iced pumpkin cookies
Fall is in the air!! I know that I’ve been desperately clinging to the last bits of summer these past few weeks, but I’ve finally turned the corner. And am now endlessly delighting in all of the beauty and change that is autumn. For so many reasons (although I need to catch some zzzz’s, so those will be forthcoming), this season just deeply warms my heart.
So to celebrate, thought it would be fun to kick off the season with an “Ode to Pumpkin Week” – hooray!! Yes, besides being a lovely fall decoration and monopolizer of gardens, this gourd-like fruit (true!) makes frequent appearances in my kitchen each fall. Love it! And while I’ve long been a fan of classic pumpkin pie, I’m convinced that it has stolen the pumpkin-spotlight for far too long. So this week, will be highlighting a few of my other favorite recipes.
To begin, I recommend to you one of my favorite cookies. I think I can safely say that, of any recipe I’ve ever made, these hands-down win the prize for “most quickly gobbled up at a party”. It’s true — people go nuts over these cookies! The delicious pumpkin and spices balance each other out well. And the fun cake-like texture (which reminds me more of muffin tops than cookies) provide a different twist. But the best part is undoubtedly the cream cheese icing on top. :) I know it makes everything better, but it makes these little guys divine.
So go pick up a can of Libby’s (this is one canned food not to go generic on), and enjoy, enjoy, enjoy! :)
(Adapted from AllRecipes)
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (**feel free to substitute 3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice instead of the cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves**)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 oz. cream cheese (I used 1/3 less fat)
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside.
In a medium bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup of butter and sugars. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla to butter mixture, and beat until creamy. Mix in dry ingredients. Drop on cookie sheet by heaping tablespoonfuls; flatten slightly.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool cookies, then frost or drizzle with cream cheese frosting.
To Make Frosting: With an electric mixer, combine confectioners’ sugar, and cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Feel free to add in an extra teaspoon of cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice for flavor! Then you can either frost cookies with a knife, or drizzle with the help of a pastry bag and tip. (Or if you do not have a pastry bag, just fill a Ziplock bag with the frosting, squeeze out the extra air, seal, and then use scissors to snip a tiny hole in one corner, and squeeze carefully onto cookies.)
Ali’s Tip:
While I l-o-v-e making homemade cream cheese frosting, I’ve been known to occasionally pull out a tub of store-bought goodness to use on these. If it’s too thick to use in a pastry bag (or Ziplock equivalent – see above), just pop it in the microwave for 5-10 seconds, and it will magically be drizzle-able! :)
Looking forward to making these for a party this weekend. If I make them tomorrow night and plan to serve them the next day, do you recommend storing them in the fridge due to the cream cheese frosting?
Thanks!
I started these yesterday + then got sleepy after a busy day, so I’m finishing the icing aspect this morning. =) so far they’re fab! Look for a pic of the final result on twitter/instagram later today! =)
I made these cookies last weekend. It was my first time cooking with pumpkin, and I was so happy with the result! They were fantastic, as all your recipes are :)
I blogged about them, linking back to you of course!
http://dashandapinch.com/2011/10/pumpkin-spice-cookies-with-cream-cheese-frosting/
Hi Ali, greetings from Russia! :) Thank you so much for this recipe! I just baked your cookies and they are delicious!!
These are wonderful, I made them exactly as described and they turned out so moist and light. I will be making these again soon!
I made these last week and blogged about them today. The second time I made them, they weren’t as cutely orange because I didn’t have Libby’s. Thankfully they were still just as tasty! :)
does this recipe call for unsalted butter or salted butter?? and is the brown sugar light or dark brown sugar! these look delicious and i can’t wait to make them once i have the exact ingredients !! thanks
You’ve done a great job, and i appreciate it, thank you very much my freind. Keep the good food flowing!
How many cookies does this recipe make?
Hi Jen! I’ve found this usually makes between 35-40ish cookies. :)
I made these this past weekend and I LOVED them! Thank you for such a great recipe!
I perform a musical show two days a week for truckers from all across the US and Canada, and I like to take cookies along to give drivers . . . well I love to bake, and those folks love the treat!!! But anyway, these little gems are one of the best cookies I have ever made. I used freshly baked pumpkin . . . which I prefer over canned, and it is so easy to make, and store, . . . but people were asking me to make more to send them, and they would pay me. Morsels of absolute delight!!! And, Ali, you sound just like ME!!! Your site is great, I am sure your music is as well!
Just finished icing them, they are sooo delicious! Perfect recipe!
These look and sound so good…gonna try them out this afternoon!
I have a similar recipe except it adds nuts and min chocolate chips So good.
Yum!!! Those are always two good add-ins. :)
These turned out fantastic! I didn’t use any cloves, but put in extra nutmeg, and that was fantastic! Also, I added more vanilla to the icing, yum!! I wanted to let you know that I am posting this recipe on my blog with the additions/subtractions I’ve made .I have also put the link back to your recipe up here too! Thanks for the yummy super delicious recipe! These were a huge hit!
i’d reccomend using more spices (no, not sure which ones..). i tasted the dough before baking and thought it seemed a little bland but for some reason thought it’d be ok after baking… the cookies are still good!! but possibly add the pumpkin pie spice as well as all the others?
mmmmmmm yum!
Mmmmm this looks great. Even on the other side of the world where we’re (supposedly) heading into spring – these are perfect for the cooler days we’re still experiencing.