Vegan Pumpkin Crumb Bars
Vegan pumpkin crumb bars - these easy bars are basically pumpkin pie in a more convenient bar form. With a buttery shortbread biscuit base, smooth, creamy, custardy spiced pumpkin filling and a crisp pecan streusel topping they are an irresistible treat for Thanksgiving!
Servings 12 people
Ingredients
Shortbread:
- 200 g (¾ cup + 2 Tablespoons vegan block butter slightly softened
- 90 g (7 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 50 g (5 packed Tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 250 g (2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
Streusel Topping:
- 115 g (⅔ + ¼ cup) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 60 g (⅓ cup) light brown soft sugar
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 75 g (⅓ cup) vegan block butter cold
- 50 g (⅓ cup) pecans roughly chopped
Pumpkin Filling:
- 425 g (one 15 oz can) pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
- 215 g (7 ½ oz) firm silken tofu
- 45 g (3 Tablespoons) vegan block butter melted
- 90 g (7 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 90 ml (6 Tablespoons) maple syrup
- 35 g (4 Tablespoons) cornflour (cornstarch)
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Line a 23 cm / 9 inch square cake tin with baking parchment, making sure that you leave some overhanging so that you can easily lift the baked bars out of the tin.
- Start by making the shortbread. Whisk together the softened vegan butter, caster sugar and vanilla extract with an electric mixer until it is light and fluffy.
- Sift together the plain flour and cornflour (cornstarch) then add them to the butter mixture. Stir with a spatula until it forms a dough, it may seem like it is too much flour but it will combine eventually.
- Tip the dough into the prepared cake tin and use your hands to pack it down as firmly and as evenly as possible.
- Bake the shortbread for 40 mins until it is golden brown. Loosely cover with tin foil towards the end of baking if it starts to colour too much.
- Meanwhile make the streusel topping. Mix the flour, brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub in the cold butter using your fingertips until no lumps of butter remain and the mixture is clumping together then stir in the chopped pecans.
- To make the pumpkin filling, place the pumpkin puree, silken tofu, melted butter, sugar, maple syrup, cornflour, spices, vanilla and salt in a blender and blitz until smooth.
- Pour the pumpkin filling over the baked shortbread and spread it level. Scatter over the streusel.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes until the filling feels set, it will still be slighty soft in the centre but should not feel too squishy. Loosely cover with tin foil towards the end of baking if the streusel starts to colour too much.
- Leave the bars to cool to room temperature then refrigerate for at least 2 hours before slicing into bars. Keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- All of my recipes are developed using grams, and as with all of my baking recipes I really do recommend using the metric measurements with a digital scale rather than the cup coversions. Cups are a wildly inaccurate measuring system and you will get far better, more consistent results using a scale, not to mention that it is also easier and less messy than cups!