No-bake, Pumpkin Pie Bars

I’m fairly confident pumpkin-everything season has officially begun 😉 I’m here to share my contribution: no-bake pumpkin pie bars!

Seriously guys, these taste SO good! And since you don’t have to turn on your oven, you can make them even it’s still 90 degrees outside 😉

I think these pumpkin pie bars are served best cold, with a little whipped cream and a candied pecan on top. But I don’t always have time for all those fancy toppings…

I’ll confess, I’ve made these as a straight pudding, and eaten it as a dip with graham crackers. Please don’t judge me! haha!

I hope your family enjoys this treat as much as mine! 😀

Here’s the recipe:

No-Bake, Pumpkin Pie Bars

Recipe Type: Dessert

Author: Heather, The Caterpillar Years

Serves: 12 bars

The perfect way to enjoy pumpkin pie in early fall! Top with your favorite whipped topping, and/or candied pecans! YUM!

Ingredients

Crust
10 whole graham crackers
6 Tbsp butter, melted
1/3 Cup brown sugar
Pumpkin Filling
2 Cups whole milk
4.6 oz package vanilla, cook-and-serve pudding (the big package)
1 Cup pumpkin purée
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground ginger
Dash of ground cloves (You really only need a dash. Even an 1/8 tsp is overpowering in this recipe)

Instructions

Crust

Crush the graham crackers in a food processor, blender, or plastic baggie with your hands, until you get fine crumbs.
Add the brown sugar and melted butter to the graham cracker crumbs an mix until everything is the consistency of wet sand.
Press the crumb mixture into your chosen dish (I use an 8×8 baking dish).
Chill the crust while you make the pumpkin filling.

Pumpkin Filling

In a medium pot, over medium-high heat, bring milk just to a boil.
Pour in the pudding mix, and stir with a whisk until the mixture thickens and begins to boil.
Turn the heat down to low.
Mix in the pumpkin purée until smooth.
Mix in the cinnamon, salt, ginger and cloves until they are evenly distributed throughout the mixture.
Pour the pumpkin filling on top of the graham cracker crust. Smooth out the top by softly tapping the container, on the counter.
Chill for 3 hours, or until the filling is firm.
Cut into bars, and serve chilled or room temperature.
Optional: Top with your favorite whipped topping and candied pecans.