Pumpkin Butter Thumbprint Cookies
on Nov 18, 2019, Updated Jan 10, 2022
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These little thumbprint cookies are filled with pumpkin butter and taste of fall. This is a recipe to put together around the holidays and a perfect cookie recipe to do with the kids.
Table of Contents
Pumpkin Butter Thumbprint Cookies
We’ve been using a lot of apple butter lately. It’s great on bread, toast, or rolls, and it’s a great ingredient for many different recipes. But when a reader asked us about ways to use pumpkin butter, we were stumped. I had never heard of this before and decided to learn more about it. These cookies were the result of my curiosity.
What is Pumpkin Butter?
This was one of my first questions and the answer was pretty familiar. Pumpkin butter is very similar to its cousin, apple butter. Both use the fruit (or vegetable) from which they were named and they both contain warm spices, things like cinnamon and maple syrup.
Follow this link to learnhow to make your own pumpkin butter. It’s pretty delicious and all autumn. Just like these cookies!
Ingredients for these Pumpkin Butter Cookies
- Butter
- Cream cheese
- Granulated sugar and brown sugar
- Flour
- Egg
- Milk
- Walnuts (optional)
- Pumpkin Butter
- Salt
These little freezer cookies are rolled in chopped walnuts but if you have a nut allergy or just don’t like walnuts, mini-chocolate chips make an awesome substitution.
You can make these cookies in well under an hour, including the time that you chill them in the freezer. This makes it much easier to handle and form them before they go in the oven.
I’ve had a fascination and love of all things pumpkin my entire life. These little pumpkin cookies are a welcome member to our many other pumpkin recipes! I hope you give them a try and please let us know your thoughts on them!
If you’ve tried this recipe for pumpkin butter cookies or any other recipe on Platter Talk, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below. We love hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW US on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM, and PINTEREST to see more delicious food and what we have cooking.
Pumpkin Butter Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 sticks, 1 cup butter, softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 egg + 1 tablespoon milk, beaten together
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 cup Pumpkin Butter
Instructions
- In large mixing bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, sugars, and vanilla extract.
- Use an electric hand mixer or stand mixer and cream together.
- Slowly add flour until just mixed together.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place in freezer for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Place eggs and milk in small mixing bowl and beat until well blended.
- Place walnuts in separate small bowl.
- Remove dough from freezer and use a teaspoon to scoop out meatball size portions.
- Roll between palm of hands to smooth ball, about 1.5 inches in diameter.
- Dip each cookie ball in egg and milk mixture then roll in walnuts.
- Place on cookie sheet and use thumb to create well in center of each cookie.
- Place about pumpkin butter in plastic sandwich bag and snip off small piece from corner.
- Gently squeeze bag to pipe pumpkin butter into the well of each cookie.
- Bake 15 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool on wire rack.
Notes
- Add a bit more flour until you can shape it.
- Leave the bowl of dough in the freezer between batches.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I agree with you. I wish I had your passion for writing!
I could eat 1 or 3 of these not feel guilty. Yum!
YUMMY boys! Love the idea of using pumpkin butter in the cookies. I have a jar of pumpkin butter and have been thinking of ways to use it, but to no avail. Until Now! Thanks guys!
Hello Dan, those close up shots of your cookies look so delicious. I can just tell they are going to be delightfully chewy and addictive. This is not the kind of cookie that you can have just one and walk away. I think I might want to polish off the platter. Just pinned!! Take Care
Thanks so much for the comments, Bam. I WISH I could eat just one!
Pumpkin butter sounds amazing and even more amazing to stuff it in some cookies! These look so good! I can’t think of a single thing that pumpkin butter wouldn’t make better 🙂
Isadora, Thanks so much for your great comments. And, well stated!
I love thumbprint cookies. And what a great way to use pumpkin butter! Very creative — thanks.
This dough is not stiff enough to roll into balls. I followed the recipe to a T and had to freeze for an hr before rolling then freeze more in between batches.. it’s a mess.
Tiffany, Thnks for the feedback and we’re sorry you are struggling with the right consistency of your cookie dough. Try adding a little more flour to the dough, this should make it more manageable. Thanks again for your comments!
Wow these sound so delicious and different! I love trying new recipes and I definitely am looking forward to trying out your Pumpkin Butter Thumbprint Cookies
Thanks so much for the great comments, Heidy. I hope you give these a try!
Pumkpin butter sounds really lovely! I have never had it before but I would love to try it out in these delicious cookies 🙂
Thanks, Nicole! It is a delicious seasonal treat; wish you could have had one of these as well!
I gave you full love right here from the blog while gaining 5 pounds while imagining I was eating a whole plate full of your delicious cookies!
HA! Patty, you’re the best. Wish we could have shared some of these with you!