Fall baking is the best! I love all the apple, pumpkin and caramel baked goods that show up in my pinterest feed every day. Pumpkin is so great to use in baked goods because it adds moisture and it tastes great.
These pumpkin cheesecake cookies are a pumpkin sugar cookie, stuffed with cream cheese filling and dusted and with a pumpkin spice sugar. These were so addicting and its a bit embarrassing how fast we finished the batch. If you don’t have premade pumpkin spice (I didn’t), it is easy to mix up with spices you probably already have. Just mix 3 tbsp cinnamon, 2 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 tsp allspice, 1 tsp ground cloves. You can store the extra spice mix in a mason jar or airtight container and it keeps as long as any ground spice will.
You do need to mix up the cream cheese for these ahead and scoop dollops onto a parchment lined baking sheet to freeze for around an hour. This makes shaping the cookies so much easier. You won’t be able to do it with room temp cream cheese. I hope that you enjoy these delicious fall cookies. I’m sure I will end up making them again before the fall is over.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies
Ingredients
For the cream cheese:
- 1 8 oz block cream cheese cold
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
For the spiced sugar:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
For the cookies:
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
- 1 3/4 cup AP flour
- 1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 egg yolks room temp
- 2 tsp vanilla
Instructions
For the cheesecake filling:
- Add cold cream cheese, sugar and vanilla to stand mixer. Mix on medium until well combined. Using a small cookie scoop (about 2 tsp), make balls and drop them onto parchment lined baking sheet. Place in the freezer for 1 hour.
For the sugar:
- Combine sugar and spice mix and whisk to combine.
For the cookies:
- Heat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Spread the 1/2 cup pumpkin out on a place and absorb the extra moisture by placing a clean paper towel on top of it. Repeat a few times until the extra moisture is absorbed. This helps the cookies have a more cookie, less cake like texture.
- In a stand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla on medium until light, fluffy and creamy. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pumpkin spice in a bowl until well combined.
- Add the egg yolks to the mixer and mix again, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed, until well mixed. Add the pumpkin and repeat. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Depending on the temp of your butter, you may need to let the dough sit in the fridge for 10-15 minutes before proceeding to make it easier to handle. I didn't do this, and just used my spiced sugar to help me keep the dough from sticking to my hands while I shaped the cookies.
- Remove your cream cheese balls from the freezer. Using a larger size cookie scoop (2 tbsp), scoop a ball of dough and drop into the sugar mix. Lightly roll around to coat to stop it sticking to you. Press a cream cheese ball into the center and close the dough around it, making a larger ball. Use more sugar to help it not stick to you if needed. Shape into a nice ball and place on the sheet. Repeat this, placing 6 cookies per sheet.
- Bake for 5 minutes, rotate the cookie sheet and bake for 3 more. The cookies are done when the tops looked baked and the edges are just starting to brown up a bit. Allow to cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then move to a cooling rack. These can be stored at room temp in an airtight container and also can be frozen.