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Pumpkin Cream Cheese Blondies

Pumpkin cream cheese blondies with a cinnamon-spiced batter and a tangy cream cheese swirl baked through the center. Melted browned butter and pumpkin keep the bars golden and tender, finished with a caramel drizzle for a bakery-style look.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 32 minutes
Resting (cooling butter) 10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 2 minutes
Servings: 16 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 320
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For blondies
  • 2 cup flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1 cup butter (melted and browned) brown until amber and nutty; cool as directed
  • 1.5 cup brown sugar
  • 0.33 cup pumpkin (blotted dry) blot to reduce moisture
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 tsp vanilla
For cream cheese swirl
  • 8 oz cream cheese, softened
  • 0.25 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 0.5 tsp vanilla
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon
Caramel drizzle
  • 1 caramel sauce for drizzling

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Brown butter and prep the pan
  1. Brown the butter, then cool it for 10 minutes until no longer hot (amber color with a nutty aroma is the cue).
  2. Preheat the oven to 350F, then grease a 9x13 pan so the blondies release cleanly after baking.
Make the blondie batter
  1. Whisk the flour, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt together until evenly combined and free of clumps.
  2. Whisk the browned butter with the brown sugar until glossy and smooth.
  3. Add the blotted pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla, then mix just until combined and thick.
  4. Add the flour mixture and fold until no dry streaks remain, then spread the batter evenly in the pan.
Swirl in the cream cheese layer
  1. Beat the softened cream cheese, granulated sugar, egg yolk, vanilla, and cinnamon until completely smooth and pourable.
  2. Dollop the cream cheese mixture over the blondie batter, then swirl gently with a knife for visible marbling.
Bake and finish
  1. Bake at 350F for 28-32 minutes, until the center is just set and a toothpick comes out with moist crumbs (not wet batter).
  2. Drizzle with caramel, then cool completely before cutting so the swirl holds its shape.

Notes

Pro tip: blot the pumpkin well so the bars bake up tender rather than dense. Store covered in the refrigerator up to 5 days; freeze baked bars (without cutting into pieces) up to 2 months and thaw overnight in the fridge. For a lighter swap, use reduced-fat cream cheese for the swirl while keeping the baking times the same.