This pumpkin cream cheese cookies recipe is one of Christopher’s favorites. They are soft, succulent and the spices enhance the pumpkin flavor, making them the quintessential fall cookie.
I have said before that I’m known for two things; my cocktails and my cookies. When I make cookies as either gifts or for my holiday cookie tray, these pumpkin cream cheese cookies, as well as my pistachio cookies and ginger molasses cookies get eaten up first.
Whether they are plain or dipped in white chocolate, people can’t seem to get enough of them.
I like to believe the reason people get excited when they see me arrive at holiday parties is because of my sparkling personality. But I’m okay if it’s mostly because of the cookies I bring. 🙂
Helpful Tips
- Do not over mix the dough. Mix until just combined.
- Use organic whenever you can. It tastes better and it’s not much more expensive than non-organic.
- Take butter out to soften at least an hour before you start the recipe.
- As everyone’s oven is different, your timing might be different from mine. My cookies take 14 minutes. Set the timer for 13 minutes and add additional minutes until done.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Cream Cheese – I use organic. You can see the color is richer than regular cream cheese and it tastes divine.
- Butter – I always use real butter because I don’t trust the ingredients in margarine.
- Sugar – I use white sugar in these cookies but cane sugar or brown sugar works well also.
- Egg – I like to use organic free-range large eggs.
- Pumpkin puree – Make sure you read the ingredients on the can. Pumpkin should be the only ingredient listed. Do not use a can of pumpkin pie mix.
- Flour – I use sprouted spelt flour because I love the texture, but all-purpose white flour is absolutely fine. If I do use white flour, I use organic and unbleached.
- Pudding mix – Vanilla flavored. If they had pumpkin pudding mix, I would have used that, but they didn’t. Vanilla is a nice addition.
- Cinnamon – I use ceylon cinnamon because I enjoy the taste.
- Cloves – One of the most distinctive smelling spices out there. I love cloves in cookies.
- Nutmeg – I use organic. It’s worth the price increase because a little goes a long way and it will last a long time.
- Baking powder – An ingredient that helps baked goods rise.
- Salt – Helps with the flavor and the rising of the cookie.
How to Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cookies
Pre-step
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Get your stand mixer, cookie sheets and medium cookie scoop.
Step one
Gather the ingredients – cream cheese, butter, egg, canned pumpkin and vanilla pudding mix.
Step two
Place cream cheese, sugar and butter in mixer. I usually cut the butter in pats to help it mix easier. (A)
Step three
Using the medium setting, mix until just combined. (B)
Step four
Add pumpkin and egg and mix them until just combined.
Step five
Add cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. I include this photo to show that it’s okay not to have the batter totally mixed. Don’t worry, in the next step you add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
Step six
Gather the dry ingredients – flour, baking powder, salt and vanilla pudding mix.
Step seven
Add flour, salt and pudding mix and mix until combined. Remember not to over mix the batter. I transferred the batter to a glass bowl so you could see it better. It is a fairly wet batter.
Step eight
Fill a cookie scoop with batter and place on cookie sheet. The cookies will spread somewhat so only put 12 balls on each cookie sheet.
Step nine
Bake for 14 minutes. Cookies should be slightly brown around edges and slightly soft to the touch.
Step ten
Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before removing them to a wire rack.
Step eleven
This next step is optional. I like to dip some of the pumpkin cream cheese cookies in white chocolate. Christopher likes his plain so I only dip a handful of cookies into the chocolate.
Place 1/2 cup of white chocolate chips in a small sauce pan and melt on low heat. It takes around 5 minutes.
Dip as many cookies as you like in the melted chocolate and place each one on a piece of parchment paper to harden.
Plate a few cookies.
Go ahead, take a bite.
Yum.
I hope you enjoyed this pumpkin cream cheese cookies. They are perfect for your holiday tray.
More Cookies that I love
And as always, may all your dishes be delish!
If you’ve tried this Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cookies recipe, I’d love the know what you thought about it in the comments below. I love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more of my delicious food and delightful cocktails!
These cookies are soft and so flavorful that even though they are usually made around the holidays, you'll want them year round!
- 1 cup butter (2 sticks - softened and cut into pats)
- 8 ounces cream cheese (1 package)
- .75 cup sugar (white sugar)
- .75 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 large egg
- 2.25 cups spelt flour (or all purpose white flour)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon (ground)
- .50 teaspoon cloves (ground)
- .25 teaspoon nutmeg (ground)
- .50 teaspoon salt
- 3.4 ounces vanilla pudding mix (1 package)
- .50 cup white chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Cream softened butter, cream cheese and sugar in mixer until combined
Add egg and pumpkin and mix until just combined
Add flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla pudding mix, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg and mix until just combined
With a medium cookie scoop, scoop batter on to the cookie sheet. Only 12 to a sheet as they tend to spread out a little
Bake for 14 minutes
Let cookies cool on sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack
(Optional) Melt white chocolate in a small saucepan on low heat (should take around 5 minutes). Dip as many cookies halfway in the chocolate and place on parchment paper to set
Eat
Smile
Enjoy
I am in love with these cookies! It was a genius idea to make them with pudding mix… they came out so fluffy and wonderful. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you Candice. They are extra special cookies and a family favorite!
These flavor of these are perfect! Love how you added cream cheese and spelt flour in them!
Thanks Beth!
These are delicious. The cream cheese is something new that I have never added in my cookies. And I use pumpkin seeds to decorate the cookies and skip the icing. 🙂
Fun Anita! Once you try cream cheese in cookies, you’ll want to add it all the time!
These pumpkin cookies look just wonderful! I love that you added cream cheese for extra moist and delicious pumpkin cookies!
Thanks so much Chelsey! 🙂
Super delicious and yum. Full of flavors and the cream cheese combination amazing. Love the white chocolate drizzle too.
Thank you Veena! I appreciate it.
These look fabulous Elaine!! I LOVE adding pudding to my cookies so I know I’d love these babies!!
Thanks so much Aleka. These are my hubby’s favorite!
I’ve never tried cream cheese in cookies, but these look and sound amazing! will make a batch for our Thanksgiving guests!
Thanks Carrie! I love cream cheese in cookies. Once you try them you’re going to want to make them all the time!
These will be perfect for serving at Thanksgiving. I really love how the white chocolate adds a little extra color and creaminess to this cookie.
Thanks Kelly! It really is a great cookie!
Oh, Elaine – you always know how to make my mouth water – the dip in white chocolate has me sold!
Thanks Leslie! You are so sweet to say!
I bet these smell amazing while they are baking…and BTW those are two REALLY GREAT things to be known for. I wish we lived closer together!!
Hehe. Thanks Bernice! They do smell so good when cooking and wouldn’t that be fun!?
I’ll bring the milk, if you bring the cookies! I’m ready to sit down to a plateful of that deliciousness!
Hehe. Thanks Dennis! The are so good dunked in milk or coffee!
Did someone say “soft, succulent cookies”? Because if they did, I am ALL EARS! 🙂 Great recipe and wonderful tips – taking butter out to soften beforehand, for example, is such a small but important step to ease things up a bit!
Thank you Danielle! I appreciate it. And yes, they are soft and succulent. Hubby tries to sneak that he’s taking another one but I hear the bag rustle. 🙂
Pumpkin cookies have always been a favorite of mine, and yours look absolutely wonderful! I love the dip of white chocolate – takes them over the top!
Thank you so much Denise!
What a great dessert for the holidays! I like the combination of pumpkin and cream cheese. Having it in cookie form is such a convenient way to serve. So many people want one or the either and this way they get the best of both worlds. I made up a batch and let the grandsons sample — they want me to make me more.
That’s awesome Marisa! Thanks so much for telling me. My family is a big fan of cream cheese cookies!
These sound like the best kind of cookie! They are perfectly pumpkin dipped in more sweetness! Sign me up!
Hehe. Thanks Jess! 🙂
Oh I love how puffy they are! These look perfect for a cold fall day and a cup of tea! I can’t wait to try them!
Thank you Lori! They are so delicious and I think you will like them.
It’s a fabulous tasting cookie. The flavors are amazing!
Thank you Gunjan!