These Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling are not your average whoopie pies. With a cakey pumpkin whoopie cookie, a fluffy filling, a little tang from the cream cheese, and the sweet warmth of fall spices...you'll be in whoopie pie heaven!
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Whoopie Pie Woes
I was born in Amish country and whoopie pies from the local flea markets were one of my favorite treats as a kid. So, I take my whoopie pie recipes very seriously.
Whoopie pies can be tricky - from flat pies to runny filling, to tough cookies and beyond. But I’ve taken care of all those problems for you with a tried and tested, delicious, easy-to-mix recipe that will have you whipping up beautiful whoopies in no time.
This pumpkin cookie is nice and soft, a little irregular in shape, but still round enough to find a perfect match to sandwich it with. The filling is stiff enough to hold up the top cookie, but light enough to still squish out a bit when you bite through. In my book, whoopies are supposed to be a little messy. That messy look is what makes that perfectly cakey cookie texture and fluffy filling possible!
(p.s. for another spiced cakey treat, be sure to not miss out on my Classic Carrot Cake Recipe with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (without heavy cream!)!)
Why This Recipe Leads to Sweet Success
- Just the right texture of whoopie cookie: I tested 10 different variations of this whoopie cookie to land on the perfect one. If you want them perfectly round, you ended up with a tougher texture, as a thick dough is what kept them from losing their shape during the bake. Some versions were too liquidy which did give us a lovely soft texture, but the cookies resembled pancakes. These final cookies are the perfect balance of a light and fluffy cake batter, and a cookie dough that holds some of its height when baked to ultimately produce a delicious whoopie sandwich.
- Working for the whoopies: whoopie pies can be labor intensive so I've made each component as easy as possible while still ensuring the final product is top notch. Both the cookies and frosting are quick mix recipes.
- Cream cheese balances what can be a very sweet treat: traditional whoopie pies, especially the chocolate ones with the shortening based fillings, can be very sweet (albeit delicious!). I love a good cream cheese filling for whoopie pies to counteract that sweetness. This is especially true in this recipe as we need a good deal of sugar in our cookies to make sure the pumpkin doesn’t come through as too vegetal.
- Just the right amount of spice: a fun little fact you might not know - what most people think is “pumpkin” flavor that they love, is actually “pumpkin spice” flavor that they love. Without those spices, many people don’t even recognize straight pumpkin puree for what it is. So, I’ve made sure there’s just the right amount of spice in the cookies and filling that you know you’re enjoying a pumpkin-licious treat, while still being able to taste all the other flavors.
Ingredient Tips to Bake it Better
(Pssst…if you're ready to just get baking, get all the details in the recipe card below!)
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: I love to make my spice blends by hand for each recipe. Even within the pumpkin recipe category, some I like with more cinnamon, others with more ginger, etc. That said, if you’re in a hurry or just don’t have the individual spices at home, no worries. You can start with 2 ½ teaspoons of pre-made pumpkin pie spice in your cookies in place of all the individual spices, and then add more to taste if you like.
- Pumpkin Puree: I made sure this recipe used a whole can of pumpkin puree for a big pumpkin flavor and none of that left over puree that sits in your fridge un-used for days (or forever). Just make sure you get 100% pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling which has sugar and other additives. They look very similar at the store and can be easy to mix up, so just double-check your label.
- Buttermilk: the base of these whoopies is pretty sweet to counteract the vegetal notes of all the pumpkin puree. So, I prefer buttermilk's acidity to balance that sweetness out a bit. If you only have regular milk at home though, that'll work fine too!
- Cream Cheese: I always recommend Philadelphia Cream Cheese for cream cheese frosting as I prefer it for both flavor and a consistent texture compared to other cream cheese brands.
- Cinnamon: if you’d like a sweeter cinnamon flavor, I’d recommend sticking to a traditional cassia cinnamon for your whoopie batter. If you’d like a little heat from your cinnamon, you could spice up your filling with a Vietnamese cinnamon, or you can even leave the cinnamon out of the filling altogether if you prefer a vanilla cream cheese frosting.
Special Tools and Equipment You'll Need
There is no special equipment besides a mixer required for this recipe, but you’ll find an ice cream scoop to be very helpful.
It will allow you to evenly portion and form your whoopie cookie batter into rounds. That’ll produce much rounder cookies than scooping with a spoon for this looser batter.
How to Make Whoopie Pies From Scratch
(Pssst…if you're ready to just get baking, get all the details in the recipe card below!)
TO MAKE THE COOKIES:
- Mix together the flour, leaveners, spices, and salt until well blended. Combine the wet ingredients in a separate bowl until fully mixed.
- Cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
- Add in the wet and dry mixtures and beat until batter is smooth and combined.
- Scoop whoopie cookies using and ice cream scoop or spoon and drop at least 2” apart on prepared pans.
- Bake until fully set and brown on the bottom. Allow cookies to cool fully while you prepare the frosting.
TO MAKE THE FROSTING:
- Beat together all the ingredients until smooth.
TO ASSEMBLE THE WHOOPIE PIES:
- Marry the whoopie pies by matching all the cookies up with a similarly sized/shaped partner. Top one cookie in each pair with 1-2 tablespoons of frosting.
- Sandwich the filling by placing the second cookie on top and pressing it down until the filling comes just to the edge of the cookies, then enjoy!
Fun Flavor Customizations
- Maple Cream Cheese Filling: you can sub a tablespoon of maple syrup for a tablespoon of milk in the filling if you'd like to make a maple filling for your pies.
- Chocolate Chips: so I’ll be honest – when it comes to pumpkin whoopie pies, I’m a bit of a purest. BUT, I know Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Whoopie Pies are loved by many of you out there. So feel free to mix mini chips into your filling if you’d like a little chocolate crunch in your whoopies.
FAQ's and Tips for Better Baking
What's the TOP TIP for making the best pumpkin whoopie pies?
Try to keep your cookies as round as possible when dropping them on the sheet to make sure you end up with fairly round cookies once baked. Also, be sure not to whip your frosting any more than you have to as it will soften up the more you whip it. If it gets too soft, it won’t hold up as well once sandwiched (although it’ll still taste delicious!)
Can you make any components ahead of time?
Yes! The whoopie cookies are best made fresh, but you can make the filling up to 3 days ahead of time.
If you go that route, simply store the cream cheese frosting in an airtight container in the fridge. Allow it to sit on the counter at room temperature for 2-3 hours before filling your freshly baked cookies so it can re-soften. Once at room temp, you can quickly re-mix, or just use a spatula to work it a bit in the bowl, to get it back to a nice, smooth consistency for piping into your whoopies.
How do you store leftover whoopie pies?
Store airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days, or at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Can I use another kind of filling?
Absolutely! You can check out the notes above in the Ingredient Tips section for how to make vanilla or maple cream cheese frosting. But if you have a favorite whoopie filling you’d like to sub into this recipe, please feel free to do so! As long as the frosting has a little body to it so it doesn’t squish out once the top cookie is added, you should be good to go.
Why do whoopie pies turn out flat?
As I mentioned in the intro, whoopies can be a fickle cookie. To get that cakey texture you want from a classic whoopie pie, you have to have a softer batter than a traditional cookie. That can mean you’ll get a lot more spread, and they won’t hold their shape well. This recipe has been developed to strike the perfect balance between a well-shaped cookie and a fluffy cake batter typically baked in a pan, so you can enjoy the best of both worlds!
Other Recipes You'll Love
Craving more delicious treats? Here are a few of my other favorite cream cheese frosting and fall-time favorites:
Cream Cheese Recipes:
- Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
- Lemon & Orange Cream Cheese Pound Cake
- Red Velvet Bundt with Cream Cheese Glaze
- Cookies & Cream Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze
- Cinnamon French Toast Pancakes
- Double Cinnamon Streusel Muffins
- Cinnamon and Sugar Donut Muffins
- Apple Hand Pie with Cinnamon Streusel
- Sour Cream Blueberry Muffins with Cinnamon Streusel
- Bourbon Pecan Pie Bars
- Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cake
⭐ If you bake up this tasty recipe please give it a ⭐ rating in the recipe card or leave a comment and feel free to ask any questions at the bottom of the page to help others find their way to this sweet recipe too! ⭐
Full Recipe Card Here!
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling
Ingredients
FOR THE WHOOPIE COOKIES:
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon*1
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground clove (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom (optional)
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 15 oz. of pumpkin puree (1 can*2)
- 2 large eggs
- ⅓ cup buttermilk*3
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter (softened)
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
FOR THE FROSTING:
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter (softened)
- ¾ cup (6 ounces) Philadelphia cream cheese
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 cups powdered sugar (sifted)
- 2 tablespoons milk or heavy cream
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
TO MAKE THE COOKIES:
- Prep and line: preheat your oven to 375°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Combine flour, leaveners, spices, and salt: combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt in a small bowl and stir until well combined. Set aside.
- Combine the wet ingredients: stir together the pumpkin puree, eggs, buttermilk, maple syrup, and vanilla extract until well combined. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugars: cream butter and both sugars using a hand or stand mixer for 2-3 minutes on medium-high until light and fluffy. (We're working with alot of batter throughout this recipe, so make sure you are regularly scraping the bowl well throughout the mix steps).
- Add in the wet + dry ingredients: add in the pumpkin mixture and flour mixture, and mix on medium speed for about 1 minute until all ingredients are fully combined and batter is smooth.
- Scoop and tray: scoop batter, using 2 tablespoons of batter per cookie (an ice-cream scoop works well here for easy portioning and shaping!), and drop in rounds on prepared baking sheets at least 2” apart.
- Bake: bake for 9-12 minutes, just until tops are fully set, lose their shine, and spring back when gently pressed. The bottoms should be browned as well.
- Cool: allow cookies to fully cool while you prepare the frosting.
TO MAKE THE FROSTING:
- Beat together all ingredients: place all frosting ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Beat on low speed using a hand or stand mixer, just until the ingredients are roughly combined, and then 30 seconds on medium speed until smooth and fully combined.
TO ASSEMBLE THE WHOOPIE PIES:
- Marry the whoopies: pair cookies according to the best matches by size and dimension on your work surface or a baking sheet with the flat bottoms facing up.
- Fill with frosting: using a pastry bag, or a spoon/ice cream scoop and a dinner knife, top one cookie in each pair with 1-2 tablespoons of frosting each. Spread frosting into an even layer until it's just shy of the edge (if piping into a neat, even layer, you don't need to spread it out any further).
- Sandwich and enjoy! Top the frosted cookie with it's matching cookie to make a sandwich, and gently press the cookies together until the filling reaches the edge of the cookies. Pass those mini sandwiches of joy around the room and listen to everyone holler "whoopie" when they take their first bite!
Test Kitchen Tips
- *1Spice blends: if you’re in a hurry or just don’t have the individual spices at home, you can start with 2 ½ teaspoons of pre-made pumpkin pie spice in your cookies in place of all the individual spices, and then add more to taste if you like.
- *2Pumpkin Puree not Pie Filling: make sure you get 100% pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling which has sugar and other additives. They look very similar at the store and can be easy to mix up, so just be sure to double-check your label!
- *3Buttermilk or milk? The base of these whoopies is pretty sweet to counteract the vegetal notes of all the pumpkin puree, so I prefer buttermilk's acidity to balance that sweetness out a bit. But if you only have regular milk at home, that'll work fine too!
- A Whole Lot O’ Whoopies: this recipe makes a lot of mini whoopie pies as I find there are never enough to go around. But if 30 is too many for you, just use the toggle at the top of the ingredients section in the recipe card to resize to a half-batch which is about 15 mini whoopie pies.
- Storage: store airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days, or at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Nutrition
I hope you and your loved ones enjoy this recipe and when you give these a try, please share (literally and electronically!) and tag me on Instagram or Facebook @mint.and.mallow.kitchen so I can see all your amazing sweets and help you with any baking conundrums that come up!
Love, light and sweets always,
Jocelyn
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Jeannie Ferington says
Do you have a recipe for vanilla or cho whoopes? Thank you.
Jocelyn at M+M says
Hi, Jeannie! I don't' have any recipe for chocolate or vanilla whoopies yet, but I'll be sure to add those to my development list!