Pumpkin Cookies

I’m a crispy cookie kind of girl, soft cookies are just not my thing.  Give me a crispy Potato Chip Cookie or crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookie and I’m good to go. However, my girls are always asking for soft cookies, go figure.  I decided to make these  Pumpkin Cookies for them, not expecting to like them at all.  Of course cookies with pumpkin puree are going to be soft and cake like, so I knew they would like them.  I was so surprised to find out that I really LOVE these cookies even though they’re not crispy.  The flavor is so amazing, that I don’t mind that they’re soft.

It may be that they’re not overly sweet to begin with and the frosting is mostly butter and cream cheese.  The pumpkin flavor really comes through in the cookie.  I also added pumpkin pie spice to the top to give it even more pumpkin pie taste.

When you prepare the dough, it’s going to look more like cake batter than cookie dough, it will be very sticky, don’t worry.  I was thinking it would be a mess to get them onto the cookie sheet.  A small ice cream scoop makes this so easy. I used a 1 1/2 tablespoon scoop for mine and they came out easily.  If you want them to be a little flatter so that you can frost them, pat down the tops with your fingers. This dough is so sticky, that it will be messy, so just dip your fingers in flour and pat them down a bit. You’ll end up with perfectly round and flat cookies.

For the frosting, I used a cream cheese and butter frosting. For half the batch I decided to try using Epicurean’s Cinnamon and Brown Sugar Butter to change things up a bit. It turned the frosting from white to golden brown and added rich brown sugar flavor to the icing.  I think their Pumpkin Spice Butter would be even better.

You’re going to want to add these to your cookie list, especially if you are a fan of soft cookies.

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Pumpkin Cookies

These soft melt-in-your-mouth pumpkin cookies covered in cream cheese frosting that’s EASY to make and will remind you of fall, whatever the season. Add a little pumpkin spice to the frosting for that fabulous pumpkin pie flavor.

• Author: Barbara Curry
• Prep Time: 20 minutes
• Cook Time: 12 minutes
• Total Time: 32 minutes
• Yield: 42 1x

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

• 2 ½ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup butter, room temp
• 1 cup sugar
• ½ cup brown sugar
• 1 ¼ cups pumpkin puree
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg
• FROSTING
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temp
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups powdered sugar

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350º, line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together, flour, baking powder, soda, spices and salt.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine butter and sugars and beat for 1 -2 minutes until light and fluffy. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla and beat until well mixed. Add flour mixture and beat until just combined.
4. Using a 11/2 tablespoon cookie scoop, drop dough onto prepared cookie sheets. Use your fingers dipped in flour to slightly flatten the tops.
5. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the tops bounce back when lightly touched. Cool on wire rack.
6. For the frosting, combine butter and cream cheese in a medium bowl and mix with electric mixer until smooth. Add vanilla and powdered sugar and beat until well combined. It should be slightly thick. Spread on cooled cookies and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice.