These pumpkin brownies are deliciously rich and and fudgy, with layers of dark chocolate surrounding a smooth pumpkin cheesecake center. It’s the ultimate Fall brownie recipe!
Why you’ll love these pumpkin brownies
- No boxed brownie mix required. Brownie from scratch taste so much better.
- Extra pumpkin cream cheese = more creamy pumpkin filling in every bite.
- Each decadent, bakery style brownie gives you fiber, vitamin A, and just 120 calories.
- Did I mention how unbelievably fudgy they are? It is worth mentioning again. A tray of these brownies will disappear fast!
Also try Flourless Pumpkin Brownies
Ingredients for the pumpkin swirl brownies
Pumpkin puree – The easy option is to buy canned pumpkin puree at the store. Or make your own homemade pumpkin puree by roasting a pie pumpkin and then pulverizing the flesh until smooth.
Cocoa powder – For the best chocolatey flavor, use high quality unsweetened cocoa powder ad Dutch cocoa powder. Or experiment by replacing some of the cocoa with chocolate protein powder.
Flour – You need one cup of flour. Options that work well include all purpose white flour, whole grain spelt flour, or all purpose gluten free flour. I recommend following the gram measurements for consistent and outstanding results every time.
You may experiment with other flours, such as whole wheat flour, oat flour, or almond flour. But I have not tried any of these options so cannot vouch for them.
Cream cheese – I recommend full fat cream cheese, or dairy free cream cheese for vegan pumpkin brownies. Low fat or fat free cream cheese may not set correctly.
Sugar – Using both brown sugar and white sugar adds depth of flavor. You can substitute granulated erythritol for added sugar free pumpkin brownies. The filling calls for powdered sugar or an equal amount of a no sugar powdered sweetener.
Spices – Ground cinnamon, salt, and pumpkin pie spice perfectly compliment the pumpkin. Feel free to add a pinch of ginger or nutmeg as well.
Vanilla extract – Pure vanilla extract brings out the sweetness in the brownie base and pumpkin cream cheese filling.
Oil and water – Melted coconut oil is my favorite option here. Vegetable oil works as well. Or swap the oil for a equal amount of melted unsalted butter. You also need one cup of water.
Cornstarch – The recipe uses either cornstarch or ground flax seeds and baking powder to bind the brownies without eggs.
Step by step recipe video
How to make the best pumpkin brownies
- Start by making the pumpkin swirl filling. Add pumpkin puree, room temperature cream cheese, powdered sugar, spices, and one fourth teaspoon pure vanilla extract to a large bowl or stand mixer machine.
- Use handheld beaters or your mixer to whip the filling until thick and smooth.
- Preheat the oven to 325° Fahrenheit or about 165° Celsius.
- Grease a 9 by 13 inch rectangular baking pan, or line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper. Set this pan aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cocoa powder, flour, white sugar, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, and cornstarch or flax meal. Whisk well.
- Melt the oil if solid. Stir the oil, water, and one tablespoon of pure vanilla extract into the brownie batter until just evenly combined. To avoid a dense or gummy texture, do not overmix.
- Smooth into the prepared pan, using a spoon or spatula to spread the chocolate batter out evenly.
- Dollop blobs of the pumpkin mixture over the brownies, swirling with a spoon or a non sharp knife.
- Bake for thirty minutes on the center rack of the oven.
- Carefully remove the pan and let cool before slicing and serving.
Frequently asked questions
These are on the fudgier side, as they call for less flour and no eggs to make them rise. However, the results will vary based on the specific ingredients you choose.
As a general rule, use butter for cakey brownies or oil for fudgy brownies. For chewy brownies, simply swap the amounts of brown sugar and white sugar.
Unlike cakes, you should not use the toothpick method to test brownie doneness. Instead, make sure your oven is calibrated correctly. Remove brownies from the oven when they are still slightly underdone. This ensures your results will be soft, not overcooked or dry, because brownies continue to firm up as they cool.
Let the pan cool completely before covering, to avoid trapping excess moisture. Once cooled, cover and store leftovers on the counter overnight. Or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to six days.
Absolutely. Wrap each cooled brownie tightly in saran wrap or in a container with a layer of parchment paper between each layer of brownies. Thaw fully before serving.
The recipe was adapted from my Vegan Brownies and these Sweet Potato Brownies.
Pumpkin Brownies
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cheesecake Filling
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree (180g)
- 3 oz cream cheese or vegan cream cheese (85g)
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar (sifted) (36g)
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice (optional)
- 1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
Chocolate Brownie Layer
- 1 cup flour (120g spelt, white, or gluten free all purpose) (Or make these Keto Brownies)
- 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (60g)
- 1/4 cup Dutch cocoa powder (20g)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2/3 cup white sugar (140g)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar (90g)
- 2 tbsp cornstarch or ground flax seeds (16g)
- 1 cup water (240g)
- 2/3 cup coconut oil or unsalted butter, melted (130g)
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract (15g)
Instructions
- 1. To make the pumpkin swirl layer, whip all pumpkin cheesecake filling ingredients in a stand mixer or in a large bowl with hand beaters until smooth.
- 2. Preheat the oven to 325° Fahrenheit (165° Celsius).
- 3. Grease a 9×13 inch baking pan with oil, or line the bottom with parchment paper. Set this pan aside.
- 4. Whisk all brownie layer dry ingredients well in a large mixing bowl. Stir in liquid ingredients until just evenly combined. Do not overmix.
- 5. Use a spatula to spread the brownie batter into the pan.
- 6. Dollop blobs of the pumpkin mixture over the unbaked brownies. Then swirl with a spoon or dull knife.
- 7. Bake on the oven's center rack for 30 minutes.
- 8. Remove the pan from the oven when brownies are still a little underbaked. Allow to cool before slicing and serving.
Video
Notes
More delicious Fall desserts
Is that the right temp? 330 F for 23 minutes, mine is still raw! But it smells so good!
Put in the fridge overnight! Report back the next day… they should firm up! Let me know! 🙂
I let them sit in the oven with it off for a an hour, and they turned out great! Thanks!
Help?! I didn’t have a 8 in pan and just a 9 in pie pan and they are still completely uncooked in the middle! I’ve cooked them another 20 mins with no luck! Any advice?
Suggestion is to read the comments. The one directly above yours might help 😉
I just made these and added cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice, yum! Tasty and super easy. Thanks!
I just made these and for some reason the middle part is still goey? Did I do something wrong? I swear I followed the directions! Will it set when I let it sit for 2 hours or should i cook them longer? Thanks!
Refrigerate overnight. It will firm up!
I made this recipe two nights ago and it turned out perfection! Honestly a perfect hybrid of pumpkin pie and brownie, texture and flavor!! I used 4 tbsp “So Delicous” pumpkin spice coconut milk as my milk, and I used 2 tbsp Maple syrup and just a hair or two under of 1 cup of honey. It’s all I had on hand. I used melted soy free earth balance as the oil too. It turned out perfect! Not too cakey or fudgy, and perfectly flavored, especially because I added cinnamon, ginger and cloves. I didn’t use any chocolate chips at all, risky business I know! But they still turned perfect!
However, I made them again last night because my boyfriend are the entire tray minus the 5 I ate hehe. But, they turned out… Awful, to say the least. Completely gummy, like beyond uncooked pancake batter texture. It was inedible. I followed the recipe exact! I was maybe a tbsp away from 1/2 cup of cocoa powder this time and I used all honey. But everything else was the same!!!! I don’t know what I did wrong.
The only difference is that the first time I made them, I made them in this large white dish because my brownie pan was at my boyfriends house, I had to bake them for 43 minutes! And the skewer still was coming off with stuff on it but I waited 2 hours and they were perfect! Then last night, I baked them in an 8inch but It was a round cake pan.. I took them out at 33 minutes because they weren’t done at 23. I waited 2 hours again… And they were terrible. Absolutely gum. I couldnt eat It and all that money was thrown in the garbage. Sigh. I’ve been having a bit of a baking fail repeatedly this holidays. I used sprouted spelt flour for both times btw. I tried baking it again for another 20 minutes and that’s when I tossed it.
I’m sorry for the long post! Just confused of what to do or what I did! Maybe nexr time I’ll do half yacon syrup and half raw cane sugar, or just all cane. hmpf!
I’ve done this recipe before and loved it. Today, though my husband took over because I had to leave. When I came home the top looked perfect, they had been out for 2 hours 15 minutes. I took a piece out of the middle and, well … they weren’t really brownies. They were just goo. It didn’t hold together.
I went through the recipe and made sure I’d done everything right, and I did. The only difference is I only had 1 cup of maple syrup, but that would have the opposite effect.
I LOVE gooey brownies, but this was so underdone that I’m going to try to rebake them. Do you have any idea why they might have turned out this way?
I finally made these brownies. Sooooo good! I took some to the Y and shared with the staff there (and took the recipe!) Everyone loved them! One person said they are the best brownies ever! I have another batch in the oven right now for my friend for her birthday! This is indeed going to be my favorite recipe yet! Thanks so much!
Hi, I thought these were really good. I was wondering about the baking time and temp. It says 330 degrees and 23 minutes. ( I used maple syrup as my sugar). Mine cooked for 43 minutes…..and my oven is right on….and the 330 degrees, are these typo’s?
Hi Katie, do you have the nutritional values for these brownies?? Really interested in the sugar/carb count. Thank you!
Absolutely delicious! Just made some brownie bites, and they’re perfect! Could use some more pumpkin flavor, but maybe that’s the dark chocolate cocoa powder I used.
Anyway, I noticed a number of people asking about if brownie bites would work with this recipe, and if so how long to bake them. Mine were perfect after the listed 23 minutes at 330 F. Just thought someone should post an answer to this question.