Name: Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter (1 stick) (softened); 1 cup sugar; 1 egg; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 cup pumpkin puree; 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoons baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon (or pumpkin spice); 4 ounces cream cheese; 1 cup powdered sugar; 2 tablespoons butter (melted); 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Recipe

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These soft pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting are easy to make and there's no need to chill the dough. They're the perfect treat to bake and share or keep to yourself.

Get ready to make the most irresistible pumpkin cookies. And the whipped cream cheese frosting? Absolutely essential.

close up view of pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting sitting on a wire rack

Pumpkin Cookies Iced with Cream Cheese Frosting

I admit that I’m not a huge cookie baker and rarely deviate from chocolate chip cookies. But when it’s pumpkin season, these pumpkin cookies steal my heart… or maybe it’s the cream cheese frosting.

This is a no-chill recipe, meaning you don't have to wait for the dough to chill in the fridge! You make it, bake it, and enjoy the fruits of your work in no time.

The cookie dough is made with what you’d expect when making cookies from scratch: butter for a soft texture, sugar to sweeten, egg to bind, vanilla extract, and canned pumpkin. Then all-purpose flour, baking powder and baking soda for texture (yes, you need both), salt, and cinnamon (or pumpkin spice) make up the dry ingredients.

How to Make Pumpkin Cookies

You’ll find a video showing you how these are made in the recipe card. Here is an overview with some notable tips:

Preheat the oven and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
You can bake one tray at a time or both together, just swap their positions halfway through.
Make the dough by creaming softened butter (it should dent easily when pressed) with the sugar for at least 3 minutes so it gets light and airy. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and pumpkin purée, then stir in the dry ingredients and fold in any add-ins. Scoop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the lined sheets.
Bake the cookies until the edges are set and avoid overbaking by keeping the centers soft. Cool the cookies on the pan before transferring them to a rack.
Make the frosting and once the cookies have fully cooled, frost them and sprinkle them with a little cinnamon. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 5 days.
This is where you quickly make some homemade hot cocoa, pour yourself a mug, and grab a cookie.

pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting sitting on a wire rack

Making These Ahead

You can freeze the scooped cookie dough on a baking sheet, then store the frozen dough balls in a zip bag for up to 2 months. Bake them straight from frozen with just an extra minute or two of bake time. Already-baked and frosted cookies freeze well, too! Just thaw for 10-20 minutes and enjoy.

Other simple cookie recipes include these whole wheat sugar cookies and my molasses cookies.

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

Servings: 24 cookies

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 20

These soft pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting are easy to make and there's no need to chill the dough. They're the perfect treat to bake and share or keep to yourself.

5 from 23 votes

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Watch how it’s made:

Ingredients

For the Pumpkin Cookies:

½ cup butter (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 cinnamon, or pumpkin spice

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 with the top rack positioned in the middle. You can bake one tray at a time or both together. If baking them at the same time, position the second oven rack directly under the first. You'll need to swap their positions halfway through baking. Line two baking sheets 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 beat on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes or until the butter is airy. Add the egg, vanilla, and pumpkin puree to the bowl and mix until just combined.
In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon or pumpkin spice.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients bowl, and mix. Add the rest, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed, until all the flour has been incorporated into the pumpkin mixture. If you want to add dried cranberries or chopped walnuts, add them now.
Scoop and drop a heaping tablespoon of the cookie dough on the lined baking sheet, placing each scoop about 2 inches apart.

Bake:

Place the cookies in the preheated oven and bake for 12 minutes, until the edges are set. Remove them from the oven and let them cool on the pan first before transferring the cookies to a cookie rack.

Frost:

While the cookies cool, beat the cream cheese until smooth. Add 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 cooled cookies. Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top.
Refrigerate leftover cookies in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Notes

Mix-ins: add 1 cup dried cranberries and ½ cup chopped walnuts.

Equipment

Clean Treats Cookbook

Cookie Scoop

Nutrition

Comments

5 from 23 votes (13 ratings without comment)

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting

Pumpkin Cookies Iced with Cream Cheese Frosting