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Ingredients

For the cookies

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour spooned then leveled
  • 1/2 cup crushed gingersnaps
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon corn starch
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
  • 2/3 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 large Eggs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

For the pumpkin cream cheese filling

  • 6 ounces or 3/4 cup full fat cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup pumpkin purree
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
  • 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

Instructions

Make the cookie dough:

  • In a medium bowl, combine the flour, crushed gingersnaps, salt, baking soda, corn starch, and ground cinnamon. Mix briefly with a fork to combine and set aside.
  • In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment over medium/high speed, beat together butter and sugars until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
  • Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla bean paste.
  • Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture all at once. Mix until just incorporated. Fold a couple of time to incorporate the dry bits. Transfer the cookie dough to a tightly sealed container and chill the dough in the refrigerator for about 30-45 minutes. This will make the dough easier to work with. As the dough chills, prepare the pumpkin cream cheese filling.

Prepare the pumpkin cream cheese filling:

  • To a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whip attachment, add the cream cheese, pumpkin puree, ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, salt, and vanilla bean paste. Whip on high speed until combined. Stop the mixer and add the confectioners’ sugar. Turn on the mixer and whip on low speed until confectioners’ sugar is combined with the pumpkin mixture. Increase the speed to high and mix until light and fluffy.
  • Transfer pumpkin cream cheese filling to a piping bag fitted with a round tip and place in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Bake the cookies:

  • Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
  • With a medium sized cookie scoop, drop scoopfuls of cookie dough at least two inches apart (these cookies spread like a mofo) onto the cookie sheet. With very (very) lightly moistened fingers, create a deep well in the center of each cookie (like when you’re making thumbprints). Pipe pumpkin cream cheese filling inside the well of each cookie. Top each cookie with another medium sized scoopful of cookie dough. Seal the edges with your fingers to ensure the cream cheese filling does not escape. Flatten the cookie dough slightly. Repeat with each cookie. Note: You will have a lot of pumpkin cream cheese filling left over. Don’t eat it. You’re going to use it.
  • This is optional and only if you mind if your cookies spread like hell – Place the cookie sheets in the fridge to chill for at least 15 minutes. Once chilled, place cookies in the oven and bake for about 10-11 minutes until golden brown, rotating the pan halfway through for even baking.
  • Remove cookies from the oven and allow them to chill in the pan for about 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and allow them to cool completely.

Assemble the cookies:

  • Flip half the cookies so the flat side is face up. Pipe with pumpkin cream cheese filling and top with another cookie.
  • Makes 24-26 pumpkin cream cheese filled cookies and 12-13 sandwich cookies.
  • Cookies adapted from A Cookie Named Desire