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Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bars. These cookie bars are made with nutty browned butter, sweet pumpkin butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, and chocolate chips. Chunks of cinnamon melt into wonderful swirls throughout the bars. They’re just scrumptious! The pumpkin butter keeps these cookie bars incredibly flavorful, doughy, sweet, salty, and delicious. They’re great to bake throughout the fall and into the holiday season, too!
My mom has always been the baker in the family. She’d occasionally cook dinner growing up, but more often than not, we usually had dessert figured out before dinner was even put into motion! Things are, of course, very different now, but back then, my mom’s baking became even more special in the fall. She was never someone who baked with pumpkin or apples, but her chocolate chip cookie bars and oatmeal chocolate chip cookies are famous among family and friends!
No one makes those recipes just as delicious as she does! But it’s because of my mom that I’m so picky about my cookie recipes.
They have to be just the right cookie, which for me means a doughy center with lots of chocolate chips and crinkles on top. Almost like a brownie, with just set edges that are not dry!
This is how my mom baked her cookies, so I love it! Pumpkin cookies can be tricky, but these are perfect!
Using pumpkin butter is undoubtedly the key to a great baked pumpkin recipe. It’s more concentrated than pumpkin puree. It’s cooked down, and the excess moisture is removed. It has the best pumpkin flavor and texture, especially for baking!
Most importantly, I find that using pumpkin butter rather than pumpkin puree results in a cookie that isn’t cakey. I don’t love cakey cookies.
These took me days to perfect, but I now have the perfect pumpkin cookie bars to share with you all!!
These are the yummiest!
Here are the Details to Know
Ingredients
- brown sugar
- salted butter
- cinnamon
- pumpkin butter
- an egg
- vanilla extract
- flour
- baking soda
- nutmeg
- salt
- chocolate chips
Handy Tools
- stand mixer or hand mixer
- mixing bowl
- medium skillet
Step 1: make the cinnamon swirl
This cinnamon swirl is also what makes these pumpkin bars so special. It’s brown sugar mixed with butter and cinnamon—exactly what you’d roll a cinnamon roll up with, which is where I drew my inspiration!
I adore cinnamon rolls in the fall and throughout the holidays!
Next, crumble the cinnamon mixture into chunks and freeze. It’s not fancy at all, but it adds a unique sweetness to this cookie.
Step 2: make the cookie dough
While the cinnamon chunks freeze, make the cookies.
Start by browning the butter. This gives the cookie the flavor of browned butter and gives it a great texture too.
I know it’s an extra step, but I always say take the time to do it! Browning the butter adds a nuttiness that’s worth the extra step.
To the butter add the pumpkin butter, brown sugar, an egg, and vanilla. Mix together, and add the dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
Step 3: swirl and bake.
At this point, the cinnamon chunks should be frozen and ready to use. Mix them into the cookie dough along with the chocolate chips. Spread the dough out into a baking dish.
Bake until they’re barely set on the edges and gooey in the center. A little underdone is best!
There’s nothing too fancy here, but the result is a perfectly chewy pumpkin cookie bar with rich notes of cinnamon and vanilla.
We couldn’t love these pumpkin cookie bars more. The cinnamon swirl really makes them special. We hope you guys love them just as much as we do!
These are certainly the cookie bars to make throughout the fall season. They’re perfect for Halloween and Thanksgiving! I’m so excited for you to try them!
Looking for other fall cookie recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Chewy Frosted Cinnamon Swirl Snickerdoodles
Easy Slice ‘n’ Bake Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies
Chewy Brown Butter Pretzel Pecan Cookies
Soft Gingerbread Latte Cookies with Brown Butter Icing
Lastly, if you make these Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bars, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And, of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Cinnamon Swirl Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookie Bars
Servings: 24 bars
Calories Per Serving: 166 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
Cinnamon Swirl
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
Pumpkin Cookie Bars
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter
- 1/2 cup pumpkin butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 -1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a 9×13 inch baking dish with parchment paper.2. To make the cinnamon swirl. In a bowl, mix the butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper. Crumble/tear the cinnamon mix over the baking sheet, creating small chunks. Freeze for 10 minutes until firm.3. To make the cookies. Add the butter to a skillet set over medium heat. Allow the butter to brown until it smells toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Pour the brown butter into a mixing bowl.4. To the butter, add the brown sugar, pumpkin butter, egg, and vanilla. Beat until combined. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Fold in the chocolate chips and 2/3rds of the cinnamon chunks.5. Spread the dough into the prepared dish. Press the remaining cinnamon chunks into the dough. Bake for 22-25 minutes, until the edges are just set and the center is still doughy. Let cool6. Cut into bars, snack, and enjoy!
This post was originally published on October 8, 2024
These are AMAZING! Do you think they would taste just as good with apple butter instead of pumpkin butter? I think I may try it and see.
Hey Marisa,
Happy Monday! I’m thrilled to hear this recipe turned out well for you!
Thanks for making it and your comment:) Sure, I think that would be yummy!
I just made these for a potluck and they were a hit! I live at 7200’ and made no adjustments to the recipe and they were perfect. A great fall treat that isn’t too sweet. Will keep these on a regular rotation!
Hi Cynthia,
Happy Friday!! I appreciate you making this recipe and your comment, I am so glad to hear it was a hit!
I am interested in making these, but I live at 7800 ft. What adjustments would you recommend if any? Thanks!
Hey Jenny,
No adjustments need to be made, you can follow this recipe as written:) Please let me know if you give them a try!
Is there a way I could make the dough ahead of time and bake later? Niche question, but My oven is out so I need to make everything to the point of baking and take to a friends to bake a few hours/a day later
Hey Avery,
Sure! I would just cover and then make sure the batter is back to room temp before baking. I hope you love this recipe! xT
I made these last night; I didn’t have pumpkin butter so I subbed apple butter and they came out SOOO good!
Hey Leslie,
Love to hear it! I appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your input! Have the best week ahead! xT
These were a hit for my family’s thanksgiving party over the weekend. I used Tieghan’s 6 ingredient pumpkin butter recipe to make the pumpkin butter for this and it was perfect. The cinnamon swirl crumble on top of these were fabulous and really elevates the bars! Thanks for the recipe, T!
Hey Katrina,
Wonderful! Thank you so much for making this recipe and your comment! So glad to hear it was enjoyed! Happy Thanksgiving! xx
Soooo good! And so easy to make. I made your pumpkin butter first and it’s delicious!!! Tastes like pumpkin pie 🙂 For me, these were more like a choc chip pumpkin brownie… but either way soooo delicious. Thank you!
Yay! Thanks so much, Julie! So glad to hear these turned out nicely for you and thanks for giving the pumpkin butter a try! xT
Can we use pumpkin puree instead of pumpkin butter? Thank you
Hi Lin,
Sure, that should work nicely for you. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you give it a try! xx
Smells like fall! Cinnamon, nutmeg and pumpkin! Yummy!
Hey Linda,
Happy Monday! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and your feedback, so glad to hear it turned out well! Happy Halloween week! 🎃
Loved the bars! I also prefer a less “cake like” bar and these are great! I made your homemade pumpkin butter for the cream cheese swirled pumpkin bread and used it in the bars too. Both recipes are awesome!
Hey Karin,
Wonderful! So glad to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks for trying it! Have the best autumn weekend! xT
Smells like fall! Cinnamon, nutmeg and pumpkin! Yummy!
I made these following your recipe (including the pumpkin butter) except I used the whole bag (12 oz) of chocolate chips! Everyone loved them! Moist! Great taste of fall!
Hey Joy,
That’s awesome! Thank you so much for trying this recipe, I’m so glad it turned out nicely for you! Xx
These were delicious!! Can they be frozen before I eat them all myself?
Hi Erin,
Amazing!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe, I’m so glad to hear it turned out well for you! Yes, you can totally freeze these. Have a great Monday! XxT
Very good dessert, texture came out perfect with a crisp crust and chewy middle. The fall flavors of pumpkin and nutmeg are mild but noticeable, not overpowering. I will add some more chips, maybe a full cup next time. Thanks for the recipe T
Hey Christopher,
Fantastic! So glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Happy Sunday! xT
Can someone please tell me what “crumble/tear” means? I’ve never done this before and that seems like the key step but I can’t find any mention of that phrase on any other cooking site. Please help!
Hi Fritz,
Once the butter is mixed with the sugar and cinnamon, it should be a clumpy texture. If you just use your hands to crumble that over the baking sheet, there should be small clumps. I hope this helps! Xx
Thanks Tieghan! I’ll try that tonight and hopefully I can figure it out as this recipe sounds delicious.
Made these tonight to bring in for National Boss’ Day, and the browned butter takes these to the next level! I love the pumpkin butter bc it allows for the subtle taste of Fall without being overwhelming. I used your 6 ingredient pumpkin butter for this recipe – I can’t wait to make this again for some holiday parties!
Hey Jenna,
Awesome! Thanks a bunch for making this recipe, love to hear it was a hit! Xx