What’s fall without a good seasonal sugar cookie? I’m glad you agree. Onto the dough!
These cookies were inspired by fall, first and foremost, but also by my 1-Bowl Vegan Funfetti Cupcakes!
I overfilled the muffin tins with batter on my first try and quickly realized that the overflow baked perfectly into a sugar cookie-type consistency! In that moment, I knew vegan sugar cookies were not far out of reach.
This recipe is easy and fast! Just 1 bowl, simple methods, and 1 hour start to finish (frosting and all). And they just so happen to taste like the sugar cookies of your youth, just without (real) butter, eggs, or milk. Huzzah!
And what would a sugar cookie be without frosting?
I’ve included a basic vegan buttercream recipe below that’s infused with pumpkin butter and fall spices. It makes the perfect addition to these fluffy gems and sends the pumpkin flavor over the top.
You’re going to love these cookies. They’re:
Tender
Fluffy
Slightly crisp on the edges
Pumpkin-y
Subtly spiced
Perfectly sweet
Amazing with pumpkin buttercream
Satisfying
Simple
& Shareable
What are you waiting for? No seriously?
If you make this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, tweet at us, or take a picture and tag it #minimalistbaker on Instagram!
We have more than 2,200 #minimalistbaker tags so far and we see every single one! We love seeing what you guys create, so keep it up! And as always, thanks for supporting what we do. Cheers!
Vegan Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
COOKIES
- 1/2 cup vegan butter (such as Earth Balance // softened* // 1 stick yields 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup organic cane sugar (plus more for topping)
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup pumpkin puree*
- 1 ½ heaping cups unbleached all-purpose flour* (sub up to 1/3 whole-wheat pastry)
- 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot powder (for thickening/binding)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 Tbsp unsweetened almond milk (or other non-dairy milk)
FROSTING (optional)
- 1/2 cup vegan butter (such as Earth Balance // softened* // 1 stick yields 1/2 cup)
- 1 ½ Tbsp pumpkin butter* (optional // or use store-bought)
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- 2 ½ – 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1/4 tsp each ground cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice
- 1 splash non-dairy milk
Instructions
- Add softened butter to a large mixing bowl and cream with a mixer for 1 minute.
- Add sugar, brown sugar and vanilla and beat for 1 more minute. Add pumpkin and mix once more.
- Set your sifter over something that will catch fall out and add dry ingredients. Use a spoon to briefly stir, then sift over butter and sugar ingredients, to combine.
- Mix until incorporated, being careful not to over mix. Then add almond milk and mix until a soft dough is formed. Freeze dough for 15-30 minutes (or until cold), or refrigerate for 30-45 minutes (or chill overnight), preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (176 C), and position a rack in the center of the oven.
- Scoop out heaping 1 Tbsp amounts of dough and roll into balls. Place on a clean baking sheet 2 inches apart to allow for spreading. Dip a glass into cane sugar and then gently smash the cookie ball down into a disc (see photo). If you find the dough is sticking to the glass, you can dip it in flour, then sugar, before smashing.
- Bake on the center rack for 10-12 minutes or very slightly golden brown.
- Let rest on pan for a few minutes. Then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Prepare frosting in the meantime.
- FOR FROSTING: Wipe/rinse your mixing bowl clean and add softened butter. Beat until light and fluffy. Then add vanilla, spices, and pumpkin butter (optional) and mix once more.
- Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time and continue mixing until thick and creamy. Drizzle in a little non-dairy milk to thin. You want this frosting to be pretty thick so it will hold its shape once on the cookies, so only add a little milk and add more powdered sugar if it gets too thin.
- Once cooled, frost cookies and top with a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice or cinnamon. Store leftovers covered at room temperature for up to a few days. Freeze for longer-term storage.
Video
Notes
*If you are trying to speed-soften your butter, simply cut it into thin slices from the stick and it will soften much quicker.
*Pumpkin butter can be subbed for pumpkin puree, but hold back 1 Tbsp (amount as original recipe is written // adjust if altering batch size) of cane sugar.
*1 ½ heaping cups flour = 1 ½ cups + 3 Tbsp flour.
*You can substitute an equal amount of our NEW 1:1 gluten-free flour blend for the all-purpose flour in this recipe.
*Loosely adapted from my Vegan Funfetti Cupcakes!
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate calculated without optional frosting.
AZbaker says
How long can the dough be refrigerated? If frozen, how long to bake?
You could refrigerate the dough for a few days! If baking from frozen, we suggest baking a minute or two longer than normal.
Brandy says
Delicious! I ended up using apple sauce instead of butter, which did of course throw off the consistency (made it quite runny), so I ended up putting the batter in a 9×9 pan and making something more like pumpkin cookie blondies. They still turned out very yummy though and I know I’ll be making these again!
Yum, that sounds like a lovely twist! Thank you for sharing, Brandy! xo
Jennifer A. says
I made three batches, one of them gluten-free. All were great. We just moved and I don’t know where my measuring cups went, so I estimated the ingredient amounts with a small mason jar. I used fresh baked pumpkin for the cookies, and Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter in the frosting. I made 24 cookies out of each batch (by breaking ball of dough in half three times, then each chunk into three pieces, for equally shaped cookies). A yummy and versatile recipe!
Amazing! Super impressed by your estimation skills, Jennifer! 🙌 Thank you for the lovely review! xo
LU says
I just made these with the frosting to bring in to work and share with colleagues. I doubled the recipe and not 1 cookie came home with me! They are absolutely delicious! Most people are more than one! I followed the recipe except: I didn’t use pumpkin butter and I rolled the cookie dough balls in the cane sugar before pressing them with the bottom of a glass. No sticking issues! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Whoop! We’re so glad the cookies were a hit. Thank you for the lovely review! xo
Shannon Burns says
Hello. I made these with a gluten-free flour, and as life goes the dough remained in the refrigerator for two days. could this extended time in the fridge be the reason the cookies did not spread? They remain exactly the same shape as when they went in the oven. I did not add the oat milk as the dough looked like the right consistency, could this be part of the factor? It’s been quite a challenging morning in the kitchen… tomorrow’s another day, and my husband says they taste good. The recipient of the cookies is always grateful when I prepare food that meets her many dietary requirements, so I’m sure she’ll be okay with them too. My rating is based on the taste as it wouldn’t be fair to rate the consistency.
Hi Shannon, we think it probably needed the additional oat milk!
Mel says
Not much pumpkin flavor…
Sorry you didn’t love the flavor, Mel! Adding more pumpkin purée makes them too wet/gummy. For more pumpkin flavor, you could try subbing pumpkin butter in place of the pumpkin purée. Or add more pumpkin pie spice!
Genie says
Is there a way to make this dough rollable? I have cookie cutters galore!
Yes! We’d suggest checking out this recipe instead: https://minimalistbaker.com/1-bowl-vegan-sugar-cookies/
Zannie says
I don’t have non-dairy milks of any variety. I see some folks leave out the “milk” for the cookies and I’ll try that. Any ideas for subbing in the frosting? Orange juice, perhaps? Or rum, brandy, or sherry, maybe? Or water with a splash of rum or brandy flavoring? I used to make a lemon frosting with powdered sugar and lemon juice that worked great, so I wonder if the ‘milk’ aspect is necessary. Or am I just trying to find a thinning liquid if the icing is too thick? Thanks, everyone.
A splash of liquid usually helps achieve the best frosting texture, you could use a splash of water if it seems very thick. Orange juice or a liqour might work but we haven’t tried it and sometimes acid/alcohol can make frosting “split”. Let us know how it goes!
Alison says
I really, really wish I had noticed that Minimalist Baker has a metric conversion for their measurements. This recipe sounded promising, but the flour measurement is described as a “heaping” 1.5 cups. Who does that?? One reviewer said that her dough looked more like cake batter and I thought it might be because she didn’t use quite enough flour due to the vague “heaping” measurement. So, I resisted the urge to stir the flour, spoon in the cup and level off. Why?? I ended up weighing the heaped 1.5 c of flour, so I could note whether I might need to make adjustments if I decide to make the cookies again. We ended up with dry, tasteless pucks. Blech. Turns out the heaping is subjective and I apparently added 20g too much-discovered after the dough was mixed and cookies baked. Gah! What a waste of time and ingredients. My advice: if you have a little kitchen scale, click over to the metric measurement tab and weigh your flour. It’s true that different brands of flour can weigh in at slightly various amounts per cup, but I’m guessing you would be a lot closer to the intended amount if the whole “heaping” idea is avoided.
Hi Alison, we’re so sorry you didn’t have a positive experience with the recipe! “Heaping” in baking means there’s a heaping mound of flour on the measuring cup, but we’ll revisit and see if there’s a way to make that more clear. Would you mind sharing what type of flour you used? 20 grams shouldn’t make a huge difference in this recipe. Did you make any other modifications? This recipe is a reader favorite so we wonder if something more could have gone wrong!
Kristen says
These cookies were delicious. I didn’t have any pumpkin butter for the frosting, so I used a vegan cream cheese frosting instead, which worked really well.
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Kristen. Thank you for sharing! xo
Mel Twigg says
Hi,
I’ve made these per this recipe before and they’re amazing but I was wondering if I could roll them out and use cookie cutters with this dough. Thanks!
~ Mel
Hi Mel, that should work, just be sure to refrigerate the dough before rolling!
Mélissa says
OMG! I made these cookies for the first time last week and it was a success (they were gone within minutes). I am making some more this week and will definitely add this recipe to my favorites!
If I want to have a head start, can I prepare the dough and refrigerate/freeze it until the day I need to bake/serve the cookies? (e.g. 2 weeks in advance). If so, could you please provide me with some instructions on how to better store?
Thank you for always sharing delicious recipes!
Hi Mélissa! So glad you enjoy these cookies! If you want to make them ahead of time, we suggest making the dough and forming it into balls, then freezing. That way, you can simply put them right on the baking sheet when you’re ready to bake. Hope this helps!
Mélissa says
Thank you very much for tour prompt reply!
If I understand clearly, I should form the balls and freeze them for better storing. Then, when ready, thaw on baking sheet before I proceed with the smashing and baking. Is that correct?
Thank you!
Mélissa
Hi Mélissa! It would probably be best to form the balls and smash them before freezing, that way they can go straight into the oven when you’re ready to bake – no thawing!
Anna says
These cookies are deliciously addictive!! I used Earth Balance for the butter and combined pumpkin puree, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a half-lemon as a substitute for the more involved pumpkin butter ingredient in the frosting. The half-lemon made for a lovely cream-cheesy frosting, yum! 2 cups of powdered sugar was plenty for the frosting – no milk needed. We’ll definitely be making these as a fall treat again! Thanks for another amazing vegan recipe, Dana!
Woohoo! So glad you enjoy the cookies, Anna. Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Katy Robb says
Can these be adapted to be gluten free?
Hi Katy! They could possibly work if you used some gluten free flour blend and almond flour, though you will probably need more than 1 1/2 cups. We haven’t tried it and can’t guarantee results! Let us know how it goes if you give it a try!
Suzanne Favreau says
I made the Vegan Pumpkin Sugar Cookies, and they are excellent. I did not frost them though I might try the frosting another time. Make sure your dough is really cold or the dough will stick to your fingers when you roll it into balls. Dipping a glass in sugar and flattening the cookies did not work well for me as the glass kept sticking (dough not cold enough maybe). I rolled the cookie balls in sugar and then mashed them with a drinking glass. My company liked the cookies enough to ask for the recipe. I’ve put the rest in the freezer so I don’t keep eating them!!
Thank you for sharing your experience, Suzanne! We’re so glad you and your company enjoyed them! xoxo
Christina C says
Delicious, easy and surprisingly “flexible” in the normally precise world of baking. My husband loves pumpkin & I was looking for an easy recipe my 2 year old could help with. We all agree these cookies are delicious, like a pumpkin-y snickerdoodle. Bake long enough to get crispy edges (at least 12 minutes in our oven). And personally we think the frosting is 100% unnecessary….tastes good but doesn’t add to the already delicious cookie (would be great on a less sweet muffin or cake). Will be saving this sugar cookie recipe for years to come.
Yay! We love to hear this. Thanks so much for the lovely review, Christina!
Adrie says
heaping flour?? That isn’t how flour shouldn’t be measured. If using a measuring cup, it should be scooped into the cups and then leveled off. Flour packs so referring to a measurement in a recipe as “heaping” would lead to variations in the amount of flour added… If you don’t have the amount measured correctly in measuring cups, do you have the amount of flour in weight?
Hi Adrie, heaping is the equivalent of 1-2 Tbsp more. You can find the weight measurement by clicking “metric” beneath the ingredient header. Hope that helps!
Kari says
These turned out wonderful for my boys who have a lot of food allergies. I didn’t use the pumpkin butter for the frosting, but I otherwise followed the recipe, and they were very flavorful! I think they’re pretty foolproof, because having a 6 and 3 year old help me, well, the measurements weren’t perfect – ha!
Amazing! We love to hear this. Thanks so much for the lovely review, Kari! So glad everyone enjoys the cookies!
Julia F says
So yummy. I used every ingredient including the pumpkin butter, and baked the cookies for 12 minutes and they turned out great. I’m making these cookies for my teachers doing my letter of recommendations, and I’m confident these cookies will benefit me greatly haha. Tried some myself and would definitley recommend you make them yourself.
What a sweet gift, Julia! We’re so glad you enjoyed them! xoxo
Brittany Beane says
Could I use coconut oil instead of butter? I only have grass fed and my friends are dairy free. Thank you! We love the recipe without modifications.
Hi Brittany, We haven’t tried it, but another reader mentioned doing so with success! If you give it a try, let us know how it goes!
Laura says
My scale broke recently so I couldn’t weigh the flour, but I calculated the weight of what ‘heaping’ means in this case (based off the knowledge that 1 1/2 cups AP flour weighs 187.5 g) and it’s 1 1/2 cups + 2 1/2 tbsp.
I used normal butter, 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice, 1 tsp cinnamon, smushed them about 3/4 inch thick w/ a glass and baked them for 11 minutes and everybody loved them!
Great! We’re so glad to hear everyone enjoyed them. Thank you for the lovely review, Laura! xo
LYNNE says
Delicious!!! Thanks!!!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Lynne! xo
Emma Armstrong says
These are my favorite pumpkin cookies no joke! Never had made with the icing, but the cookie in itself is amazing. It’s my boyfriend and I’s favorite cookie. No joke, they hardly last two days! Highly recommend :-)
Whoop! We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Emma. Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Victoria says
I made the vegan pumpkin Sugar cookies and while it turned out OK, I found a number of directions needed tweaking. I put the dough in freezer for 15 minutes, and it was nowhere near cold enough. Pressing the glass into the bottom, even having dipped it in sugar, just made the glass stick to the dough. I would put up at the top of the recipe that these really need to be frozen a bit longer, or spend overnight in the fridge (preferable.) Also, when one goes to add a very sugary frosting, why would one do this on a sugar cookie. One of these two options is more than enough.
Hi Victoria, thanks so much for your feedback! We’ll take another look at the directions and see if we can improve.
Sam says
I made these for Halloween and they were wonderful ! Everyone loved them. They were so fluffy and incredibly tasty. Thank you for this amazing recipe !
Amazing! Thank for sharing, Sam!
Alex says
I made these as a test to see if they would be a good Thanksgiving dessert…they were amazing! I will definitely be making them this Thanksgiving!
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Alex!
hannah says
I made these cookies! I love them! They are unbelievably fluffy and a perfect balance of spice. xox
They also happened to turn out to have insides the color of Red-Hots. Curious if this happened to anyone else? I used pumpkin puree (tinned). A pleasant surprise.
That’s interesting. If you used a very deep color of pumpkin that may have been why!
Iris says
I made these today with ap flour cause its what I had and even though my heaped cups apparently weren’t “heaped” enough, the flavor and texture is still good; I also had to bake them for longer, around 20 minutes. They’re more crispy with a slight fluffy center but they’re still lovely. Next time, I’ll be sure to pack more flour into my cups but I’m still really happy I made them. They taste kind of like gingerbread cookies but without the punch from the ginger, which I appreciate. Thanks as always for these great recipes!
Thanks for sharing, Iris!
Lily says
Could the butter be substituted with coconut oil?
Hi Lily, We haven’t tried it, but another reader mentioned doing so with success! If you give it a try, let us know how it goes!
Emilia says
I made this recipe yesterday for Halloween and it turned out wonderful! I used cookie cutters and it ended up making 19 cookies with just a tiny bit left over. The only changes I made were to the frosting. Instead of pumpkin butter I used 1/2 Tbsp pumpkin purée, I only used 1 & 1/4 cup powdered sugar (it was still thick enough), and I added extra pumpkin spice/cinnamon to it as well! I gave some cookies to my non-vegan friends/family and they all said they were delicious!!!
Emilia says
* I meant to put 2 & 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, not 1!
Rio Long says
I made these for a family Halloween get together and everyone who tried one (all omni folk besides myself) said that these cookies were absolutely amazing!
The recipe was super easy to follow and made 20 decent sized cookies. They’re the most perfect soft baked sugar cookies and the seasoning made it perfect for fall. The frosting was not too sweet and even people who don’t love frosting said it was great. They didn’t spread, stick to the pan, crumble when you took at bite or any other things that can normally happen with vegan cookies!
Yay! We’re so glad everyone enjoyed them! Thanks for sharing, Rio!
Jessie says
I made this and thought the cookies were yummy. I agree with a previous comment that they don’t have a strong pumpkin flavor so I think I will try using pumpkin butter instead of the puree if I make these again. I made way too much frosting and was wondering if you can freeze the frosting? Thanks!
Hi Jessie, we haven’t tried freezing it, but we think it would work.
Julia says
Beautiful recipe! Some people may have warm hands to handle this dough. I used a spooon to help roll it in a ball at the palm of my hands. Very fluffy and delicious! Thank you!
Thanks for sharing, Julia!
Linds says
A great fall treat! Really light and pleasant flavors and the SOFTEST texture! will make again!!
Yay! Thanks for sharing!
Allie says
Wonderful recipe!
Thanks Allie! xo
courtney says
These cookies are so good!! Super moist and not too sweet. Definitely will make these again.
Whoop! Thanks for sharing, Courtney!
M says
I love these cookies! Made them for the first time today. I like really spicy cookies so I doubled the pumpkin spice and they were smashing. My boyfriend ate 3 in a row. I did some with and without frosting. Absolutely will be making again!!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Yay! Thanks for the lovely review!
Sophia says
I followed the recipe to a T and they seemed really dry, I ended up doubling the milk in the recipe. The cookie itself also did not taste very pumpkin-y, surprisingly. More like a snickerdoodle. Its not bad though, I do like the recipe! I think its just personal taste. I was very surprised with the light fluffy texture of the cookie but it was fun! Defenitely looking forward to putting some pumpkin frosting on these babies. Overall very creative recipe. For being a vegan cookie, five stars.
Thanks for the feedback, Sophia! Did you make any modifications before adding the milk? Such as a different type of flour? That could cause it to be more dry. For more pumpkin flavor, you could try subbing pumpkin butter in place of the pumpkin purée.
Sam says
Hi :) Thanks for this recipe ! It looks so good. I will be trying it this weekend for Halloween. However, I have a question. I’m not from USA, and I don’t understand this sentence : “1 1/2 heaping cups unbleached all-purpose flour (sub up to 1/3 whole-wheat pastry)”. If I’m using “regular” whole-wheat pastry, should I be using 1 1/2 cups or 1/3 cup ? I just want to make sure I don’t make any mistakes. Thank you ! And Happy Halloween :)
Hi Sam, sorry for any confusion! It means you can use 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour and 1 heaping cup all purpose flour. Hope that helps!
Sam says
Thank you so much ! I will be making them today. Can’t wait !
Sophia says
Thank you for the feedback! I will try that next time, as I’m defenitely making them again.:)
Heather says
These were absolutely delicious!
Thanks for sharing, Heather! xo
Jessie says
Can I use cookie cutters for this recipe?
Yeah! That should work! Just be sure to refrigerate the dough before rolling.
Janet--Love the World says
These are so delicious! I now have a true reason to buy cookie cutters, so I did. I ordered super cute halloween pumpkin cookie cutters, they are a perfect recipe (pun intended) to spice up the Halloween festivities, or fall related (leaf cutter shapes etcetera) and also work well if you are not frosting! I went with simpler shapes to frost/ice, or regular pumpkins such as small round circles (traditional cookies) and then the festive cutouts I did not frost. I got more cookies out of the dough this way, and had more frosting. You can always make less frosting too! I love the pumpkin butter to mine, though. Also these cookies are not hardcore pumpkin, no overwhelming flavor! I strongly encourage new bakers to do this recipe! I’ve made them 4 times already! Try her pumpkin butter recipe as well, you will be glad that you did! I’m a yoga teacher and will be making for my students!
Thanks so much the kind review and for sharing your experience, Janet!
Emily says
Definitely delicious!!! Followed the recipe exactly, and they are delicious! I did try rolling them and using a black cat cookie cutter, but this dough is definitely not made for rolled sugar cookie cutouts. I think a pumpkin shape, or other shape without any small joints might have worked, but it worked much better to roll balls and squish them with sugar.
Thanks for sharing your experience, Emily!
Carmen says
Our cookies came out beautiful and delicious. Thank you. We had a bunch of figs fresh off the tree so I made a fig jam that we used as frosting. We then topped with craisins. The flavors pair together really well and it’s a really nice fall cookie.
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Carmen! And that fig jam sounds incredible. Thanks so much for sharing!
Kelly says
I just finished baking these, the house smells delicious (also made the apple crisp recipe). My partner and I tried one each while they were fresh off the cooking rack, I don’t like sugar cookies normally, but I LOVE these.
We’re so glad you both enjoy them, Kelly! Thanks so much for sharing!
Amanda says
Your recipes never disappoint . . . Ever! These cookies are delicious. I will be adding this recipe to my favorites.
Aw, thanks for the lovely review, Amanda! We’re SO glad you enjoy our recipes! xo
Abigail Garcia says
Made these cookies for myself on Mother’s Day. I enjoyed them very much! Thank you for the recipe. Due to my baby’s food intolerances I am avoiding dairy, soy and corn so these hit the spot!!!! Instead of corn start he I used tapioca starch and it turned out well! thank you from sharing!
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Abigail! Happy belated mother’s day and thanks so much for the lovely review!
Robin says
These cookies turned out great! Instead of cornstarch, I used a flax egg, and I just didn’t add the almond milk at the end. They are perfectly crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside! Super delicious recipe.
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Robin! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Katherine says
Perfect!
Andrea says
This was my first foray into vegan baking and it was a huge success!!! These cookies are amazing and I could eat the whole batch by myself. I didn’t use the pumpkin butter in the icing, but I did add a touch of fresh ground nutmeg. Thanks for the recipe.
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Andrea! Thanks so much for the lovely review!
Ari says
These were amazing! I made them a day ahead for my daughters class, but taste tested and they came out great!! Would you recommend refrigerating these over night or storing out in an air tight container? Thanks!
We’re so glad you enjoy them! Storing at room temp in an airtight container would be best.
Becky says
Will the recipe work without corn starch?
Hi Becky, we would recommend using it for best results. But it looks like another reader did so and they turned out okay. Let us know how it goes!
Bailey says
So good!!! I made them exactly as stated above with icing and all. I could not be more happy with how they turned out. My fiancé even loved them which is always a toss up. We will be making these again!
Whoop! So glad you both enjoyed them. Thanks for sharing!
Allison says
These were ??. Did not last long in our house.
=) We’re so glad you enjoyed them! xo
Rachel says
I made these for dessert when my boyfriend and I had a vegan couple over for supper and I cannot believe how incredible they were. I’d never used vegan butter before, even though it’s similar to margarine right? Anyway I used the Earth Balance sticks as the recipe suggested, and I prefer to weigh all my ingredients so I went metric – and this is one of my favorite things about all the recipes here actually.
I digress.
I was fairly heavy handed with the spices, but I find it’s very hard to overdo it. Also I used almond coconut coffee creamer instead of milk – delish. The frosting was unquestionably the best frosting I’ve ever made. I sifted the powdered sugar to avoid lumps – but it was so thick and delicious. My friends were blown away, but I was more shocked I think. I’m not vegan (neither is my boyfriend) but I love cooking for people and trying new things so this was really exciting and I’m so please at how well it came out. I wish I’d taken pictures but all the cookies got devoured.
Oh and the tip about the glass, I couldn’t get the sugar to stick to it, so I just dipped the rolled cookie dough balls into sugar and smashed it with the glass after. That was the best tip – they looked great! I’m already planning to make these again.
We’re so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Rachel! Thanks so much for sharing! xo
Maryse Guevara says
My daughter loves these! We use the Earth Balance vegan butter in the tub, and then half the amount of almond milk added at the end of the recipe. I need to calculate the calories, because it’s discouraging that a tablespoon of dough has 184 calories. Thank you for sharing your recipe.
Hi Maryse, we’re so glad she enjoys them! Thanks for bringing the nutrition issue to our attention. We rechecked it and updated!
J. C says
Hi,
I would love to make this recipe, but I’m refined sugar free. Do you think I could use maple syrup?
Hi J.C. we haven’t tried that, but it might work! However, the switch to a liquid sweetener may impact the texture. If you can have coconut sugar, that might be a better 1-1 substitute. Let us know if you do some experimenting!
Jen says
These are amazing! Delicious and fluffy. A huge hit at the pumpkin carving party! I ran out of confectioner’s sugar so I improvised and added some pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon to a jar of vanilla icing. Still vegan and delicious! Will definitely make again. Thank you!
We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Jen! Thanks so much for the lovely review! xo
Katia says
I can’t wait to make these! I’m going to make them for my Halloween bake sale at work! I like making people taste vegan things & being like “what this is vegan?” Haha so I have one question! In step 5 you say to use a glass & to dip it in cane sugar & then push down on the cookie with it. I’m just wondering exactly what you mean by that. Do you mean you take the bottom of a glass cup & dip it in cane sugar & then push down on the cookie? If so, how would the cane sugar stick to the cup for us to be able to do that? Could you please clarify what you mean please? Thank you!
Yes, that’s what I mean! Only as much sugar as will coat the bottom of the glass. It sticks more as you go. Thanks for sharing, Katia!
Cindy says
Would it be possible to use coconut oil instead of the butter?
Hi Cindy, We haven’t tried it, but another reader mentioned doing so with success! If you give it a try, let us know how it goes!
Kelly says
I want to make these for my daughter but she is allergic to corn so I can’t use baking powder due to the added corn starch. I was happy to see the substitution to arrow root but I am wonder since this calls for both baking powder and soda, should I increase the amount of baking soda I use? If so by how much?
Hi Kelly, we haven’t tried these without baking powder and aren’t sure whether they will be quite as fluffy without it. But some people say you can use 1/2 tsp cream of tartar + 1/4 tsp baking soda as a substitute for 1 teaspoon of baking powder. Let us know if you give it a try!
Traci says
I made these today for the first time…absolutely delicious! Light and fluffy…oh and the icing is unbelievably out of this world!
Yay! We’re so glad you enjoyed them, Traci! Thanks for sharing! xo
Amanda says
I made these and they tasted great but they cane out chewy and won’t hold together. I even baked them longer than suggested and left them on the hot cookie sheet. I was trying the recipe out for my sons class next week, now what??
Hmm, did you make any modifications?
Melonie N Fletcher says
Is there a way to make these gluten free?
Hi Melonie – try adapting this recipe instead!
Allison Tracy says
I tried using the other GF recipe with the icing from this recipe and it was perfect! If anyone else wants to try to make these V/GF, then I definitely recommend the other sugar cookie (I used the pumpkin puree as the binder per the recipe and they held together fine)- a huge hit in our house!
Whoop! Thanks for sharing, Allison!
Nani says
I a so eager to make these for my nieces and nephews for Halloween but I’m curious could the dough be rolled out and cut out with cookie cutters?
Yeah! That should work! Just be sure to refrigerate the dough before rolling.
Shauna says
The dough was easy to work with after chilling and even fancier shapes like reindeer came out well. Most importantly the cookies were yummy! I really enjoyed the hint of spice and pumpkin.
Thanks for sharing, Shauna!
Angela says
Such a hit! I like to play with recipes so for the flour i used 1 cup white, 1/4 cup almond flour, 1/4 cup whole wheat. I also used real butter. I mixed it all by hand and they turned out great! Saving the recipe. I want to try some other purees like in the comments.
Do you think the dough would freeze well for later baking?
We’re so glad you enjoyed this recipe, Angela! Thanks for sharing! Yes, we do think the dough would freeze well!
Amy says
I could not stop thinking about these cookies after seeing the pictures and finally made them last night. The cookie has a nice soft texture and the flavor is perfection. The cookies are seriously good alone, but the creamy sweet icing takes them to a whole new level. They look so beautiful on a tray, I wish I had a party to attend! For the cookie, I subbed Trader Joe’s pumpkin butter for the pumpkin puree with your suggested alteration (less one tablespoon of sugar). Thanks for another great vegan recipe!
haha yay! Thanks for sharing, Amy! So glad you enjoyed them.
Lindsay says
These were so good! I made them for a party and I got so many comments that they were the best treats there (I didn’t even tell people they were vegan). Highly recommend making these!
Lovely! Thanks for sharing, Lindsay!
Anne says
Plan on making these this weekend! Ever since I’ve come back from living in England, I’ve baked using grams instead of cups and I’m not quite sure how to convert 1½ ‘heaping’ cups! ? (Not even sure I know where my measuring cups are!)
Ah! It would essentially be the equivalent of 1-2 Tbsp more!
Rachel says
Super delicious! I’m not vegan, so I used cow butter & milk and an egg to bind and they turned out great! I also used sweet potato puree instead of pumpkin, since I already had some on hand. Perfect cozy fall treat! Thanks for another great recipe Dana!
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing, Rachel! So glad you improvised and it went well!
Mallie says
I made these today and they were awesome! I used a 1:1 gluten free flour blend and they turned out great!
So glad to hear it, Mallie! Thanks for sharing! xo
Isaac says
Great recipe, made these with fresh roasted acorn squash instead of pumpkin and it turned out lovely!!! Used gluten free 1 to 1 flour and it worked well, just had to bake two more minutes. Love the pumpkin or squash butter icing too. It’s almost too good. Using the extra squash butter in oatmeal, V.yogurt, and V.ice cream.
Yay! Thanks for sharing!
Dawn says
Great flavor but they turned out grainy and fell apart. Admittedly, I am not much of a baker. Perhaps, I should added more liquid? I am also cooking at over a mile above sea level which usually means more flour. However, I followed the recipe this time. Any thoughts? Thanks! I love your recipes.
Hmm, sounds like the dough was either too dry on the front end or they got over-baked or both. Try adding less dry ingredients next time and also baking for slightly less time!
Isaac says
Must be the altitude, will dry everything out. I would add small amounts of almond milk at the end to soften it up and make sure you chill the dough before baking, so the corn starch sets. I used gluten free flour which is generally drier but they turned out soft and yummy, so must be your location.
Debbie Patterson says
Just made these cookies and they turned out wonderful! Soft and tasty! I also used all whole wheat flour and just sprinkled with sugar (no icing). It will definitely be a fall favorite as I love anything pumpkin!!
Wonderful! Thanks for sharing, Debbie!
Kristyna says
Just made these today, hands down the most successful and delicious pumpkin cookie ever. Icing is bomb and the crispy yet airy texture of the cookie is spot on texture. I swear I can never fail a good meal with mb ???
yay yay! Thanks for sharing, Kristyna!
Amanda says
I am obsessed with your blog. I wish it were an app so I could save all my favorite recipes! Thank you for sharing so much delicious goodness!
I’m curious if you could substitute coconut oil or applesauce (or some other whole food) in place of vegan butter for this recipe?
Hi Amanda! I’m not sure about only applesauce in place of the fat. But I do think coconut oil may work? Let us know if you try!
Lexi says
This recipe is AMAZING!!!! I’ve been vegan for 4 years and these are by far the best cookies I’ve ever made! Thanks for the awesome recipe!!
Thanks so much for the lovely review, Lexi! We are so glad you enjoy this recipe! xo
Autumn Gelgut says
These are honestly the most delicious pumpkin cookies ever. I’m wondering if I store them in the refrigerator how long do you think they’re good for? Also the icing oh my goodness ??
Thank you so much for the lovely review, Autumn! We are so glad you enjoyed these cookies! xo
Dhara says
Would it be possible to use normal milk or would it mess up the consistency?
That will work!
Alexis says
I made these last October for a bake sale to benefit Breast Cancer at my work. Yesterday a lady came up to me and said that multiple people requested that I make them again this year! I used the icing in bags and did designs. This recipe was easy and came out amazing looking and tasting!! I can’t believe I got a group of non-vegans to request my vegan cookies a year later! I gave them the recipe, but they asked me to make it. Really excited for this year’s bake sale! Going to try more recipes from Dana. Thank you girl for the amazing recipes! You do such a great job and you’re helping so many animals in the process! ??? I wanted to post a photo, but there is no option here. I will tag you in my photos from last year.
Donna says
My twelve-year-old daughter made this recipe all on her own this afternoon, and they turned out AMAZINGLY!! Rich flavors, soft texture, and just heaven in my mouth. Cannot wait to try another vegan recipe on your blog, as this was our first!! Thank you for sharing!!
We’re so glad you all enjoyed these, Donna!
Ela says
Love this cookies, came out very flat (need a little practice ;) ) , but I will keep this recipe as my new favorite basic cookie dough recipe. Sooo tasty. I did not made the frosting. I can add on nuts, seeds or chocolate, whatever I like! Thank you :-)
Brandi says
So delicious! The cookies are moist with a bit of chew but still so soft. The icing is delicious and not too sweet. I made them into whoopie pies and my family raved! Will definitely make again
Oksi says
So delicious! Made them tonight for our Thanksgiving desert. Amazing!
Ann Wylie says
I just made these for Thanksgiving and they turned out awesome! The frosting is delicious and the sugar cookie texture is perfect. Thank you!
Yvette says
DELICIOUS! I made these last night. It took A LOT of will power not to just eat this dough!
The first tray I baked, I didn’t flatten the cookies enough (maybe about 1″ thick)… oops! The second tray, I flattened them more – to about ½” thick.
BOTH came out amazing! The thicker ones had a soft-baked, pillowy texture. The flatter ones were still amazing – slightly crisp edges and tender center.
The frosting is pretty tasty too and, quite honestly, the cookies don’t even need it! I find that the earth balance makes the frosting slightly salty.
Hi Yvette! We are so glad you enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for sharing the process!
Amanda says
These were truly fabulous. I didn’t have vegan butter so made them with regular unsalted butter. I halved the frosting which still left enough to frost each cookie, and I felt that the cookies were appropriately sweet at that. The kids loved helping to make these as well. Will definitely make these again as an easy “wow” cookie!
LS says
I used GF flour blend and they came out amazing. The easiest yummiest cookies I’ve made in years!
Yay! Thanks for sharing :)
Maryann says
Thx! I used a mesh strainer. They came out amazing! I made the frosting too and ate too many. Lol. I made homemade almond butter and spread that on the cookie then spread the frosting on top of that and omg… Ridiculous. Lol. Thx!
Emily says
Wow! These are just so delicious. They were so easy to make and I will definitely be making these again since it’s the holiday season. With or without icing they were the bomb.com! Vegan or not, the entire family loved them.
Yay! Thanks for sharing, Emily!
Maryann says
In step 3, Do i have to sift my ingredients or can I just add them in? I don’t have a sifter.
If you don’t have a sifter, you can just add them in and that should work fine!
Ruth Lynam says
Doubled the spices, used whole wheat flour, didn’t have cornstarch (or tapioca, etc.), and they turned out great! Texture and moistness were good, although I didn’t sift my flour at all, which was a mistake. Still, amazing flavor, and quick to make; I don’t own an electric mixer, and hand-mixing was no problem. I dusted some powdered sugar on top instead of frosting. I might try adding some walnuts or dark chocolate in the future.
Great! Thanks for sharing, Ruth!
Lauren says
Absolutely loved this recipe! It was such a huge hit with my family! I used vegan becel spread as I didn’t have earth balance on hand and it worked great. The cookies were a bit flatter and chewier but still so soft and amazing! Great fall flavour and super yum
Janet says
Has anyone tried substituting a GF flour blend? Thanks!
Yes! Scan the comments above as others have had success with GF flour :)
Fanny says
when i saw this recipe i wanted to make it right away! and i did. in the spirit of fall i substituted calvados for vanilla. Yum! with the sugar topping they did not need the frosting… although my husband said that frosting would have only made them better. I love fall and i always make a vegan halloween pumpkin cookie and this is a new favorite.
Reba says
Hello! I was excited to try this recipe and followed all the steps with a result of flat cookies. If I am using whole wheat flour are you saying to use 1/3 cup only? I’m thinking this is where my mistake was.
Nicole says
I bought the ingredients to make these and am so excited! Being a baker, I am a little nervous about the “heaping” flour. You really don’t level off the flour?? So it’s probably closer to 1 3/4 C flour? Can anyone who has made them weigh in on what you did and how the texture turned out?
Amanda says
These are unreal!! I’ve made 6 batches already, and everyone who I’ve shared with loves them!
Michele Tannenbaum says
I made these tonight for the first time….. delicious! You will not be disappointed ~
Yay!
Jo says
I would like to use whole-wheat pastry and was confused by subbing. So would I use 1 1/3 cups of whole-wheat pastry? Sorry may be a dumb questions but wanted to make sure I got it correct.
1 1/2 heaping cups unbleached all-purpose flour (sub up to 1/3 whole-wheat pastry)
Carmen says
Made these today… Best cookies I have ever eaten! Delicious. I made half the amount and I made around 10 cookies. I also used regular butter and it worked perfectly. I skipped the cornstarch as I did not have any and the texture is perfect and very chewy. I wish I added a bit more cinnamon, could be because I didn’t add the frosting or cinnamon on top! Great recipe, thanks!!
Whoop! We are so glad you enjoyed them, Carmen!
Bekah says
I have made these multiple times and every time they come out ridiculously amazing. I have made some good cookies in my day but these top the list!
Love bringing them to potlucks because the plate is always empty by the end.
Ella Pyne says
Can I roll them out and shape them?
Yes, I think that will work!
Baylie says
These are delicious! So glad I made a double batch. My husband said that they’re some of the best cookies he’s ever had. :)
Brittany says
I made these for Thanksgiving today and they turned out amazing! Thank you so much for the recipe!
Yay! So glad to hear, Brittany!
Kim says
Oh wow! I made these and they turned out amazing it was so easy and fun, the batter was delicious,and the smell made my heart skip! Even if the batter got a little sticky on my hands after freezing and waiting 50 seconds too much , I didn’t mind eating it off!!!!