Moist, soft, and perfectly spiced, these Pumpkin Whoopie Pies are filled with sweet cream cheese frosting. Packed with just the right amount of pumpkin flavor and warm spices, they are a delicious treat for the fall!
Looking for more new pumpkin recipes? Be sure to try these pumpkin snickerdoodles and these pumkpin oatmeal cookies too!
Table of contents
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Filling
I would consider these homemade whoopie pies to be the perfect fall treat and you’re about to join me in my stance! The pure pumpkin and cozy pumpkin spice give this traditional sandwich cookie an amazing fall flare.
They’re made ready to eat in under 1 hour and as far as sweet cravings go, this is an easy choice. There’s nothing extraordinary in the ingredients list and you may already have most, if not all, of the items on hand.
Enjoy them as a delicious grab-n-go snack, a treat for dessert, or as part of your holiday cookie tray. Any leftovers, your kids can take in their lunches!
What Are Whoopie Pies?
Originating in New England, whoopie pies are made with moist, soft, and cakey cookies sandwiched together with a creamy filling on the inside. Both the cookies and the fillings can be made in a variety of flavors.
The main things to consider when making any type of whoopie pie, are measuring flour correctly, and making the cookies an even size. I like to make mini whoopie pies but you can make them larger if you prefer. You also want to bring your butter and eggs to room temperature for even baking.
Not to worry, I’m going to walk you through all of it, so let’s get started!
Ingredients/shopping list
- All-purpose flour: Be sure to measure your flour correctly using the spoon and level method (or a scale for accuracy if you have one). The flour is the structure of the cookie dough and you don’t want them too heavy.
- Pumpkin pie spice: I have a great homemade pumpkin pie spice blend if you don’t have one already. It’s a simple combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and allspice.
- Baking soda: This is what helps the cookies to rise and plump up!
- Salt: Brings out the flavors in the rest of the ingredients, enhancing the overall taste.
- Butter, softened: Stick with unsalted since we’re adding salt to this recipe. That way you can control the amount. Soft butter, as opposed to melted, will help keep these cookies nice and soft.
- White sugar & Brown sugar: Both add sweetness, but the light brown sugar adds a little something extra. Moisture and a deeper caramel flavor.
- Pumpkin puree: Pure canned pumpkin, or homemade pumpkin puree. Whatever it is, just make sure it’s just pumpkin and not the pie filling!
- Large eggs: To bind the ingredients together so that the cookies don’t fall apart in your hands.
The frosting is a combination of softened cream cheese and butter, along with powdered sugar, vanilla, and a pinch of salt. Super easy!
Variations/ Substitutions
1: Substitute the cream cheese icing with Marshmallow Frosting.
2: If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, or all of the ingredients to make it, substitute for cinnamon on its own, or cinnamon and nutmeg.
3: Add a little maple syrup to the frosting to make it a maple cream cheese frosting.
4: For gluten-free pumpkin whoopie pies, replace the all-purpose with a gluten-free 1:1 all-purpose flour.
Roll the frosted edges in mini chocolate chips or chocolate sprinkles for extra fun!
How to Make this Whoopie Pie Recipe
Soft pumpkin cookies are good, but when you sandwich two of them together with a hefty cream center, they are downright heavenly!
Here’s how you make these pumpkin whoopie pies:
Step 1: In a medium bowl, combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt. You’ll eventually add these dry ingredients into the wet (not the other way around).
Step 2: In a large bowl, blend the butter and sugars until fluffy. Use an electric mixer for this and save your arm muscles! I love using my stand mixer with paddle attachment but you can use a hand mixer as well.
Step 3 Add the eggs and mix to combine. Then continue with adding the pumpkin puree and mix until thoroughly combined.
Step 4: Pour the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture and blend, using a wooden spoon or spatula, until the flour mixture is just barely combined.(careful not to over-mix or the cookies will be less fluffy)
Step 5: Here’s where you’ll want to make sure to get even amounts of cookie dough so each whoopie pie is the same size. I like to use a piping bag with the end cut off (or use a round tip), but if that’s not an option, you can use a cookie scoop.
Step 6: Pipe the batter into 2-inch rounds onto the prepared baking sheets. Keep them about 2 inches apart so they don’t attach while baking. Bake for 8-10 minutes in a preheated 350-degree oven.
Step 7: Once they are done baking, transfer the pumpkin whoopie pies to a wire rack. Once completely cooled, then go ahead and frost them!
How to Make Cream Cheese Frosting
Step 1: Beat together the softened cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.
Step 2: Add in vanilla and blend until mixed in.
Step 3: Pour in powdered sugar ½ cup at a time. Use a total of 2 cups if you want a thicker frosting.
Step 4: Once the cookies have cooled, flip half of them over so they are facing upward. Pipe some of the frosting onto the center of the cookie and top with another cookie. You can use another piping bag or plastic bag or even just spoon a large dollop on top.
Tips
- Wait until cookies have cooled before frosting. Any residual heat will melt the frosting, making it runny.
- Try your best to make each cookie the same size. You don’t want pumpkin whoopie pies with two different-sized cookies on the ends!
- Make sure your pumpkin isn’t too watery. Homemade pumpkin puree is always a nice treat, however, it can be much more watery than thick canned pumpkin. If you think this is the case, stick with canned pumpkin.
- Do not overmix the batter. This is a sure way to get your cookies to become dense! That and using too much flour.
FAQ’s
These can stay at room temperature for up to 1 day. After that, transfer them to the fridge, otherwise, they’ll start to get sticky.
They’ll last about 4-5 days in the fridge. Keep them covered in an airtight container and enjoy them throughout the week.
Absolutely! If you know you’re going to freeze them ahead of time, do that before frosting. When you’re ready to assemble them, thaw them completely then add the frosting.
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Easy Pumpkin Whoopie Pies
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup white sugar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 large eggs
For the Cream Cheese Frosting
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 4 tablespoons butter softened
- 1 ½ – 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350° F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium size mixing bowl, add the flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, and salt and mix together1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon salt
- In a separate large mixing bowl, add the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar and blend together with an electric mixer until fluffy.½ cup butter, ½ cup white sugar, ¼ cup brown sugar
- Add the eggs and blend in.2 large eggs
- Then add the pumpkin puree and mix until thoroughly combined.1 cup pumpkin puree
- Add dry ingredients into the wet ingredients / pumpkin mixture and blend until just incorporated.
- Place cookie batter into a piping bag with the end cut off (or fitted with a round tip).
- Pipe the batter into 2 inch round cookies onto prepared cookie sheet spacing about 2 inches apart.
- Bake 8-10 minutes.
- Remove cookies and place on a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting
- Place the softened cream cheese and butter in a mixing bowl and beat together until fluffy with an electric mixer.4 ounces cream cheese, 4 tablespoons butter
- Add vanilla extract and blend until mixed in.1 teaspoon Vanilla
- Add in powdered sugar in batches of ½ cup each. Add up to 2 cups of powdered sugar if you’d like a thicker frosting.1 ½ – 2 cups powdered sugar, Pinch of salt
- Add the frosting to a piping bag and pipe onto the bottom half of each cookie
- Place a top onto each frosting cookie.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclosure
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.
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