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Pumpkin Cookies that are soft, cakey, and full of hearty oats might be the coziest thing to come out of your oven all season, and the whipped pumpkin spice frosting on top had Maddie and Lizzie hovering by the cooling rack last October before I could even finish frosting them. If you bake one thing this fall, make it these or a loaf of our pumpkin bread with streusel.
Real pumpkin puree keeps them tender while the oats give every bite a little chew.
Pumpkin Cookies Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 15 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 13 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 1 hour
- 🍽️ Serving: 21 cookies
- ⚡ Calories: 132kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Warm pumpkin spice, hearty oats, and a sweet whipped frosting
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our soft and chewy sugar cookies
Quick Answer
Stir together flour, pumpkin pie spice, and baking soda, then cream softened butter with brown sugar, granulated sugar, pumpkin puree, and vanilla. Mix in the dry ingredients, fold in rolled oats, and scoop the thick dough onto lined sheet trays. Bake at 350F for 11 to 13 minutes, cool completely, then top with a whipped frosting made from butter, powdered sugar, heavy cream, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice.
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Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- Pumpkin puree replaces the egg. The moisture and body of pure pumpkin binds the dough, which is why these cookies bake up soft and cakey instead of flat and crisp.
- Oats add structure and chew. Old fashioned rolled oats soak up some of the pumpkin moisture, so the cookies hold their shape and get a hearty, bakery style texture.
- Two sugars work together. Brown sugar brings moisture and a caramel note while granulated sugar keeps the edges lightly crisp.
- A small flour amount keeps them tender. Just three quarters of a cup of flour means the pumpkin and oats do the heavy lifting, so the crumb stays melt in your mouth soft.
- The frosting is whipped, not spread thick. Three minutes on high whips the butter, powdered sugar, and cream into a light, almost mousse like frosting that will not overpower the cookie.
- Spice lives in both layers. Pumpkin pie spice goes in the dough and the frosting, so the flavor carries through every single bite.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They are soft, cakey, and stay moist for days thanks to real pumpkin puree.
- One bowl for the dough, one for the frosting, no chilling and no mixer gymnastics.
- If you love our pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, this frosted oatmeal version is their cozier cousin.
Key Ingredients
A handful of pantry staples and one can of pumpkin.
- Pumpkin puree: Use pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie filling. It brings the moisture, color, and that unmistakable fall flavor.
- Rolled oats: Old fashioned oats give the cookies body and chew. Quick oats work in a pinch but the texture gets softer.
- Pumpkin pie spice: It seasons both the dough and the frosting, so every layer tastes like fall.
- Brown sugar: Packed light brown sugar keeps the centers moist and adds a hint of caramel.
- Heavy cream: A few tablespoons whip the frosting light and fluffy. Milk will work, but cream makes it silkier.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
These cookies are easy to riff on.
- Fold in a half cup of chocolate chips or white chocolate chips with the oats.
- Add chopped toasted pecans or walnuts to the dough for crunch.
- Skip the frosting and dust the warm cookies with cinnamon sugar for a simpler lunchbox cookie.
- Swap the whipped topping for our pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes style cream cheese frosting if you like a tangy finish.
How to Make Pumpkin Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line sheet trays with parchment paper. In a small bowl, stir together the flour, pumpkin pie spice, and baking soda.
- In a large bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, pumpkin puree, and vanilla with a hand mixer until smooth.
- Add the flour mixture and mix until combined, then add the oats and mix until evenly distributed. The dough will be thick.
- Scoop the dough with a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop onto the prepared trays, spacing the mounds 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 11 to 13 minutes until the cookies puff, look dry on top, and turn lightly golden at the edges. Cool 2 minutes on the tray, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Whip the butter until smooth, add the powdered sugar a spoonful at a time, then mix in the cream, vanilla, and pumpkin spice. Whip on high for 3 minutes and frost the cooled cookies. Dust with extra pumpkin spice and serve.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Blot nothing, measure carefully. Six tablespoons of pumpkin is all the liquid this dough needs, extra puree makes the cookies gummy.
- Do not overbake. Pull them when the tops look dry and the edges are barely golden, they finish setting on the tray.
- Cool completely before frosting. Even slightly warm cookies will melt the whipped frosting into a glaze.
- Whip the frosting the full 3 minutes. That is what turns it from sweet butter paste into a light, fluffy topping.
- Use a cookie scoop so every cookie bakes in the same 11 to 13 minute window.
- Frost the day you serve if you can. Unfrosted cookies keep beautifully in an airtight container for 3 days.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Serve these pumpkin cookies slightly cool with a mug of coffee or a cold glass of milk, the whipped frosting is at its fluffiest at room temperature.
They are perfect on a fall brunch table next to our 30 minute pumpkin cinnamon rolls or a warm slice of pumpkin bread.
Building a dessert board for Thanksgiving? Pair them with our pumpkin cheesecake bars and a plate of chocolate dipped shortbread cookies for a mix of textures.
Store frosted cookies in a single layer in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days, and let them sit out 15 minutes before serving so the frosting softens back up.
Pumpkin Cookies FAQs
Pumpkin cookies are naturally cakey because the puree adds a lot of moisture and there is no egg to add chew. That soft, muffin top texture is the goal here, the oats are what keep them from feeling like little cakes.
Yes, quick oats will work in these pumpkin cookies, but the texture will be softer and less hearty. Old fashioned rolled oats hold up better and give the cookies more chew. Do not use steel cut oats, they will not soften enough during the short bake.
Yes, once frosted these pumpkin cookies should be stored in the fridge because the frosting is made with butter and heavy cream. Keep them in an airtight container for up to 4 days and bring to room temperature before serving.
Absolutely. Freeze the unfrosted pumpkin cookies in a freezer bag for up to 3 months and thaw at room temperature before frosting. You can also freeze scooped dough balls and bake straight from frozen, just add a minute or two to the bake time.
No, pumpkin pie filling is pre sweetened and spiced, which throws off the sugar balance and makes the dough too wet. Use 100 percent pure pumpkin puree and let the recipe handle the sweetness and spice.
This whipped pumpkin spice buttercream is our favorite because it stays light and lets the cookie shine. Cream cheese frosting is a close second if you want a tangy contrast, and a simple maple glaze works when you want something quicker.
Made these Pumpkin Cookies? I would love to hear how they turned out, leave a comment and a star rating below!
For breakfast the next morning, bake our easy pumpkin muffins with cranberries and apple.
If you are after something sliceable, our easy pumpkin cake comes together in an 8×8 pan.
Add our mini pumpkin pies to the same cozy fall bake list.
Wash these down with a homemade pumpkin cream cold brew for the full fall coffee shop moment.
Pumpkin Cookies
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 tablespoons salted butter softened
- 6 tablespoons light brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons pure pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 old-fashioned rolled oats
For the frosting:
- 4 tablespoons salted butter softened
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 3-4 tablespoons heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice plus more for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line sheet trays with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a small bowl, stir together the flour, pumpkin spice, and baking soda, and set aside.3/4 cup all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- In a large bowl with an electric hand mixer or in the body of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, pumpkin puree, and vanilla until smooth.4 tablespoons salted butter, 6 tablespoons light brown sugar, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 6 tablespoons pure pumpkin puree, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the flour mixture and mix until combined, scraping down the sides.
- Add in the oats and mix until evenly distributed, the mixture will be thick.1 1/4 old-fashioned rolled oats
- Take a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop, or you can eyeball it and dollop the cookie dough onto the prepared sheet trays 2 inches apart.
- Bake for 11-13 minutes until they puff slightly, appear dry on top, and lightly golden around the edges.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the trays for about 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- While the cookies are cooling, make the frosting. Whip the butter in a medium bowl with an electric hand mixer until smooth.4 tablespoons salted butter
- Add one spoonful at a time of the powdered sugar until it is all combined, it will resemble sand.2 cups powdered sugar
- Add 3 tablespoons of the cream, vanilla, and pumpkin spice. Mix until combined, if it still seems too thick, add an additional 1 tablespoon of cream.3-4 tablespoons heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- Once everything is mixed in, turn the mixer up to high and whip for 3 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Once the cookies are completely cool, add the frosting on top, I like to use an offset spatula for this, but a butter knife will also work.
- Sprinkle a little more pumpkin spice on top if desired and serve immediately.
Notes
- Use Room Temperature Ingredients: This helps the ingredients mix together more smoothly.
- Don’t Overmix the Dough: Overmixing can make the cookies tough. Mix until just combined.
- Measure Flour Correctly: Spoon flour into your measuring cup and level it off to avoid using too much.
- Cool Completely Before Frosting: Frosting warm cookies will cause the frosting to melt.
- Adjust Frosting Consistency: If the frosting is too thick, add a little more cream. If it’s too thin, add more powdered sugar.
- Use Parchment Paper: Lining your baking sheet with parchment paper prevents sticking and makes cleanup easier.
Nutrition
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