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Pumpkin Cookies With Cream Cheese Frosting

Pumpkin Cookies With Cream Cheese Frosting are soft, cake-like pumpkin spice cookies baked at 350°F and finished with a creamy, cinnamon-flecked frosting swirl. Each cookie gets a generous frosted top with a cinnamon dusting and a pressed pecan for crunch.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 37 minutes
Servings: 30 cookies
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 310
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the cookies
  • 2.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 0.5 cup brown sugar packed
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
For cream cheese frosting
  • 8 oz cream cheese softened
  • 0.25 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 2.5 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 pecan pressed on top (one per cookie)

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Bake the pumpkin cookies
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line baking sheets with parchment. This ensures quick, even baking as soon as the dough hits the oven.
  2. Whisk together all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Mix until the dry spices are evenly distributed.
  3. Beat unsalted butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in pumpkin puree, then beat in the egg and vanilla extract.
  4. Fold the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until just combined. The dough should be soft and cake-like.
  5. Drop the dough by 2-tablespoon portions onto the prepared baking sheets. Space them so they can spread during baking.
  6. Bake at 350°F for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies are set. Look for edges that hold their shape while the centers remain tender.
  7. Cool the cookies completely on a rack. Cooling fully helps the frosting spread without melting.
Make frosting and finish
  1. Beat cream cheese, unsalted butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon until smooth. Scrape down the bowl as needed for a lump-free texture.
  2. Frost each cookie generously with the cream cheese frosting. Spread to the edges so the topping looks lush.
  3. Dust the frosted cookies with cinnamon and press a pecan on top. Finish each cookie with a visible pecan and a light spice dusting.

Notes

Pro tip: For the best texture, let the cookies cool completely before frosting so the frosting stays thick and swirled. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days. Freeze unfrosted cookies up to 2 months (thaw overnight in the fridge), and frost after thawing; to make them dairy-reduced, use lactose-free cream cheese and lactose-free butter in the frosting.