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A cookie sheet of pumpkin bars with chocolate and a silver spatula holding a square on it.
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Sheet Pan Pumpkin Bars

Sheet Pan Pumpkin Bars with mini chocolate chips are a Fall favorite pumpkin recipe at my house! Makes enough for a crowd and you'll love the smell of the warm pumpkin spices as they bake in the oven. These pumpkin bars use moist ingredients like pure pumpkin, melted butter, whole milk, and an entire bag of mini chocolate chips. 
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword chocolate chip pumpkin bars, sheet pan dessert, sheet pan pumpkin bars
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Cooling Time 30 minutes
Total Time 25 minutes
Servings 24
Calories 179kcal
Author Jessica - Together as Family

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter melted
  • cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup pure pumpkin
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tablespoon whole milk
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 bag (10 oz) mini chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350° F. Prepare a cookie sheet/half sheet pan (13"x17") that has sides on it, and spray it well with cooking spray making sure to spray the sides as well. Set aside for later.
  • In a large mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer, or use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the melted butter, sugar, pure pumpkin, and vanilla extract until combined and mixed well.
    How to make this recipe with step by step process photo collages with pictures.
  • Add in the eggs and whole milk. Beat until just combined and incorporated.
  • Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt. Beat on low speed, increasing speed as needed, until no flour pockets or streaks remain in the batter.
    How to make this recipe with step by step process photo collages with pictures.
  • Stir in the bag of mini chocolate chips with a wooden spoon or spatula.
    * If wanted, reserve about 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips to sprinkle on top of the batter before baking.
  • Spread the batter into the prepared cookie sheet, using a spatula to smooth it out as best as you can.
    * The batter will create a thin layer, which is normal, as it cooks the batter will puff up and thicken.
  • If you reserved some chocolate chips, sprinkle those on top of the bars before baking.
    How to make this recipe with step by step process photo collages with pictures.
  • Bake for 14-18 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
    The edges will be golden brown and pulled away from the sides of the pan, and the middle should not look wet and shiny (usually means it's raw).
  • Let the pumpkin bars cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes before slicing into squares for serving.

Notes

Baking Sheet/Sheet Pan : While the recipe is a 'sheet pan' recipe, most people think of a cookie sheet when they read 'sheet pan'. Technically it's called a half sheet pan or a baking sheet. Whatever it's called, make sure that you use one with sides on it and that it measures 13" x 17" in size. 
Pizza Cutter? : You might be asking why I have a pizza cutter under the 'equipment' section above. I love cutting these bars using a pizza cutter because you can roll it right along inside the cookie sheet and it cuts them nicely and cleanly. To get really nice looking bars, when cutting, make sure that they have cooled in the pan for at least 30 minutes. If you try to cut the warm bars, they will fall apart. 
Chocolate Chips : Because the batter is so thin when spreading it out, it's easier to use mini chocolate chips. With that said, I tried this recipe with regular sized milk chocolate chips, and while we preferred the milk chocolate it was harder to spread out the batter because of the larger sized chips inside the batter. 
Use whatever you prefer in this recipe. Milk chocolate chips are another great choice! If you're not using the mini bag of chips, measure out 1 cup + 1/4 cup of regular sized chocolate chips. 
Thicker Bars vs Thinner Bars : This recipe does yield a thinner bar, but it's not too thin, it's more like a traditional bar thickness. If you want thicker pumpkin bars, bake the batter in a 15"x10" baking pan instead. The cook time will need to be increased by a few minutes, so watch it carefully. 

Nutrition

Calories: 179kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 27mg | Sodium: 138mg | Potassium: 42mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 1752IU | Vitamin C: 0.5mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 1mg