Frosted Pumpkin Cookies (With Cake Mix!)
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These soft and chewy frosted pumpkin cookies with cake mix are gooey, sweet with just the right amount of pumpkin spice! Sweet cinnamon cream cheese frosting is a creamy, gooey top to a soft cookie full of cozy spices from a spice cake mix. Quick, easy, and cozy these delicious cake mix pumpkin cookies are always a hit and full of fall flavors.
Table of Contents
Why We Love Frosted Pumpkin Cookies Made With Cake Mix
- Gooey Pumpkin Spice Flavored Cookies– Warm and fluffy pumpkin spice cookies topped with cinnamon frosting makes for the coziest cookies!
- Cake Mix Makes Things Faster– Less ingredients to measure means these cookies come together faster.
- Make It Ahead– Perfect make-ahead style dessert for parties, Thanksgiving or any gathering.
Recently I had my first batch of Crumbl cookies while we were visiting Phoenix. Soft and gooey, these frosted pumpkin cookies remind me a lot of the frosted pumpkin cookie I tried there. While it’s not a perfect copycat, if you happened to love the frosted pumpkin cookie at Crumbl then I bet you’ll really love these cookies.
Ingredients For Frosted Pumpkin Cookies
Find the full printable recipe with specific measurements and directions below in the recipe card.
Ingredients For The Pumpkin Cookie Dough
- spice cake mix I used Betty Crocker Super Moist Spice Mix
- eggs
- pumpkin puree
- vanilla
Ingredients For The Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
- cream cheese softened
- unsalted butter softened
- ground cinnamon plus more for garnish
- vanilla extract
- powdered sugar
Cake Mix Note
This recipe was developed with a 15.25 ounce cake mix. Some of the cake mix brands have been decreasing the size to 13.25 ounces. If you use only 13.25 ounces of cake mix the recipe may not be as successful so check the box carefully.
You could also add 1/4 cup from a second box of mix to make up the extra missing 2 ounces from the smaller-sized box. Some readers have reported they have added 1/4 cup of flour extra to make up the difference. I have not tested this in every recipe here, so it may not be successful for every recipe on this site.
How To Make Frosted Pumpkin Cookies With Cake Mix!
How To Make The Pumpkin Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray with cooking oil.
- In a large mixing bowl combine cake mix, eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla.
- Mix well until a sticky dough forms and all of the dry bits are fully mixed in. (If your cookie dough looks like the picture below, you are almost there! Keep mixing!)
- Use a cookie scoop or a spoon make one tablespoon cookie dough balls. Cookie dough does not need to be in perfectly round balls. Place dough balls at least an inch apart and gently flatten the tops of the cookie dough.
- Bake cookies for 9-10 minutes. Cookies will be cooked on the edges but may still be a little gooey in the center.
- Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for four to five minutes. Cookies will continue to cook on the pan. Then move cookies to a wire cooling rack or clean kitchen towel to finish cooling. Let the cookies cool completely before frosting.
How To Make The Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
This frosting can be made while the cookies bake. Then it’s ready when the cookies are cool.
- Soften the butter and cream cheese on the counter. Slice the butter and cream cheese into at least ten pieces and leave on the counter for about five minutes to soften.
- Using a hand mixer in a large mixing bowl. beat the butter for two to three minutes until it changes to a lighter color. Add cream cheese and continue beating for two minutes or until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth.
- Add vanilla, cinnamon, and powdered sugar to the butter and cream cheese. Mix well until fully combined and smooth.
- Spread a thick layer of frosting on each cookie once the cookies are cool. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon on top of the frosting on each cookie if desired.
Sprinkling the cinnamon through a metal sieve like this can help to sprinkle it easily over the cookies for a pretty dusting of cinnamon. I’ve also used a mesh splatter screen meant for a pan or a tea strainer with metal mesh in a pinch. If you don’t have a small mesh sieve hold your hand higher above the cookies and sprinkle the cinnamon from between your fingers to help get a more even dusting of cinnamon.
Variations And FAQ
Add Nuts- Add chopped pecans or walnuts on top of the frosting, or even fold them into the cookie dough batter. I recommend between a half and three-quarters cup into the cookie dough at the very end.
Add White Chocolate Chips– Skip the frosting all together and add white chocolate chips! I recommend folding in between a half and three-quarters cup into the cookie dough at the very end. I don’t recommend adding white chocolate chips and frosting as the cookies will be extremely sweet with both.
Use A Different Flavor Cake Mix– You can substitute in white or yellow cake mix into this recipe instread of making pumpkin cookies with spice cake mix. Chocolate and pumpkin are also super delicious together and should work with these pumpkin cookies using cake mix. While I haven’t tried it I bet the chocolate version is delicious, let me know if you try it!
Add Pumpkin Spice To The Frosting– Instead of the cinnamon, add 1/2 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice to the mix.
How Do I Make These Cookies Less Cakey?
I’ve experimented with making cookies less cakey quite a bit. While I like a soft cookie, I also like my cookie to be a bit chewy. Here is what you can do to ensure you have a soft cookie that isn’t too cakey.
- Dry the pumpkin – Hear me out here, take your pumpkin and dry it on a paper towel. Pumpkin puree holds a lot of water. Water levels can vary a lot between different batches of pumpkin puree, and even from pumpkin to pumpkin. Whether you are using canned pumpkin or fresh pumpkin puree, blotting the pumpkin will take out a LOT of the moisture. It’s not required, but I prefer these cookies myself with the pumpkin dried.
- Use only one egg – The eggs in this recipe also add moisture to the cookie. Taking the recipe down from two eggs to one egg may give you the perfect cookie if you prefer it extra chewy.
For this recipe, I usually dry the pumpkin but still use two eggs in my batch. Depending on your perfect cookie, you may make it a little differently.
Can I Use Storebought Frosting?
You can use frosting from a store-bought tub, I’d recommend a cream cheese frosting. The tricky part is a lot of frosting comes in a tub of frosting, much more than you will need for a batch of these cookies.
If you plan to use storebought frosting you may need a plan for the other half of the frosting tub. I suggest warming up the extra cream frosting and drizzling it on a batch of my pumpkin dump cake recipe.
How Long Will Pumpkin Cake Mix Cookies Last?
Store cookies for 3-4 days in the refrigerator. These cookies can not be stored on the counter as they have cream cheese in the frosting which left unrefrigerated can go bad quickly.
These cookies are best stored covered lightly. Storing these cookies in an air tight container can cause moisture to form on the cookies and make them a little sticky.
Other Pumpkin Recipes You Will Love
Gooey Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats
Pumpkin Brownies (2-Ingredient, So Easy!)
Frosted Pumpkin Cookies (With Cake Mix)
Ingredients
For The Cookie Dough
- 15.25 ounces spice cake mix I used Betty Crocker Super Moist Spice Mix
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup pumpkin puree blotted with paper towel to remove moisture
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
For The Frosting
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon plus more for garnish
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
For The Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or spray with cooking oil.
- In a large mixing bowl combine cake mix, eggs, pumpkin puree, and vanilla.
- Mix the mixture well until a sticky dough forms.
- Use a cookie scoop or a spoon make one tablespoon cookie dough balls. Cookie dough does not need to be in perfectly round balls. Place dough balls at least an inch apart and gently flatten the tops of the cookie dough.
- Bake cookies for 9-10 minutes. Cookies will be cooked on the edges but may still be a little gooey in the center.
- Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for four to five minutes. Cookies will continue to cook on the pan. Then move cookies to a wire rack or clean kitchen towel to finish cooling.
To Make The Frosting
- Soften the butter and cream cheese on the counter. Slice the butter and cream cheese into at least ten pieces and leave on the counter for about five minutes to soften.
- Using a hand mixer in a large mixing bowl. beat the butter for two to three minutes until it changes to a lighter color. Add cream cheese and continue beating for two minutes or until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth.
- Add vanilla, cinnamon, and powdered sugar to the butter and cream cheese. Mix well until fully combined and smooth.
- Spread a thick layer of frosting on each cookie once the cookies are cool. Top with a sprinkle of cinnamon on top of the frosting on each cookie if desired.
Notes
Baking The Cookies Tips
- For a less “cake” like cookies try using one egg instead of two.
- You can swap yellow cake or white cake mix for spice cake mix. I recommend adding two teaspoons of pumpkin spice to the cake mix before adding the other ingredients to give it a good fall flavor. You can also add one teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg for a similar flavor if using a yellow or white cake mix.
Frosting The Cookies Tips
- Additional cinnamon for garnishing is optional but looks pretty on the cookies.
- If you prefer to use a packaged cream cheese frosting in a tub you can, but there will be a lot of leftover frosting. I recommend minimally doubling the recipe if you are going to use premade cream cheese frosting.
- You can also use a powdered sugar glaze instead of cream cheese frosting. Use the glaze recipe from my Sweet Blueberry Biscuits. Dip cookies or drizzle over cookies once the cookies have fully cooled for best results.
Cake Mix Note
This recipe was developed with a 15.25 ounce cake mix. Some of the cake mix brands have been decreasing the size to 13.25 ounces. If you use only 13.25 ounces of cake mix the recipe may not be as successful.Nutrition
Did You Make This?
I would love to see it! Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
