Pumpkin Orange Cookies with Cream Cheese Icing
These are my very favorite fall cookie! Soft, cake-like cookies with just the right hint of orange to complement the pumpkin.
Ingredients
Cookie
- 3 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1 cup butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 3/4 cup canned pure pumpkin (15 oz can)
- 2 tbsp orange juice
- 1 tsp grated orange zest
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Cream Cheese Icing
- 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup butter, at room temperature
- 2-3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp orange juice
- 1/2 tsp grated orange zest
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, soda, salt, cinnamon and cloves. Whisk until combined. Set aside.
- In a large mixer bowl, combine butter and sugars; beat until creamy.
- Add egg, pumpkin, orange juice and zest. Beat until combined. Gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined. Stir in nuts.
- Place mixing bowl with dough in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
- Using a cookie scoop, drop dough into rounded tablespoons on ungreased baking sheets. Return dough to refrigerator in between batches to keep dough cold.
- Bake at 375 for 12-14 minutes or until edges are set. Remove to wire racks to cool completely.
- Combine cream cheese and butter in mixing bowl. Beat until well blended. Add orange juice, zest and powdered sugar. If icing is too thick thin with a tablespoon of cream or additional orange juice.
- Refrigerate cookies after frosting.
Notes
- These cookies are soft, so the dough can be a bit temperamental. If you need a 1/4 cup more flour to bring the dough together, go right ahead.
- Refrigerating the dough before baking and any remaining dough between batches is key.
- These are best eaten with 1-2 days.