Description
Delight in these festive Pumpkin Sandwich Cookies featuring soft, pumpkin-spiced cookies filled with creamy, colorful cream cheese frosting. Perfect for autumn celebrations or a cozy treat.
Ingredients
Scale
Pumpkin Cookies
- 2⅓ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
Cream Cheese Frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 4 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2.5-3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon milk
- Orange food color
- Black food color
Instructions
- Prepare Dry Ingredients: In a bowl, whisk together all purpose flour, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Set this mixture aside for later use.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a hand mixer, beat the unsalted butter until smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is well combined and fluffy.
- Add Wet Ingredients: Incorporate the egg, vanilla extract, and pumpkin puree into the butter and sugar mixture. Mix thoroughly until well combined.
- Combine Dry and Wet: Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
- Chill Dough: Cover the cookie dough and refrigerate it for 2 hours to firm up, making it easier to handle due to its sticky texture.
- Form Cookies: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop about 1/8 cup (roughly 2 tablespoons) of dough per cookie onto the sheets. Optionally, press each cookie gently with the back of a measuring cup for a flatter shape.
- Bake Cookies: Bake in the preheated oven for 13 minutes. After baking, remove the cookies and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
- Make Frosting: Beat together unsalted butter and cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Gradually add powdered sugar, half a cup at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract and milk, then beat until the frosting is smooth and fully combined.
- Color Frosting: Divide the frosting into three portions. Leave one portion plain, color one portion orange and the other black using food coloring.
- Assemble Sandwich Cookies: Transfer the frosting to a pastry bag or use a spoon. Spread or pipe the frosting onto one cookie, then top with another cookie to create a sandwich. Repeat to make 10 complete sandwich cookies.
Notes
- Chilling the dough is essential for easier handling and better cookie shape.
- Pressing the cookies before baking is optional; it creates a flatter cookie which works well for sandwiching.
- If you don’t have a pastry bag, a spoon or plastic sandwich bag with a corner cut off can be used for frosting.
- Adjust powdered sugar quantity in frosting to reach your desired thickness and sweetness.
- Store assembled cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days for best freshness.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 sandwich cookie
- Calories: 220 kcal
- Sugar: 18 g
- Sodium: 140 mg
- Fat: 10 g
- Saturated Fat: 6 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 29 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 35 mg
