Frosted Pecan Pumpkin Spice Cookies
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Soft, chewy, and pillowy pumpkin cookies with cinnamon, spices, and pecans are topped with a buttercream icing. These Frosted Pecan Pumpkin Spice Cookies are a fall must bake!
If you are looking for more pumpkin cookies be sure to check out some of my other favorites, like my Brown Butter Pumpkin Cookies, Double Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies, or Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies.
Table of Contents
I am obsessed with these pumpkin spice cookies. The combination of soft and chewy pumpkin cookies with pecans and a sweet frosting on top is just pure perfection. For having on chocolate in these cookies, they are a huge win (coming from a chocoholic!).
These organic cookies are a fall favorite, I make them every year. I first developed this recipe when I owned my bake shop and they were one of our seasonal flavors that customers looked forward to come September.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
Soft & Pillowy: You will love these Frosted Pecan Pumpkin Spice Cookies because they are soft, pillowy, and full of cozy fall vibes! I add pecans into soft and caky pumpkin spice cookies, and I top them with a simple buttercream icing that makes them just melt in your mouth.
Fall Vibes: I use pumpkin along with pumpkin spice in these organic cookies that have all the fall vibes! This recipe will just transport you to fall, even if you want to make them all year round.
Cozy Dessert: Fall is full of cozy drinks like my Kava Tea Steamer, Dark Hot Chocolate, and my Honey Almond Steamer. And nothing goes better with a warm and cozy drink than organic cookies! These Frosted Pecan Pumpkin Spice Cookies are a simple fall cookie recipe that everyone will love!
Ingredients
- Butter: I use Organic Valley Salted Butter, so if you want to make them just like I did at my bakery, then use all the ingredients listed here as ingredients really can alter the flavor of a cookie.
- Brown Sugar: I use organic dark brown sugar for a rich pumpkin spice flavor. You can use light brown, but the flavor won't be the same.
- Cane Sugar: I use organic cane sugar as it's less processed than granulated white sugar.
- Eggs: Use large eggs.
- Pumpkin: I use organic pumpkin puree, which is what gives these cookies flavor as well as that soft and pillowy texture.
- All Purpose Flour: My favorite is Cairnspring Mills.
- Pumpkin Spice: I use my homemade pumpkin pie spice, but if you're going to buy it then I recommend Frontier Co-Op as it will have the most similar flavor.
- Cinnamon: I use organic Korintje cinnamon, which is my favorite variety and it has a very specific flavor as well. Using a different variety will alter the flavor of your cookies.
- Vanilla Bean: I use organic ground vanilla bean, which also adds depth of flavor to these pumpkin cookies. You can use vanilla extract in its place, but the cookies will not have the same flavor.
- Baking Soda: Use baking soda, not powder. Be sure to check out my post the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder for more info on leavening agents.
- Salt: Use a fine sea salt.
- Pecans: Use raw pecan halves.
- Powdered Sugar: Make sure to sift powdered sugar so your icing is nice and smooth. At the bake shop, we always used Wholesome.
- Milk: Use whole milk for the best flavor. I also prefer to use grassfed milk for the most nutrients.
Tools Needed
- Scale: Always use a digital food scale for the best results.
- Stand Mixer: I use my stand mixer for ease, but if you want to use a hand mixer you can do that too.
- Baking Sheets: You'll need two half sheet pans to bake these pumpkin cookies.
- Parchment Paper: I always use nontoxic parchment paper whenever baking cookies as I think they come out best.
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Step by Step Instructions
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Step 2
To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, and dark brown sugar. Mix on low until there are no butter chunks. Add the egg and pumpkin puree and mix just slightly, enough to break the yolks.
In a separate bowl, add the flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, vanilla bean, baking soda, and sea salt and whisk together. Add to the butter mixture and mix on low until almost combined, you’ll see bits of flour. Add the pecans and mix on low until fully combined.
Step 3
Using your hands, form the dough into 24 balls and place them on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten them so they are disks that are about 2 ¼-inch in diameter.
Bake for 11 minutes or until set and dry. Let cool completely on the cookie sheet. (If you're baking at high altitude, be sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions).
Step 4
To make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, powdered sugar, and milk. Mix on low until combined and then speed mixer up to high and mix for 1 to 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
Step 5
Using a butter knife, frost each cookie.
Baker's Tips
- Make sure you are using soft butter for this simple fall cookie recipe. If you need to soften butter in the microwave, only do 10 seconds per stick at a time. You may have to do multiple intervals of 10 seconds, but going longer can melt portions of the butter, which isn't good.
- My favorite canned pumpkin is Farmer's Market, find it here. If you are going to pick one ingredient to splurge on or buy for a recipe – always choose the star. For example, the star in this recipe is pumpkin as it's the most prevalent flavor. So, you want the best one to shine through.
- If your cookie dough seems sticky, just pop the bowl in the fridge for 5 to 15 minutes until it's easier to work with. It should be easily rollable with your hands.
- Allow the cookies to cool completely before frosting them. I know this is so hard! But, if you frost cookies when they are warm the frosting will melt, and you don't want that!
- The best way to store these cookies is in an airtight container so they retain their soft and chewy texture. My trick for this is to frost all the cookies, leave on the cookie sheet and pop the whole cookie sheet in the freezer for a few hours. This will allow the frosting to harden. Then, you can put them in tupperware or ziploc bags to store in the freezer if you want to keep them there. You can also place parchment paper between each one to prevent them from sticking.
FAQ's
No, if you want to use a hand mixer for this recipe you can do that as well. I just always prefer my stand mixer because it's hands free.
Yes, if you have a nut allergy you can definitely omit the pecans! Or if you just want a plain pumpkin spice cookie. You could also replace the pecans with walnuts, almonds, or chocolate chips, all of which would be so good!
You can make your own Homemade Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix with my easy recipe! This is just a mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. You probably have these spices in your pantry already!
Yes, if you want to freeze some of the cookie dough to bake off later you can definitely do that. I recommend forming the dough into the right size balls first, then stack with parchment paper in between each one, so they don't freeze together, and store in an airtight container. This way, they freeze in the exact size and portion you need, and you won't have one giant dough mound. When ready to bake, just thaw them to room temperature before baking.
Craving More?
Frosted Pecan Pumpkin Spice Cookies
Ingredients
Dough
- 113 grams salted butter (softened)
- 113 grams cane sugar
- 113 grams dark brown sugar (packed)
- 1 large egg
- 113 grams pumpkin puree
- 340 grams all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground vanilla bean
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 127 grams pecan halves
Frosting
- 113 grams salted butter (softened)
- 284 grams powdered sugar (sifted)
- 2 tablespoons milk
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, and dark brown sugar. Mix on low until there are no butter chunks. Add the egg and pumpkin puree and mix just slightly, enough to break the yolks.
- In a separate bowl, add the flour, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, vanilla bean, baking soda, and sea salt and whisk together. Add to the butter mixture and mix on low until almost combined, you’ll see bits of flour. Add the pecans and mix on low until fully combined.
- Using your hands, form the dough into 24 balls and place them on the prepared baking sheets. Flatten them so they are disks that are about 2 ¼-inch in diameter.
- Bake for 11 minutes or until set and dry. Let cool completely on the cookie sheet.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
- To make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, powdered sugar, and milk. Mix on low until combined and then speed mixer up to high and mix for 1 to 2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
- Using a butter knife, frost each cookie.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
Notes
Nutrition
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Soft, chewy and cozy, one of my favorite fall cookies!