Holy pumpkin! These are freakin’ good.
I almost always shy away from cookies that require extra effort. These do. And I will never post a recipe here where the effort isn’t worth it, because we’re all busy parents and don’t have extra time to be scooping and filling and sealing and dipping cookie dough.
But you should make these. Like yesterday.
Pumpkin and cinnamon-sugar goodness all wrapped around creamy cheesecake? There isn’t a better fall cookie, I tell you. And these snickerdoodles stay nice and thick so the end result is a bakery-style cookie, not some thin, weepy thing with cream cheese peeking through.
I’m taking these to girls night tonight and I’ll wager they might even be more popular than the wine…
p.s. I store these in the fridge because I’m weird about that cream cheese filling. But bring them to room temp before serving. Soooooooo good.
Ingredients
For cookies:
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. freshly-ground ground nutmeg
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
For cheesecake filling:
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For cinnamon-sugar coating:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice
Instructions
Directions:
To make the cookies, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Blend in the pumpkin puree. Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add in the dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour.
While the dough chills, make the filling. In a small bowl, mix together the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Cover and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a few baking sheets with parchment paper. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and spices for the coating thoroughly. Take one tablespoon of dough and flatten it into a pancake shape. Place one teaspoon of the cream cheese mixture in the middle of the pancake. (You may have some extra of the cream cheese mixture. I used the remaining to frost a few of the cookies when they cooled!) Form another tablespoon of dough into an equally-sized pancake shape, and place on top, keeping the cream cheese in the middle. Gently pinch together the edges of the dough around the cream cheese to seal, then gently roll into a ball. Roll the ball in the cinnamon-sugar mixture to coat. Repeat with the remaining dough to fill the sheets, spacing the dough balls 2-3 inches apart. Use your hands to flatten slightly.
Bake the cookies for 10-15 minutes, or until they are slightly firm to the touch and the tops are beginning to crackle. Immediately sprinkle with additional cinnamon and sugar mixture. Let cool on the baking sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in the fridge, but bring to room temp before serving.
Makes about 24 cookies.
Adapted from Bakeaholicmama
https://sugarmamacooks.com/cheesecake-stuffed-pumpkin-snickerdoodles/
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