Vegan pumpkin sugar cookies are melt-in-your-mouth soft and full of cozy fall spices. Top them with sweet cream cheese frosting and they're out-of-this-world delicious!
In a small bowl, add the flour baking powder and baking soda, pumpkin spice, cinnamon and sea salt. Whisk together thoroughly. Set aside.
In a large bowl, add the vegan butter and the sugar. With a standing mixer or a hand mix, until thoroughly incorporated, about 5 minutes.
Add the vanilla extract and the pumpkin purée. Blend until thoroughly incorporated, scraping down sides, for about 3 minutes. Add the dry ingredients to the wet in two batches, and mix with mixer until incorporated. Scrape down the sides to gather all the dough and gently fold in.
Form dough into a large ball or two smaller balls and cover with Saran wrap. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours to set up.
Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C.
Remove Saran Wrap and scoop 1-2 tablespoons out of the dough. Roll slightly between fingers to form a ball. Place out dough ball on a lined cookie sheet, leaving adequate space between each. Ensure the dough balls are higher rather than wider to ensure they stay as thick as possible. Use more than one cookie sheet if necessary.
Place back in fridge for 10 minutes to ensure dough is very cold. Bake for 10-13 minutes for smaller cookies and 12-15 minutes for larger cookies; 15 will still be soft but slightly firmer.
Remove and let cool for exactly 10 minutes. Lightly spread cream cheese frosting on top and sprinkle with pumpkin spice. Serve and enjoy!!
Once the cookies are completely cooled, frost with as much or as little vegan cream cheese frosting as you'd like. Refrigerate in an airtight tupperware for up to 3 days.
Notes
Calories are for one cookie without cream cheese frosting.
Can I make these gluten free? Yes you can! I recommend using my favourite gluten free flour - the Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour and swapping it out for 2 cups in weight. The exact weight is on the packaging.
Give each cookie enough space to bake. You want to leave at least 2 inches between each because they spread. I used two cookie sheets and put them on the middle rack.
Allow the cookies to cool. Trust me! Not only does the texture get better, the frosting won’t melt. When they’re done, I remove them from the oven and let them cool still on the cookie sheet (I move the cookie sheet to a trivet). Just ensure you don’t leave them to cool on top of the still hot oven. This helps them to set, without over baking them.
To store. Once frosted, these pumpkin spice sugar cookies can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 4-5 days. Feel free to let them come to room temperature before you snack on them! If you don't want to frost them, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature for a couple of days.
To freeze. Cookies that have not been frosted can be kept in the freezer for 1-2 months. Store them in an airtight container and then thaw them in the fridge before you frost and enjoy them!