Making a batch of these Pumpkin Spice Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting is a sure sign that fall is in the air.
The second that temperatures start dropping and that first leaf falls to the ground, I start to crave these cookies. These Pumpkin Spice Cookies are soft and cake like in the middle with a decadent coating of Brown Butter Frosting on the top. They are the pure essence of this specatucalr time of year.
Make a batch and see how fast they dissappear!
To make these Pumpkin Spice Cookies, you will need sugar, brown sugar, butter, vanilla, pumpkin puree, eggs, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and salt.
For the frosting, you will need powdered sugar, vanilla, milk and butter.
In a large bowl, mix sugar, brown sugar, 3/4 cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla until well combined.
Next, beat in pumpkin puree and eggs until well mixed.
On low speed, mix in the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg
On an ungreased cookie sheet, drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls, or use a dough scoop so that the cookies are uniform in size. I prefer this method, as the cookies look better and the bake time will be more consistent with all of the cookies when they are the same size.
Bake at 375 degrees for 9-11 minutes. Once cookies have baked, remove them immediatley to a cooling rack. Cool 45 minutes, or until completely cooled before frosting them.
Make sure that when you start making this Brown Butter Frosting that you will have 10-15 minutes of uninterupted time. The frosting sets up pretty quickly, so don’t stop to switch the laundry out half way through, or take a phone call. You will come back to a frosting that has already set and it will be tough to spread.
To start the Brown Butter Frosting, place powdered sugar, vanilla and 3 tablespoons of milk in a medium size bowl and set aside.
In a pan, heat 1/3 cup butter over medium heat, stirring constantly, just until lightly brown. DO NOT step away from this pan while you are heating the butter! I have learned the hard way that it turns brown quite quickly and if you aren’t watching it closely it will burn. The golden brown color pictured below is what you are aiming for.
Next, pour melted butter over the powdered sugar mixture that you have set aside and beat on low speed about 1 minute, or until thoroughly combined. If the frosting seems to thick, you can add the last tablespoon of milk and mix again. You want it to be creamy and spreadable. Frost each cookie with a generous portion of frosting. Enjoy!
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- ⅔ cup packed brown sugar
- ¾ cup butter, softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup pumpkin puree (not pie mix)
- 2 eggs
- 2¼ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Browned Butter Frosting:
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 3-4 tablespoons of milk
- ⅓ cup butter (do not use margarine or any butter substitute)
- Heat oven to 325 degrees F
- In a large bowl, beat granulated sugar, brown sugar, ¾ cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla on medium speed. Beat in pumpkin and eggs until well mixed.
- On low speed, beat in flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg and salt.
- Drop dough by heaping tablespoons or cookie scoop onto an ungreased cooke sheet.
- Bake 9-11 minutes.
- Immediately remove cookies onto a cooling rack. Cool completely 30-45 minutes.
- To make the Brown Butter Frosting:
- Place powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 3 tablespoons milk in a medium bowl.
- In a medium saucepan, hat ⅓ cup butter over medium heat, stirring co nstantly, just until light brown.
- Pour browned butter over powdered sugar mixture. Beat on low speed for 1 minute or until smooth.At this point, you want to check the consistency of your frosting. If it is too thick, gradually add the last tablespoon of milk until you reach your desired consistency.
- Generously frost each cookie.
This recipe is unique, I like its ingredients! What substitute can we use instead of sugar, please?
I have never made these cookies with anything other than sugar, so I am not positive. I have heard a lot about a product called “Swerve” though, that might be an option to try?
These are a hit with everyone in my family! I made a batch to take over to the neighbor who was recently in the hospital and only held back a small amount for us. Many complaints about why I didn’t make more to keep lol! Great cookie for fall, thanks for sharing!
I am so glad that you liked them. They are one of our favorites every fall!