Pumpkin Spice Cookie Bars

Fall is my favorite time of the year. During the hot summer months,  I long for the Fall months that bring cooler weather to South Florida. I also long for the delicious pumpkin baked goods that arrive with Fall.

Another thing I look forward to during the Fall months is the return of the seasonal flavor of Coffee-mate’s Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer. Coffee-mate’s seasonal flavors hit store shelves in September and are available until January. When the first week of September rolls around, I shop the dairy section of the grocery store religiously, waiting for the seasonal flavors to hit the shelves. When I spotted them this year, I bought three bottles of the pumpkin spice. You could say it’s my favorite coffee creamer flavor. I like to put it in my coffee and I like to bake with it.

Things to know about these Pumpkin Spice Cookie Bars.

• The gingersnap crust is homemade
• They contain white chocolate and butterscotch chips.
• Pumpkin seeds lend a little salty flavor to these bars.
• Coffee Mate pumpkin spice creamer was used in the making of these bars.
• They will make you realize it’s fall.
• You will want to eat ALL of them.

Pumpkin Spice Cookie Bars

Yield: 15-20 bars

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Ingredients

For the gingersnap cookie crust (adapted from BHG New Cookbook)

• 2 1/2 C all purpose flour
• 1 C packed brown sugar
• 3/4 C shortening
• 1/4 C molasses
• 1 egg, room temp
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 C pumpkin puree

For the topping

• 1/2 C diced caramel squares (I just cut mine into fours)
• 1/2 C white chocolate chips
• 1/2 C butterscotch chips
• 1/4 C roasted pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 C shredded sweetened coconut
• 1/2 C Coffee-mate Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer
• 1/2 C sweetened condenses milk
• 1/4 C pumpkin puree

Instructions

1. Line a 13x9 baking pan with parchment paper. Make sure there is enough going over the sides to be able to grab and pull the bars out of the pan once they have cooled.
2. Preheat your oven to 350

For the gingersnap cookie crust

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the flour, brown sugar, molasses, pumpkin puree, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, baking soda, egg and shortening until well combined and you have a ball of cookie dough.
2. Press the cookie dough into the 9x13 baking pan. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.
3. Remove from the oven.

Assemble the bars

1. Combine the butterscotch and white chocolate chips and mix well. Sprinkle over the partially cooked gingersnap cookie crust. Evenly distribute the caramel pieces over top of the white chocolate and butterscotch chips. Add the shredded coconut and pumpkin seeds.
2. Whisk together the 1/4 C pumpkin puree, sweetened condenses milk and Coffee-mate Pumpkin Spice Coffee Creamer. Pour the mixture over the bars.
3. Return the bars to the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the mixture is bubbly.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to completely cool.
5. Remove the bars from the pan by lifting up on the parchment paper. Cut into squares. Enjoy.

I was selected for this opportunity by Clever Girls Collective. All content and opinions expressed are my own.

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