Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

If fall were a cookie, it would be these Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting. They’ll disappear as fast as you can make them -no chill time required!

Pumpkin Cookies Iced with Cream Cheese Frosting

These pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting don’t have the same texture as a standard chocolate chip cookie. Instead, they’re soft and cake-like, almost like tiny pumpkin pillows, topped with cream cheese frosting. 

Are you picturing yourself biting into one of these? I am too. The cream cheese frosting is optional, but I find it adds a nice touch to the pumpkin flavor and tangy-sweet cranberries.

This is a no-chill recipe, meaning you don’t have to wait for the dough to chill in the fridge. Great news when you’re ready to sink your teeth into a warm cookie!

Soft Pumpkin Cookie Ingredients

While the measurements for these pumpkin cookies are in the printable recipe card, first check the list below so you know the ingredients you need and possible swaps:

• Butter: gives the cookie a soft texture.
• White sugar: how we sweeten the deal; for a softer cookie, use brown sugar.
• Egg: adds structure and helps the dough rise.
• Vanilla extract: pairs beautifully with pumpkin flavor.
• Pumpkin puree: make sure it’s puree and not pumpkin pie filling.
• All-purpose flour: for a gluten-free recipe, use 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour.
• Baking powder: makes the dough rise.
• Baking soda: a double dose of leavening agents makes the cookies cake-like.
• Salt: enhances the other ingredient flavors.
• Cinnamon: you can swap it for pumpkin pie spice if you want a little more pumpkin spice action.
• Fresh or frozen cranberries: optional, but they add a delicious tart flavor.
• Chopped walnuts: for optimal crunch!

While these cookies are made with regular butter, sugar, and flour, if you have a sweet tooth, definitely check out my latest cookbook, Clean Treats for Everyone. It includes recipes made without refined sugars and grains but still taste like the decadent desserts they are!

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Healthy and wholesome dessert recipes you’ll want to eat made with clean ingredients you already have on hand.
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How to Make Pumpkin Cookies

Since you don’t need to chill the dough, this Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting recipe is one you can make fast by mixing ingredients and then letting the oven bake these beauties in 10 minutes. Without further ado, let’s make pumpkin cookies: 

1. Prep 
   Preheat the oven to 350F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Cream the butter and sugar
   Use a stand mixer or hand mixer to beat the softened butter. Then add the sugar and mix until fluffy. To this mix, add the egg, vanilla, and pumpkin puree. Mix to combine.
3. Make the dough
   Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a separate large bowl. Working in batches, add the dry ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture. This dough is soft compared to cookie doughs you’ve made in the past. It’s supposed to be soft and easy to scoop. 
4. Add the good stuff
   Gently fold in the cranberries and walnuts. 
5. Scoop
   I like using a cookie scoop. It’s a hands-free way to shape and portion out the perfect amount for each cookie. You can use a regular tablespoon instead.
6. Bake
   Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges are just set. 
7. Cool off
   Remove from the oven and allow to cool down to room temperature. 
8. Make the frosting
   While the cookies bake, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add the powdered sugar, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined and smooth. 
9. Time to frost
   Once the cookies are cooled, gently frost the tops!
10. Enjoy!
    This is definitely the part where you quickly whip up a batch of homemade hot cocoa, pour yourself a mug, and grab a cookie. 

Watch the cookies come together step by step in this recipe video.

Cream Cheese Frosting for Pumpkin Cookies

Top these cookies with this cream cheese frosting, and they’ll melt in your mouth. It has a glossy, smooth texture that makes it easy to spread, and this recipe yields just enough for one batch of cookies, so you won’t have extra going to waste in the fridge. 

Tips for the Best Iced Pumpkin Cookies

Along with the recipe, I’ve also included several helpful tips to help you achieve the perfect iced pumpkin cookie. These could also be applied to other drop cookie recipes like my Frosted Sugar Cookies.  

Make sure the butter is softened
What does softened butter look like? It’s not half-melted or caving in. Softened butter should be solid, but when poked, your finger or knife will easily leave an indent. 

Use fresh baking powder
Baking powder is what gives these cookies and other baked goods their “lift.” Once expired, the leavening agents in baking powder begin to decline, resulting in flat tops and dense texture. 

Don’t overbake
One of the biggest culprits to tough cookies is too much time in the oven. Once cookies are removed from the oven, they continue to cook on the baking sheet, so removing them at the point that they’re just holding together will ensure evenly baked cookies that stay soft and chewy for days. 

Can you Make Pumpkin Cookies Ahead?

Yes! Follow the steps to prepare the dough and scoop it onto a baking sheet. Freeze for 1 hour or until solid. Transfer the cookies to a large zip bag labeled with baking directions and store them in the freezer for up to 2 months. To cook them, preheat the oven and bake as directed, adding an additional minute to the recipe. 

If you’ve already baked the cookies, you can still freeze them using the same process above, but no need to re-bake them. Just remove them from the freezer and thaw for 10-20 minutes before frosting. 

Making lots of holiday treats? Try my Molasses Gingerbread Cookies next!

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

Servings: 24 cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes mins

Cook Time: 10 minutes mins

Total Time: 20 minutes mins

Soft pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting are chocked full of tangy cranberries and toasted walnuts for a yummy fall treat with coffee. 

5 from 23 votes

Print Pin

Watch how it’s made:

Ingredients

For the Pumpkin Cookies:

• ½ cup butter, – about 1 stick, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, coarsely chopped
• ½ cup chopped walnuts, optional

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 4 ounces cream cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Prep:

• Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Make the cookie dough:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter on high speed for about 30 seconds. Add the sugar and mix on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes or until fluffy. 
• Add the egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and pumpkin to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix on medium speed until just combined.
• Stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a separate large bowl. 
• Working in 2 batches, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, and mix on medium speed after each addition, stopping to scrape the sides of the bowl when necessary. 
• Once combined, add the cranberries and walnuts to the dough and fold to combine.

Scoop the dough:

• Using a tablespoon or cookie scoop, scoop and drop the dough 2-inches apart onto the lined baking sheet.

Bake:

• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until the edges are just set. Remove from the oven and allow to cool down before transferring the cookies to a cookie rack. 

Make the frosting:

• While cookies are cooling, make the frosting. In the stand mixer with a clean bowl or a large bowl with the hand mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth. 
• Add in the powdered sugar, melted butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes or until a thick frosting-like texture is achieved. 

Frost the cookies:

• Frost the cooled cookies. Enjoy and refrigerate the leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days. 

Notes

Cranberries and nuts are optional but highly recommended!

Nutrition information is calculated with walnuts and cranberries.

Equipment

Clean Treats Cookbook

Cookie Scoop

Nutrition

Serving: 1 cookie | Calories: 171kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 22mg | Sodium: 151mg | Potassium: 65mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 1776IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 38mg | Iron: 1mg