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Frosted Soft Pumpkin Sugar Cookies. These cookies are made with butter, brown sugar, spiced pumpkin butter, vanilla, and cinnamon. Then rolled through cinnamon and sugar, just like a sweet Snickerdoodle! Theyโre soft and perfectly sweet, with additional flavor from the brown sugar and pumpkin butter. I frosted them simply with my thick and creamy vanilla cream cheese frosting. These cookies are fun to bake and delicious to eat. Perfect for fall and the holiday season!
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Cookies for Friday! And some really fun, really yummy cookies too! I love these!
I understand that I say this often, but I have the most fun with my fall recipes. Every single one I make, I feel like I love even more than the last โ including these cookies!
Arenโt they fun? And so cute? When it comes to baking, Iโm really no pro. You all know this about me. I try to keep most baking recipes as easy as possible. And when it comes to decorating sweets for the fall and holiday season, I approach that task with the very same mindset.
When I found these sprinkles on Amazon, I ordered them immediately. I wasnโt sure exactly what to use them for, but I knew I needed them.
This cookie idea came to me mainly because I was thinking of treats for my youngest brother, Oslo, to bring to school for his birthday today. I couldnโt stop thinking about these soft Entenmannโs cookies weโd used to get from the store when I was little. The ones with a thick layer of frosting and then usually sprinkles for whatever holiday was approaching.
My mom rarely bought these cookies, but I always thought they looked so cute! I knew Oslo would adore themโhe loves Halloween!
Here are the Details
Ingredients
- salted butter
- brown sugar
- pumpkin butter
- an egg
- vanilla extract
- flour
- baking soda
- cinnamon
- nutmeg
- salt
- cream cheese
- powdered sugar
- fun sprinkles for fall!
Kitchen Tools
- electric mixer
- mixing bowl
- spatula
Step 1: make the cookie dough
These are pretty basic cookie dough-making steps: Beat the salted butter with the brown sugar. I love to use organic dark brown sugar. I swear itโs the secret to baking. Try it, and youโll see the difference, promise.
Add the pumpkin butter, egg, and vanilla. Mix and combine. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
Step 2: roll through cinnamon sugar
This next step is fun!
Make the cinnamon and sugar mix!
Roll the cookie into balls, then roll through the cinnamon sugar to fully coat, just like you would snickerdoodles!
Step 3: bake the cookies
Arrange cookies on a baking sheet and bake until just set on the edges but still soft.
Let cool on the baking sheet. They will continue to cook as they cool.
Step 4: the frosting
Lately, Iโve been loving cream cheese frosting. Especially with pumpkin!
Using a block of cream cheese, beat it together with salted butter. Once thatโs creamy, mix the powdered sugar and vanilla and whip to combine. I like to add a pinch of salt too!
Step 5: frost each cookie
Slather on the frosting, no need to do anything fancy here!
Locate some fun sprinkles (if youโre into them) and decorate the cookies as desired. I went with cute little pumpkin sprinkles for October, but in November, I think Iโll use something with more browns for Thanksgiving.
You can also decorate with a light sprinkle of cinnamon sugar or even flaky sea salt (a pinch of sea salt can balance out the sweetness of the powdered sugar and enhance the flavor of the frosting).
I will say that the sprinkles are especially pretty and so fun!
I was so excited to share these with Oslo. He certainly loved them and was excited to bring them into school. Theyโre so cute!
I will be making these fall cookies again. As I mentioned above, theyโll also make a great holiday cookie for Thanksgivingโsomething for guests to snack on while mingling!
Getting excited for holiday entertaining!
Looking for other sweet pumpkin recipes? Here are my favorites:ย
Cream Cheese Swirled Cinnamon Pumpkin Coffee Cake
Pumpkin Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies
Pumpkin Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Vanilla Chai Pumpkin Latte Cupcakes
Cream Cheese Swirled Cinnamon Pumpkin Butter Bread
Lastly, if you make these Frosted Soft Pumpkin Sugar Cookies, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, donโt forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Frosted Soft Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
Ingredientsย
- 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 cup pumpkin butter
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup cinnamon sugar
CREAM CHEESE Frosting
- 6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- fall sprinkles, (for decorating)
Instructionsย
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350ยฐ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.2. In a bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Mix in the pumpkin butter and then the egg until combined. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt, beating until combined.3. Roll the dough into tablespoon-sized balls and roll through the cinnamon sugar. Place 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.4. Bake for 8 minutes, rotate the pan, and bake another 3-4 minutes or until the cookies are just beginning to set on the edges. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet. 5. Meanwhile, make the frosting. Using an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese and butter. Add the vanilla, sugar, and salt, beating until light and fluffy. 6. Frost each cooled cookie. Decorate as desired with sprinkles! Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.ย
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Did you make this recipe? Please rate & comment below.
I made these last year and they were an hit! Made another batch tonight. I had frozen the pumpkin butter from last year because i didnโt need all of it at that time. It worked out great! This time, I made them as sandwich cookies with the cream cheese frosting in between the cookies. Easier to store as I made them for friends to take to their cabin. First batch were 1 T then I made them smaller using half T since Iโm using two cookies as one. So delicious!
Hey Karen,
Perfect! Thanks so much for making this recipe and taking the time to comment. So glad to hear it was a hit!
Such a great idea to make them into little cookie sandwiches.
Can I make cinnamon sugar and if so what is the ration? Can’t wait to try!
Hi Karen,
You bet! You can use 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon with 1/4 cup of granulated sugar. Please let me know if I can help in any other way, I hope you love these cookies!
Hey! I am going to make these for a competition tomorrow, do you think these could win?
I sure hope so!! Thanks for choosing to make this recipe, Abigail! Let me know how they turn out:)
Hi! Can I make these cookies and the frosting on a Tuesday evening and serve on a Thursday afternoon? Is it ok to frost them in advance? Any make ahead tips would be greatly appreciated!
Hey Sophia,
Sure, that would be just fine for you to do! You could also make the cookies and frosting, keep separate, and frost the day you want to serve them. Either way will be great:)
Hi so i have made these fabulous cookies before and i was wondering as an alternative for pumpkin butter if we could use regular pumpkin instead!
Thanks so much, Emma! I think the pumpkin butter works best with this recipe, pumpkin puree is going to have more moisture. I hope this helps!
I just made these this morning. They are fabulous!! Canโt wait to share them with my work family tonight! ๐ ๐ช ๐
Hey Jen,
Love to hear this! Thanks so much for making this recipe and your comment! Happy Fall Friday! xT
Iโm wanting to make these for a Friendsgiving this weekend and I canโt find pumpkin butter at my grocery store, can I substitute pumpkin puree? Thank you! ๐
Hi Madison,
Yes, that will be okay for you to use. Please let me know how these cookies turn out for you, I hope you love them! xx
Hi Tiefgang! Do you have a recipe for pumpkin butter that you use, or do you just buy it from the store? Thinking of making these with some friends this fall season.
Hey Crest,
Here is my recipe for pumpkin butter:
https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/6-ingredient-spiced-pumpkin-butter/
Store bought is also perfectly okay to use!
Why do my cookies always turn out “puffy”? Yours are nice and flat and I follow the recipe exactly and they turn out puffy every time. Suggestions?
Hi Robyn,
Have you ever tried banging your baking sheet on the counter while the cookies are baking? I find that’s really how I am able to achieve a flatter cookie. I hope this helps! xT
I’m trying to save this to my recipe box and it just takes me to my recipe box instead of the drop down menu where you pick what folder you want to save it in. A few of the newer recipes do this too. The older ones (I just went back and found the soft ginger cookies), still work properly.
Hi Darrien,
Thanks so much for sharing this with us and so sorry to hear you are having issues. We will try to figure out what might be happening here! Please let me know if I can help in any other way! xx
I first made these a couple of weeks ago and am making them again today. They were a big hit with my husband who usually doesn’t care for pumpkin treats. We had them without the frosting and they were so full of pumpkin flavor. I can’t wait to try this recipe with apple butter instead. This is definitely one of my favorite cookie recipes. Thank you for posting it.
Thanks so much, Stephanie!!