These easy gluten-free pumpkin bars are the best way to welcome in the fall. Enjoy the flavors of earthy almond flour, fresh pumpkin puree, sweet Medjool dates, and seasonal spices. The whole family will love these sweet snack bars. Gluten and refined sugar free!
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This post is sponsored by iHerb. All thoughts and opinions are 100% mine.
Craving a sweet autumnal treat to celebrate the change in seasons? These flavored-packed pumpkin bars are the ultimate solution to your fall cravings. If you are in the mood for delicious pumpkin flavors and warm seasonal spices, then I am sure you will love these gluten free bars.
Perfect for any occasion, these vegan pumpkin bars are what you seek! They are easy to make, full of flavor, kid-approved, and healthy (and hearty) enough for breakfast. Best of all, you can get nearly all of the ingredients at iHerb. That means high quality foods delivered right to your front door!
So what are you waiting for? Let us welcome this new season with the delicious smells and tastes of pumpkin.
Recommended Equipment & Ingredients
I found nearly all the ingredients for this recipe at iHerb.com, an online store filled with over 30,000 natural and organic top quality products. The remaining ingredients are easily found at any well-stocked grocery store.
Here is everything you need.
Ingredient Notes
- Oats: For this recipe, I used Bob’s Red Mill Old Fashioned Rolled Oats. These are the best oats you can find and the only oats I recommend. For a gluten free bar, make sure to pick up Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free variety.
- Maple Syrup – This recipe is sweetened with maple syrup for the best blend of autumnal flavors. I recommend Now Foods Organic Maple Syrup.
- Almond Flour – This adds additional nutty flavor while keeping these bars gluten-free. Look for Now Foods Raw Almond Flour for best flavor.
- Pumpkin: Make sure to use pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling.
- Dates: Make sure to use Medjool dates for this recipe. Medjool dates are sweeter and juicier. My go-to brand is Bergin Organic Medjool Dates.
- Coconut Oil – I use Nutiva Organic Coconut Oil for a healthier option.
- Spices – For this recipe, you will need ground nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon. I use Simply Organic spices, all which can be found at iHerb.
What is iHerb?
iHerb is an online store filled with over 30,000 natural and organic products ranging from home, beauty, food, pets, supplements, personal care, and more.
iHerb carries top-quality brands – ones that you probably recognize – and ships from climate-controlled distribution centers to ensure quality products to over 180 countries around the world!
Not only do they have everything I want, but also their shipping is fast and their prices are great. iHerb is convenient, affordable, and I am certain to get top-quality ingredients.
How iHerb Works
Picking out items at iHerb is super easy. Because they only carry the best brands, you don’t have to look through a lot of products to find the good ones. Simply type in what you’re looking for in the search bar and review your selections.
Once you fill up your cart, review it, select shipping and payment methods, and you’re good to go. iHerb offers customer service 5 days a week in 10 different languages, making it an easy and convenient online shopping experience.
Mini Grocery Haul
One of the best features of iHerb is the Vegan Grocery Section which is filled with over 1000 vegan groceries. I love to shop for many of my non-perishable foods here. By shopping in the vegan grocery section of iHerb, I can grab my favorite snacks and staples without having to spend time reading all the ingredients. And from the comfort of my own home. It’s a win-win!
This past mini grocery haul included some of my favorite items such as:
- Simple Mills Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Now Roasted Pistachios
- Bob’s Red Mill Nutritional Yeast
- Peanut Butter & Co Smooth Peanut Butter
- Bear Naked Almond Coconut Granola
I highly recommend trying iHerb for yourself. New AND returning customers will get a discount off their iHerb order with no minimum purchase.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step One – Soak the Dates
Pit the dates and place them in a liquid measuring cup along with 2 cups of water. Soak them for 30 minutes to allow them to rehydrate and soften.
Don’t skip this step. It’s important to let the dates soften enough so they blend completely with your pumpkin filling.
Step Two – Make the Filling
Drain and rinse the dates. Place them in a food processor along with the pumpkin, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, ground cloves, and orange zest. Blend together, scraping down the sides of the food processor as needed. Blend until the filling is completely smooth.
Taste and adjust spices if needed.
Step Three – Prepare the Oat Crumble
Combine the oats, almond flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a smaller bowl, whisk together the melted coconut oil and maple syrup. Add the maple syrup mixture to the oats and mix to combine.
The oat crumble should hold together when pressed between your fingers. If it is falling apart, add a little more oil to the mixture.
Step Four – Assemble and Bake
Pour half of the oat crumble on the bottom of the prepared baking sheet and press down evenly. Top with the pumpkin filling, smoothing even with an offset spatula, and finish by sprinkling the remaining oat crumble over the top.
Bake the bars for 25-30 minutes until the crumb is golden brown. Remove the oats from the oven and allow them to cool completely prior to cutting into squares.
Pro Tip: Do not try to cut into these bars while they are still warm or they will fall apart.
Serving and Storing
Serving – Once cool, slice and serve the bars. Serve with vegan whipped cream, ice cream, or a drizzle of peanut or almond butter.
Storing – Store the leftovers in an airtight container for up to five days. Freeze the bars for up to three months by placing them in a freezer-safe container or bag. Let them thaw at room temperature for several hours before enjoying.
Tips and Tricks
- For best results, chill the cooled pumpkin bars in the refrigerator for an hour before cutting and serving. This helps hold the bars together.
- For a gluten free bar, make sure to pick up gluten free oats.
- Make sure to use pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling. They are often sold next to each other at the grocery store. Don’t like pumpkin? Try this recipe with sweet potato puree instead.
- Looking for variation? Add some dairy-free chocolate chips or your favorite chopped nut for some additional flavor and texture.
Frequently Asked Questions
These pumpkin bars are refined sugar free, gluten free, and full of plant-based fiber and protein. If you’re looking for a nutritious snack, I recommend this recipe!
For sure! Use your favorite nut flour of choice. I have also tried this recipe with coconut flour and hazelnut flour with great results.
If your crumble is falling apart, first try adding more liquid to the crumble. It should stick when pressed between your fingers. Also, make sure to firmly press the crumble into the prepared pan and let it cool thoroughly before cutting into bars.
More iHerb Recipes
Loving iHerb and wanna find more inspired recipes?
- 20-Minute Kung Pao Tofu
- Vegan Cherry Pie Cups
- Chipotle Butternut Squash Chili
- Wild Rice Stuffed Acorn Squash
Gluten-Free Pumpkin Bars
Ingredients
Pumpkin Date Filling
- 1 cup packed Medjool dates, pitted and soaked for 30 minutes
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- zest of 1 large orange, about 2 teaspoons
Oat Crumble
- 2 1/2 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup almond meal
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the dates and place them in a food processor along with the remaining pumpkin filling ingredients. Blend until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. This may take up to 5 minutes. Set aside.
- For the oat crumble combine oats, almond meal, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a medium sized bowl. In a smaller bowl whisk together the melted coconut oil and maple syrup. Add the coconut oil/syrup mixture to the oats and stir to combine. Note: The oat crumble should hold together when pressed between your fingers. If it is falling apart, add a little more oil to the mixture.
- Pour half of the oat crumble on the bottom of the prepared baking sheet and press down. Top with the pumpkin filling, smoothing even with an offset spatula. Finish by sprinkling the remaining oat crumble evenly over the top and press down lightly.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until the crumb is golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely. For best results, let the bars cool down to room temperature and then chill them in the refrigerator for an additional hour so that the bars set completely. Once chilled, cut into 9 even pieces.
Notes
- For best results, chill the cooled pumpkin bars in the refrigerator for an hour before cutting and serving. This helps hold the bars together.
- For a gluten free bar, make sure to pick up gluten free oats.
- Make sure to use pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling. They are often sold next to each other at the grocery store.
Hi, I’m Sarah. I’m a 14-year (and counting) vegan, professionally trained photographer, former pastry chef, founder of My Darling Vegan, and author of the
Debbie says
Hi….Is there anything I could substitute for the almond meal? Almonds is one of my food sensitivities. Thanks!
Katrina says
I made these the other day. Not bad . I would cut back on the cloves and orange zest and use a whole can of pumpkin, It didn’t have a strong enough pumpkin flavor for our liking. the zest and cloves over powered the pumpkin. I will make some changes and let you know how it turns out.
Michelle says
Can i use steel cut oats rather than rolled oats
Sarah says
I imagine if you were to use steel cut oats, you may need to cook them a little first. I’m not sure they would get fully cooked in the oven. You would also have to adjust the liquid ingredients a bit but I’m not really sure how much as I’ve never tried it.
Nikki says
Can these be frozen? Do they thaw well? They look delish! Thank you
Sarah says
I haven’t tried freezing them, but that should be fine.
Danielle Buck says
Have you made this with apple?! Fresh or canned? What do you think would work best. I did however LOVE this with pumpkin, amazing. Everyone at work loved it too. My kid was not a fan of the pumpkin though. I Think apple would suit her better. Thaaks for the yum in my tum!
Sarah says
Apple would be great, although I haven’t tried it myself. I would use canned and puree it a bit so that it’s similar consistency to the pumpkin.
Sabrina says
Update….
Well I made them they are indeed tasty but I have a question on texture, should they be soft to the point they don’t hold their shape as a bar?I had trouble taking them out of my pirex 8×8 baking dish . They seem so soft and the topping was not that crunchy ? I cooked them in a convection oven. Would that have made a difference?
Thanks
Sabrina
Sabrina says
I’m heading for to the store to make these! I’ll let you know how they turn out!
Jessica Oberhauser says
These are absolutely amazing! My 2 year old agrees with me too! I could eat these for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack! Strangely enough, these almost taste like apple crisp to me. Thanks for sharing 🙂
Katie says
I went hunting for a recipe to use up some pumpkin puree and found this recipe. Finally got a chance to make them yesterday and wow! They are absolutely delicious! Even my sister, who isn’t a fan of pumpkin, loved them. I didn’t have quite enough maple syrup and had to substitute about 1/4 cup of honey, but I could still taste the maple. My substitution might have led to the trouble I had getting it out of the pan, but after freezing them overnight it was easy to pop them right out! I have a feeling this is something I will be making quite often to take to parties this fall.
lori says
Wow, these are so delicious! Too good, in fact. I can’t stop eating them! 🙂
Lindsay says
Can I omit the almond meal?
Sarah says
You would have to replace it with something else like ap flour or another nut flour.
Nicole says
Sorry if this is a dumb question…but quick cooking or old fashioned oats?
Sarah says
I don’t think it would matter but I used old fashioned.
Jade says
Hello! I was really excited to find a link to your page, but saddened, because there doesn’t seem to be a recipe for the Gluten Free Pumpkin Date Bars. (maybe I’m having some issues loading the page….?) Is the recipe something you could possibly email me?
Thank you!
Sarah says
What recipe are you finding? I’ve had other people have a similar issue but when I double check it, I see the correct recipe. I’m talking with the people who developed the plugin to see if they can explain this. I’ll email you the correct recipe, but if you have a chance can you tell me what you do see? Thanks!
Kay says
1/2 what of coconut oil?
Kamber says
These look delicious! I can’t wait to try them. It looks like you left off the measurement for the coconut oil. I assume it is 1/2 cup. Is that right? Thanks so much!
Sarah says
Oops and thank you! Yes it’s cup and I will fix it right now.
Meredith Feisel says
Wait, it was suppose to be a cup of coconut oil?
Sarah says
1/2 cup
Katia says
These are so good! I had to use half almond flour and half oat flour. The crumble fell off a bit. Is there anything I can add to keep the crumble together a bit more so it’s not so messy? I also used about 1/4 syrup instead of 1/2 so maybe that’s the issue but I don’t want them to be super sweet.
Caitlin says
when i look back on my childhood, my most favorite memories are the traditions my family kept year after year (and some still going strong). i always think about having children and the traditions we would start and the ones we would continue to do with my parents. although some traditions can be unnecessary and stifling (see: religion), family traditions that celebrate the seasons and time together is magical and important <3