Description
Rich chocolate base topped with a creamy pumpkin cheesecake layer and a buttery crumble—perfect fall dessert bars.
Ingredients
- 15.25 ounces boxed chocolate cake mix
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup salted butter, melted
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature (1 brick)
- 15 ounces pumpkin puree (1 can)
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- ¾ cup all‑purpose flour
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (for crumble)
- 8 tablespoons salted butter, very soft (for crumble)
- ½ cup semi‑sweet chocolate chips or chunks
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 °F. Grease a 9×13 baking dish or line with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Chocolate Layer: In a medium bowl (or stand mixer), combine chocolate cake mix, egg, and melted butter. Mix until smooth.
- Press this cake mixture firmly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish.
- Pumpkin Cheesecake Layer: In a separate bowl, beat together cream cheese and pumpkin puree until smooth and no lumps remain.
- Add the eggs, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and cloves; mix to combine.
- Gradually stir in the powdered sugar, little by little, until the mixture is smooth.
- Crumble Topping: In a bowl, stir together flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon.
- Add the very soft butter; mix with a fork until clumps form (crumbly texture).
- Assemble: Pour the pumpkin cheesecake batter over the chocolate layer, smoothing to cover evenly.
- Sprinkle the chocolate chips evenly over the pumpkin layer.
- Evenly top with the crumble mixture.
- Bake for 50‑60 minutes at 350 °F, or until center is no longer jiggly and top is golden brown.
- Remove from oven and let cool.
- For clean slices, after cooling, chill in the refrigerator for about an hour before cutting.
Notes
- Refrigeration: Store in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days. The cream cheese & pumpkin layer stays freshest when chilled. Bars are good cold or room temperature.
- Freezing: Freeze in a single layer on a baking sheet until solid, then transfer to freezer‑safe container with parchment between layers. Keeps up to 2 months. Thaw in fridge overnight.
- Variation ideas: drizzle salted caramel over pumpkin layer either before baking or after cooling; use dark chocolate or chunks instead of semi‑sweet chips; add nuts (pecans/walnuts) to crumble; spice the crumble with ginger or cardamom; try using ginger‑snap crust instead of cake mix base.
- Substitute: Homemade pumpkin purée works, but ensure it's thick and well‑drained to avoid excess moisture.
- Tips: Let cream cheese & eggs come to room temp for smoother pumpkin layer; don’t overmix crumble or it turns doughy; check doneness with toothpick—it should come out with moist crumbs but not wet batter.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 bar
- Calories: 472 kcal
- Sugar: 46 g
- Sodium: 450 mg
- Fat: 24 g
- Saturated Fat: 13 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0.5 g
- Carbohydrates: 63 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 5 g
- Cholesterol: 80 mg
