Bring a little bit of fall into your home with these soft pumpkin sandwich cookies with velvety-smooth caramel cream cheese frosting!
There’s been a little bit of a bite in the morning air here, recently. It gets me all giddy about the coming of autumn! It’s my favorite season. Maybe because it’s when Halloween happens, and we all know how I feel about that holiday (I’d insert a heart eyed emoji here if I could). 🙂 Or possibly because I love donning my pea coat and boots every day. It could be that I relish that crisp morning and evening air. Or the fact that I don’t have to water my lawn or mow the grass anymore. Hooray!
But, one of the main reasons I love the fall season is for its incredible flavors and desserts! Give me all the pumpkin and apple treats! I simply can’t get enough.
I never let these months pass me by without making my mom’s famous Pumpkin Pie Cake, and I certainly would be remiss if I didn’t whip up a batch of Dutch Apple Pie Bars (I’m sensing a pie trend here).
But I also can’t resist a good pumpkin cookie or two! Especially when eaten together with caramel ice cream topping-infused frosting. The combination is utterly amazing…completely unforgettable.
I could eat pumpkin year-round and never tire of it. In fact, I always stock up on canned pumpkin when it hits the store shelves with a vengeance this time of year because it seems to become more scarce in the warmer months. And then I about have a panic attack, and we don’t want that. 🙂
But you know what is an incredibly great cure for a panic attack? One or ten of these delectable oozy things! I love that pumpkin makes desserts moist and soft! I tossed in some yummy pumpkin pie spice because who doesn’t want to feel like they’re eating a fall favorite pastry with every bite of cookie?
I also am a fan of the fact that these are super fancy looking, so they give the appearance that you’ve spent precious moments making a dessert for family and friends with love. And yet, they come together so quickly that you can literally throw them together in less than an hour, we’re talking with the frosting. These are party platter cookies and they will wow those party peeps.
{PUMPKIN CARAMEL WHOOPIE PIES}
Makes 18 sandwich cookies
1 cup (2 sticks butter), softened
1 1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs
1 1/2 c. canned pure pumpkin puree
3 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 2/3 c. all-purpose flour
Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. caramel ice cream topping
4 c. powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare cookie sheets by greasing or lining them with baking mats. For the whoopie pies, in the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together butter, brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir in flour by hand. Drop onto cookie sheets by the heaping tablespoonful (or use a 1 1/2″ ice cream/cookie scoop) in mounds that are at least 2″ apart to allow them room to spread out. Bake for 9 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool on sheets for a few minutes, then remove them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
To make the frosting, in the bowl of an electric mixer, mix cream cheese, butter, vanilla, caramel ice cream topping, and powdered sugar together until smooth and creamy. Grab a cookie, apply a generous amount of frosting to the flat side, then sandwich with another cookie, pressing it down slightly. Store in an air tight container with wax paper separating the layers.
Don’t fret about what to bring to that fall potluck, because these will totally steal the show wherever they make their delicious appearance! What is your favorite season? I’m going to soak up every minute of this one until the snow starts falling!
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