Pumpkin Cookies
This pumpkin cookies recipe turns one can of pumpkin puree into two dozen soft, cake-like cookies topped with a tangy cream cheese icing.
Equipment
- Stand mixer or hand mixer - For creaming the butter, sugar, and pumpkin
- Medium mixing bowl - For the dry ingredients
- Cookie scoop - About 1.5 tablespoons, for evenly sized cookies
- Baking sheets - At least two so one can cool while the next bakes
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mats - To prevent sticking
- Wire cooling rack - So the bottoms don't steam and go soggy
- Rubber spatula - For scraping the bowl and spreading icing
- Small offset spatula - (optional) For spreading the icing
Ingredients
For the cookies
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree - 240g, not pumpkin pie filling
- ½ cup unsalted butter - 115g, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar - 200g
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour - 315g
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
For the cream cheese icing
- 4 oz cream cheese - 115g block, softened
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter - 40g, softened
- 1½ cups powdered sugar - 180g
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons milk - As needed to thin
Optional finishing touches
- pinch ground nutmeg or cinnamon sugar - For dusting over the icing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and ground cinnamon for about 20 seconds. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes until pale and fluffy, scraping down the sides halfway through.
- Add the egg and beat until incorporated, about 30 seconds. Add the pumpkin puree and vanilla extract, and beat on low speed until smooth and uniform in color.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in two additions, mixing on low speed after each just until no streaks of flour remain. Do not overmix.
- Using a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop, portion the dough onto the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Flatten each mound slightly with the back of a spoon or damp fingers.
- Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack for 10 to 12 minutes, until the edges are just set and the centers look slightly underbaked. Let rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes.
- Transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack and let them cool fully, about 20 to 25 minutes.
- In a clean bowl, beat the softened cream cheese and butter until smooth, about 1 minute. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla, and beat until light and fluffy. Add milk a teaspoon at a time until spreadable.
- Spread about a tablespoon of icing over the top of each fully cooled cookie. Let the icing set for about 15 minutes at room temperature before stacking or storing.
Notes
- Blot excess moisture from the pumpkin puree. Press it between paper towels for a minute if the can seems especially watery, which keeps the dough from spreading too thin.
- Don't skip the resting time before icing. Warm cookies will melt the icing into a thin glaze instead of a spreadable layer.
- Measure flour by spooning it into the cup and leveling it off. Scooping directly from the bag packs in extra flour and leads to dry, dense cookies.
- Use room-temperature butter and cream cheese. Cold ingredients won't cream smoothly and leave lumps in both the dough and the icing.
- Rotate the baking sheet halfway through baking if the oven has hot spots, so all the cookies brown at the same rate.
- Underbake slightly rather than overbake. These cookies firm up as they cool, so pulling them at the first sign of set edges keeps them soft.
- Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack. Baking two sheets at once on different racks causes uneven browning.
- Chill iced cookies for 10 minutes in the refrigerator to set the icing faster and make them easier to stack without smudging.
- Storage: Unfrosted cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. Frosted cookies should be refrigerated due to the cream cheese icing and keep for up to 5 days.
- Freezing: Scoop dough into mounds, freeze on a tray, then transfer to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen, adding 2 to 3 extra minutes. Freeze unfrosted baked cookies for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1CookieCalories: 165kcalCarbohydrates: 23gProtein: 2gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 22mgSodium: 110mgFiber: 1gSugar: 14gVitamin A: 35IU
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