They keep well in an airtight container so are perfect for snacking on; or try having them warmed up with ice cream for dessert!
I veganised this recipe by Cooking Classy; they turned out so well there is no way that you could tell that they are vegan!
How To Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars:
(For ingredients and full instructions see the recipe card below)
*For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them. *
Start by preheating the oven and greasing a 23cm/9in square cake tin. Line it with a strip of baking parchment, leaving some overhanging on either side so that it is easier to lift the cake out of the tin.
Mix together ground flax seed (or you can use ground chia seeds) with water and set aside to go gloopy.
Sift together plain flour, pumpkin spice (or you can use mixed spice if you are in the UK and can't get hold of pumpkin spice), bicarbonate of soda and a pinch of salt.
In a separate bowl, whisk together vegan butter, caster sugar and light brown soft sugar with an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. It is best to use a solid block butter for baking, not the spreadable kind in a tub. I like Naturli Vegan Block which is available from Sainsbury’s.
Add the flax seed mixture to the butter mixture along with pumpkin puree and vanilla extract and whisk until smooth. It will look a bit split and gross, don't worry!
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl and fold in until no lumps of flour remain then stir in a little non dairy milk followed by lots of chocolate chips. Reserve a handful of them to scatter over the top of the cake later though.
Spread the batter out evenly in the prepared tin and scatter over the reserved chocolate chips, press them into the batter slightly.
Bake for about half an hour until the cake is firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
Once the cake has cooled, cut it into squares and store in an airtight container.
Can I Freeze These Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars?:
Yes! They freeze really well. Allow to defrost at room temperature.
How To Make Pumpkin Puree:
I used tinned pumpkin puree to make these vegan chocolate chip pumpkin bars which I get from Sainsbury’s; it can also be found in some Tesco’s, Waitrose and on Ocado and Amazon.
If you can’t find it however it is also really easy to make your own; you just need to roast an eating pumpkin or a butternut squash until it is tender then puree it until smooth – here’s a helpful guide on how to make pumpkin puree.
More Vegan Pumpkin Recipes:
- Pumpkin spice granola
- Vegan pumpkin pancakes
- Pumpkin bread rolls
- Vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
- Vegan pumpkin cake with maple pecans and cinnamon buttercream
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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars (Vegan)
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp ground flax or chia seeds
- 3 Tbsp water
- 260 g (2 cups + 2 Tbsp) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 1 Tbsp pumpkin spice/mixed spice
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- pinch salt
- 115 g (4oz) vegan butter (block rather than the spreadable tub kind)
- 150 g (¾ cup) caster sugar
- 110 g (scant ⅔ cup) light brown soft sugar
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 240 g (1 cup) pumpkin puree
- 2 Tbsp non dairy milk (I used soy)
- 175 g (6oz) dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Grease a 23cm/9inch square cake tin and line with baking parchment.
- Mix the ground flax seed and water in a small bowl and set aside to go gloopy.
- Sift together the flour, pumpkin spice, bicarbonate of soda and salt. Set aside.
- Place the vegan butter and sugars in a bowl and whisk with an electric mixer until smooth and fluffy.
- Add the pumpkin puree, vanilla extract and flax seed mixture and whisk until smooth. It will look a bit split and gross - don't worry!
- Add the dry ingredients and fold in until well combined then stir in the milk followed by most of the chocolate chips; reserving a handful.
- Spread the batter out evenly in the prepared tin and scatter over the reserved chocolate chips, press them into the batter slightly.
- Bake for about 30 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Leave to cool in the tin then flip the cake out and slice into squares. Store in an airtight container for up to five days.
Notes
Marianne
Hi would this work without the flax or chia seeds or is there a substitute? Thanks
hannahhossack
Hi Marianne, I haven't tested them using anything else so I can't say for sure how they would turn out. The flax seeds mixed with water are there as an egg replacer so you could try using a commercial egg substitute instead; or they might work with an extra 4 Tbsp pumpkin puree or applesauce instead.
Marianne
Thanks for your prompt reply. Will try it out!
hannahhossack
I hope you enjoy them! Let me know how they turn out! 🙂
Dorothy
You nailed it with these bars! So good. I had pumpkin left over from the holidays and wanted an easy dessert with some chocolate and no eggs (because I didn't have any). Even my husband, who doesn't like anything w/ pumpkin, ate two big pieces:-)
Amanda
Wondering how I could use maple syrup instead of the other sweetener? Thank you
Hannah
Hi Amanda, unfortunately you cannot use a liquid sweetener in place of a dry one as it will throw of the moisture balance of the recipe.
Amanda R Rediger
Thank you. Do you have any vegan gluten-free maple syrup sweetened pumpkin bakery items? Thank-you Amanda
Hannah
Hi Amanda, no, I don't I'm afraid.
Amanda R Rediger
No
Worries. Thank you
Meg
Everyone loved these. Replaced the flax egg with Just Egg. Will be making again, many times.