Soft, chewy, and made with cozy pumpkin pie spices, these Vegan Pumpkin Cookies feature a tangy white frosting that tastes just like cream cheese (no vegan cream cheese needed!). An easy 1-bowl fall dessert.
Want even more easy vegan pumpkin cookies? Try my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies or these Vegan Pumpkin Snickerdoodles next.
I was looking for the perfect vegan pumpkin cookie recipe for YEARS, long before I started this blog and before I tested the first batch of these Vegan Pumpkin Cookies.
All I wanted were bakery-style and melt-in-your-mouth delicious cookies. They had to be generously frosted, soft and tender, and full of pumpkin pie spices. Basically, as far away from a healthy breakfast cookie recipe as possible.
I never found them. Instead, I created these best-ever pumpkin cookies! Soft, chewy, warmly spiced, and decorated with a sweet and tangy frosting, they’re perfect for bringing to holiday parties and get-togethers of all kinds. Your family and friends will never even guess they’re vegan!
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“This is my GO-TO for vegan pumpkin cookies. They always turn out insanely soft, chewy, and delicious!” – Shannon
Why you’ll love these pumpkin spice cookies
- Bakery-style cookies – I’ve actually never found a bakery with vegan-friendly pumpkin cookies as good as these! They’re super soft, chewy, puffy, and have the best pumpkin spice flavors.
- Tangy and sweet frosting – The pumpkin cookie frosting is incredible. It’s sweet and a little tangy, and tastes a lot like my Vegan Cream Cheese Frosting without needing any cream cheese.
- An easy 1-bowl fall treat – Just mix the 10-ish fall baking staples together in a bowl, shape the cookies, and bake!
If you have extra pumpkin puree to use up, why not make my popular Vegan Pumpkin Pie or these Pumpkin Stuffed Shells?
How to make vegan pumpkin cookies
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Cream the vegan butter and both sugars together in a large bowl. Next, add the pumpkin puree and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined.
Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and spices to the bowl. Gently stir until the flour is absorbed.
Scoop heaping tablespoons of the pumpkin cookie dough onto a prepared baking sheet. Flatten each cookie slightly with your palm.
Gently press the cookie dough balls
These cookies don’t spread much in the oven, so I recommend pressing them down slightly before baking. Remember to wet your hands lightly with water before pressing to prevent the dough from sticking.
Bake the pumpkin cookies until they’re puffy and the tops are no longer shiny. Set them aside to cool while you make the frosting.
To make the white frosting, beat the butter in a large bowl until creamy. Next, mix in the powdered sugar, apple cider vinegar, and vanilla.
Frost the cooled cookies generously and sprinkle a little cinnamon or nutmeg on top. Serve and enjoy!
For a frosting flavor boost…
If you want to take the cozy flavors in the frosting up a notch, mix in a drizzle of maple syrup, 1 to 2 teaspoons of pumpkin spice, or 2 tablespoons of pumpkin puree.
Frequently asked questions
To make gluten-free pumpkin cookies, swap the all-purpose flour with a quality all-purpose gluten-free flour, such as Bob’s Red Mill 1:1. Almond flour or coconut flour will not work.
I haven’t tried this, but I’m sure it will work! Press the cookie dough into a parchment-lined 8- or 9-inch square pan and bake at 350ºF for 15 to 25 minutes or until it looks puffy and set. Spread the frosting on top once cool, then slice into bars.
These cookies are honestly SO good with or without the frosting. Some of my readers omitted the frosting and gently pushed chocolate chips or chopped pecans into the tops of the cookie dough balls before they went into the oven.
The baked and frosted cookies will keep for up to 4 days in the fridge, stored on a platter loosely covered in plastic wrap. You can also store them at room temperature, but they’ll only last for 1 or 2 days.
Heads up: the frosting doesn’t harden all that much after it sets on the cookies, so try not to pile the cookies on top of each other.
Personally, I find that this recipe makes enough frosting for all of the cookies. If you have leftover frosting, freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw the frosting in the fridge overnight and then spread it onto these Vegan Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls or on top of a cooled loaf of Vegan Pumpkin Bread the next day.
Sure, as long as they aren’t frosted. The unfrosted cookies should freeze well for about 2 months.
The Best Vegan Pumpkin Cookies
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cookies
- 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) vegan butter, softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 1/4 cups canned pumpkin
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Frosting
- 8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) vegan butter, softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1-2 tablespoons non-dairy milk, as needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, cream together the vegan butter with both the white and brown sugars. You can use a hand mixer or even a large wooden spoon if needed. Next, mix in 1 1/4 cups canned pumpkin (you won't use quite the whole can!) and vanilla, until well combined and smooth.
- Now add the flour to the bowl, and sprinkle the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger and salt on top of the flour. Stir until just combined and a dough is formed. The dough will be wetter than most cookies, but do not worry, that is correct.
- Place heaping tablespoons (about 1 1/2-2 tablespoons) on the prepared baking sheet. Flatten the cookie somewhat, as they will not spread much during baking. The dough will be sticky, so wet your hands before pressing down. Not so much that they are dripping, but just so the dough won't stick.
- Bake for 11-14 minutes, until the tops are no longer shiny. The cookies will have puffed up a bit as well. Remove from the oven and let them sit on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
- Make the Frosting: Using a hand mixer, beat the softened vegan butter for about 2 minutes until creamy, then add the powdered sugar, apple cider vinegar and vanilla and beat everything together until smooth and creamy, adding a tablespoon of non-dairy milk at a time as needed. If you add too much milk and it gets runny, you will need to add more powdered sugar.
- Once the cookies have cooled completely, frost generously and sprinkle with a little bit of cinnamon or nutmeg, if desired.
Notes
- Leftover cookies are best stored in the refrigerator, on a plate covered with plastic wrap. They will stay good for 3-4 days this way. You can store them at room temperature for 1-2 days, but I prefer how they taste from the refrigerator and they will last longer.
- You can freeze the cookies without frosting, but I would not freeze frosted cookies if you can help it.
I wanted to try this recipe but my husband bought pumpkin pie filling and not pumpkin purée ?
Is there any way to make it work?
Oh shoot! I really don’t know as I’ve never tried it, but pumpkin pie filling is much different than pumpkin puree so I kinda doubt it will work, sorry!
So yummy! I think I ate half of the dough before even putting any on a cookie sheet. Thank you!
Thank you! I’m so happy you enjoyed the cookies.
Can I uses pumpkin spice instead of the cinnamon and ginger? Not sure how much to use.
I think 2-3 teaspoons would work, but I haven’t tested it myself.
Noraaaa!!! You have done it again. These cookies are so unique and taste spectacular. I couldnt stop licking the bowl omg! Thank you
Oh and btw I used sweet potato puree for anyone who may not have pumpkin
Thanks for sharing the sweet potato puree tip! So glad you enjoyed the cookies!
Amazing recipe!
But I had one problem.
My cookie was almost fluffy. Is this how it’s supposed to be? It didn’t set hard in the bottom. Do I need more baking time?
The cookies are softer than most cookies, due to the pumpkin, so it sounds right. But you could bake them a little longer, and flatten the cookies with your hand before baking, that will help somewhat. Thanks!
Great recipe! I can’t do pumpkin so I used sweet potato instead and they turned out great! I did add about 1 Tbsp of Maple syrup to the recipe. The frosting is also delicious. I waited until the cookies were cool but still a little warm to put the frosting on to allow them to somewhat melt on. This allowed me to use less frosting aka less calories.
I’m glad the recipe came out great for you!
SO GOOD!!! I added dark chocolate chips and chopped pecans to the dough. Absolutely delicious cookies. After all the oohs and ahhhs.. my fam serenaded me and lauded my baking skills… thanks Nora!
You’re welcome! So glad it was good!
I just made these for Thanksgiving tomorrow, and I couldn’t resist trying one. They are AMAZING! Thanks for the wonderful recipe!
Hi, am I able to refrigerate the dough and bake them a day later?:) I am so excited to try these!!
I don’t think it would be a problem! Enjoy!
Do you think this recipe could transfer into a sheet cake?
Hmm I honestly don’t know! Possibly, but I have this recipe for Pumpkin Cake Bars which is basically a sheet cake.
These were great!
my husband said these were the best cookies ever! he had no idea they were vegan, neither did our friends. I did use real pumpkin, not sure how much a difference that made. Will use the canned next time to compare.
I love this comment! Thank you. And I’m glad they were good!
These cookies are amazing thank you for sharing!
You’re welcome! I’m glad they turned out amazing. 🙂
These were EXCELLENT! I had to substitute a non wheat flour blend to accommodate allergies but they turned out great and were so tasty!!
I’m so glad they were tasty! 🙂
These were so easy to make and so delicious! Was going to make 1 batch and because of ease and how damn good they were we ended up making 8 dozen!
Yum!!!
I ate these today at work and literally almost died they were so good, then someone told me they are vegan and my wig fell off.
Absolutely delicious! Will the frosting set after sitting on the cookies in the refrigerator. My daughter is making the cookies for her class and didn’t want the frosting to be messy inside individual bags.
The frosting sets somewhat, but they could still get mushy if they were very squished together. It’s more like cake frosting than royal cookie icing that really hardens. If you gently put them in individual bags it should be okay. Thanks and I’m glad you enjoyed!
My toddler kids LOVED making these cookies in class today ! They were so delicious and everyone wanted more! I’m excited to make another recipe from site. Thank you Nora!
Can I sub in olive oil sticks in place of earth balance butter? Country crock makes vegan olive oil butter sticks and my family and I much prefer the flavor of those over earth balance. Will the cookies still turn out or is there a fat ratio I need to consider?
I think it should be fine. If you already know you like the flavor, there shouldn’t be a problem. Thanks!
These cookies are incredible! Anyone making these should double the recipe because they will be gobbled up!
This is a great recipe and does well with GF flour. My new favorite!
Ah-maze-ing! This was a BIG hit at our Halloween party today. I had 3 pumpkin pie pumpkins sitting around waiting to be cooked so I roasted 2 of those up early on in the day and baked last night. My dish was the first gone. This was SO GOOD! Fussy kids and adults alike couldn’t get enough. Thank god for the big batch or we would’ve run our early lol!
So glad they were a big hit at the party! Thank you!
My family and I absolutely love these cookies! We’ve just recently turned vegan and it’s been kind of rocky, but these cookies have really put a smile on our faces! I added some chocolate chips and now it has become one of my family’s favorite desserts! Thanks 4 sharing this recipe!
Mouth Watering!!
Nora I can’t believe how yummy these cookies turned out. I never make any desserts gluten free but decided to try the Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 you suggested and they were fabulous! I had also never used Melt before and like it so much better than Earth Balance. I will be making these all through the Holiday Season this year! Thank you so much! Oh and the icing is to die for…could not stop eating it on it’s own!
I’m so glad you loved the cookies so much! They really are fabulous! So happy to know they worked with gluten free flour too. Thanks!
Oh. M. G. Ahhhmazing!
Nora does it again… amazed my entire family with these melt in your mouth cookies that just scream FALL! I will absolutely be making these again. I followed the directions exactly and wouldn’t change a thing. Absolutely perfect. Thank you so much.
I’m so happy you loved the cookies!! Thanks so much!
I’m so thrilled that you posted these! The recipe is easy to follow and they turned out amazing! I love pumpkin cookies and these are some of the best I have ever had. They are light and delicious, and the frosting gives them the perfect finish. Thank you for this wonderful recipe.