Soft Pumpkin Spice Cookies
with Cream Cheese Frosting
Hello fall and these delicious pumpkin spice cookies with cream cheese frosting, oh my! These soft pumpkin cookies melt in your mouth and the decadent cream cheese icing makes it a perfect combination for any pumpkin dessert lover.
Who wants to make the perfect fall cookie? Here you go this is the recipe you want to try. These pumpkin spice cookies with cream cheese frosting are a perfect combination. These easy pumpkin cookies are pillowy soft and the cream cheese frosting is decadent and scrumptious making for the perfect fall season treat.
Pumpkin Spice Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
Not only is this pumpkin cookie recipe so easy to make, you’ll want to double the batch as the cookies won’t last long if you have pumpkin spice lovers around. Depending on the size of the cookies our recipe makes about 12 delicious cookies. We always double the recipe.
Of course, this pumpkin cookie recipe is popular with friends and family in the fall and winter and for special occasions like Thanksgiving and Christmas. Although we love them so much we don’t wait for a special occasion, having the best pumpkin cookies for the fall is reason enough for us lol
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This recipe was inspired from our Pumpkin White Chocolate Chip Cookies I decided I wanted some pumpkin spice cookies with cream cheese frosting and toyed with it to make them even more soft and fluffy. The result delicious pumpkin cookies.
Ingredient List Pumpkin Spice Cookie Recipe with Cream Cheese Frosting
The ingredients for this pumpkin spice cookie recipe with cream cheese frosting are simple and most likely you already have everything you need in your kitchen or just have to pick up a few items.
Cookies:
- all-purpose flour
- baking powder
- baking soda
- ground cinnamon
- ground ginger
- ground nutmeg
- salt
- unsalted butter, softened
- granulated sugar
- canned pumpkin puree
- large egg
- vanilla extract
Cream cheese frosting:
- powdered sugar
- butter, softened
- cream cheese
- vanilla extract
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions for pumpkin spice cookie recipe with cream cheese frosting
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla extract to the butter mixture and mix until well combined.
- Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, mixing until just combined.
- Drop spoonfuls of the cookie dough of 45 grams onto the prepared cookie sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. A cookie scoop works great for this.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden brown and set.
- Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the cookies are cooling, prepare the cream cheese frosting
- In a medium mixing bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the cream cheese and vanilla extract and beat for about 3 minutes in high speed until stiff peaks form
- Once the cookies are completely cooled, frost the cookies by spreading a generous amount of cream cheese frosting on top of each cookie and sprinkle a bit of ground cinnamon on top.
- Serve the cookies immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Substitutions
If you don’t have ground ginger or nutmeg, you can substitute them with an equal amount of pumpkin pie spice, which typically contains a combination of those spices. Do NOT substitute canned pumpkin pie filling for pumpkin puree it has added ingredients.
Equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Spatula
- Medium mixing bowl
- Large mixing bowl
- Hand or stand mixer
- Baking Sheets
- Piping bags & tips
- Cooling Rack
Storage
Serve the cookies immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Top tips
- Before you begin, make sure your unsalted butter is softened at room temperature. This will make it easier to mix with the other ingredients.
- For the cream cheese frosting, ensure that the butter is at room temperature and the cream cheese very cold. This will help achieve a smooth and creamy consistency.
- The ground cinnamon mentioned in the ingredients is used both in the cookie dough and as decoration on top of the cookies. Make sure to reserve the specified amount for the decoration.
- If you prefer a tangier flavor, you can add a small amount of lemon juice or zest to the cream cheese frosting
Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
Of course we think our other pumpkin desserts are scrumptious too like our Easy No-Bake Pumpkin Dessert Pumpkin Cheesecake Parfait, Pumpkin Spice Cake Recipe, Pumpkin Caramel Poke Cake, and for breakfast these Pumpkin Spice Pancakes – Gluten Free are divine! For something slightly different but still in the pumpkin spice realm these Maple Pumpkin Maple Creme Donuts are another yummy fall treat.
Texture and Flavor Notes:
The texture of the cookies is extremely soft and moist. Pumpkin puree contributes to the moist texture and the cream cheese frosting adds a creamy and slightly tangy flavor.
It also has warm and aromatic flavors that enhance the pumpkin taste. The contrast between the soft almost airy cookie texture and the creamy frosting creates a nice balance
Now let’s get to this pumpkin spice cookies with cream cheese frosting recipe shall we?
Pumpkin Spice Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
Hello fall and these delicious pumpkin spice cookies with cream cheese frosting, oh my! These soft pumpkin cookies melt in your mouth and the decadent cream cheese icing makes it a perfect combination for any pumpkin dessert lover.
Ingredients
Cookies:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour: 240 grams
- 1 teaspoon baking powder: 4 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda: 2 grams
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon + ½ tablespoon for decoration: 2 grams + 6 grams
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger: 1 gram
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg: 1 gram
- 1/2 teaspoon salt: 3 grams
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened: 113 grams
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar: 100 grams
- 1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree: 60 grams
- 1 large egg: 50 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract: 5 grams
Cream cheese frosting:
- 1 cup powdered sugar: 100 grams
- 1/2 cup butter, softened: 100 grams
- 1 cup cream cheese: 200 grams
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract: 5 grams
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.
In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla extract to the butter mixture and mix until well combined.
Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture, mixing until just combined.
Drop spoonfuls of the cookie dough of 45 grams onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden brown and set.
Remove the baking sheets from the oven and let the cookies cool for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
While the cookies are cooling, prepare the cream cheese frosting
In a medium mixing bowl, beat the butter and powdered sugar until light and fluffy.
Add the cream cheese and vanilla extract and beat for about 3 minutes in high speed until stiff peaks form
Once the cookies are completely cooled, spread a generous amount of cream cheese frosting on top of each cookie and sprinkle a bit of ground cinnamon on top.
Serve the cookies immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
Before you begin, make sure your unsalted butter is
softened at room temperature. This will make it easier to mix with the other ingredients.
For the cream cheese frosting, ensure that the butter is
at room temperature and the cream cheese very cold. This will help achieve a smooth and creamy consistency.
The ground cinnamon mentioned in the ingredients is used
both in the cookie dough and as decoration on top of the cookies. Make sure to reserve the specified amount for the decoration.
If you don't have ground ginger or nutmeg, you can
substitute them with an equal amount of pumpkin pie spice, which typically contains a combination of those spices.
If you prefer a tangier flavor, you can add a small
amount of lemon juice or zest to the cream cheese frosting.
This looks really good. My family is a big fan of pumpkin roll, and this looks like it would be as good.
Thank you for this delicious-sounding recipe! I’m pinning it so that I may make these pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting for Christmas. And thank you for including the tip(s) for room temp butter and cold cream cheese. I tend to bring both to room temp and my frosting ends up not turning out as good.