Pumpkin Sugar Cookies Recipe

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No dough chilling necessary for these pumpkin spiced, soft cut-out sugar cookies that are perfect for decorating with icing and sprinkles. Crisp edges, soft centers, and customizable in shape. Use my easy pumpkin spice royal icing recipe (included) to decorate them!

They’re baaaaack!

Ok, maybe they’re not *back* if you’ve never seen my classic sugar cookies recipe, so if you haven’t seen those already, that’s where this pumpkin spice sugar cookie recipe is back from.

These cookies not only utilize my beloved cut-out sugar cookie base that has been baked and enjoyed by thousands of readers since 2014, but it also uses my favorite easy go-to royal icing recipe that has had millions of views since its inception in 2020. This version is just spiced up a bit!

And also, since this recipe has lived on my site since 2017, it’s also sort of back in an “I’ve been updated and refreshed and I’m better than ever” kind of way. With 5-star reviews and all kinds of taste tests and everything!

My original cut-out sugar cookie recipe has been in my life since I first started my site in 2014, and it is quite literally a perfect sugar cookie recipe.

It’s soft on the inside, has sturdy edges that hold their shape in the oven, it doesn’t require any chilling of the dough, and it comes alongside the most popular recipe on my entire site: my easy royal icing, which has no meringue powder and requires no mixer.

Don’t miss the same cookie dough base in other flavors: funfetti cut-out sugar cookies, chocolate sugar cookies, and peppermint cut-out sugar cookies.

Did you know you were going to get so much awesomeness in one place with this ridiculously easy recipe? I’m so glad you’re here!

Other ingredients you’ll need for these homemade sugar cookies: all purpose flour, baking powder, salt, ground cinnamon, unsalted butter, powdered sugar, an egg, and some vanilla extract.

You might be wondering what’s happening with the powdered sugar, and I’m here to tell you that it will change your cut-out cookie baking life!

By using sugar in a powder form, we can almost absorb the oiliness of the butter, which means that our sugar cookie dough isn’t nearly as sticky, and we eliminate the need to chill the cookie dough before we roll it.

Say what? Yes, it’s true. These homemade pumpkin sugar cookies can go from ingredients to baking in the oven in less than 30 minutes.

Over the years, I’ve been asked if you can use maple syrup as a replacement for corn syrup in the cookie icing, and the answer is no. It does not set up the same way that corn syrup does, so you’ll need to use the corn syrup.

I understand the maple syrup is a great complement to the pumpkin flavor, but it just does not work here. Consider topping these cookies with my maple cinnamon cream cheese frosting if you’re looking for something like that!

You’ll start by combining the smallest amount of flour (2 and ½ cups) with the baking powder, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and ground cinnamon.

Then, you’ll cream the butter and powdered sugar, to which you’ll add the egg + extracts that you’ve beat together.

The dry ingredients will go slowly into the wet mixture and your dough will start to come together nicely.

Here’s where you’ll need to pay careful attention.

The cookie dough might be a little sticky at this point, so if necessary, you can add 2 to 4 Tablespoons of flour at a time to the dough to combat the stickiness.

Keep in mind that your dough will rest for about 10 minutes before you start rolling it, which will help the flour and powdered sugar absorb some of the moisture, but you’re aiming for a PlayDoh texture for the dough when it comes out of the mixing bowl.

You know the texture– slightly tacky but not sticky. And certainly not dry!

Allow it to rest while you prepare your rolling space, baking sheets, and preheat the oven.

This prevents your cookie dough from taking on too much flour, which can lead to denser cookies and spreading shapes. I also like to dip my cookie cutter into powdered sugar, which keeps the edges nice and sharp.

Use whatever shapes you like! When it comes to pumpkin spice, you can get away with them from September through November, so break out those cute leaf cookie cutters, because you will want this perfect fall cookie in your cookie jar non-stop until it’s time for peppermint, believe me.

Meaning… Don’t bake mini pumpkins at the same time you’re baking jumbo ghosts. The pumpkins may be done in 3 minutes and the ghosts need more like 10. That makes for a sad time for those little pumpkins and they’re sure to be burned by the time you are ready to retrieve the ghosts.

Same shape. Same size. Even if that means you’re only baking 2 cookies at a time. Got it? Good.

To make the icing, you only need a few minutes, a bowl, and a spatula.

Since you won’t be using any meringue powder, we don’t need a mixer to get this pumpkin icing done.

1. You’ll whisk together the powdered sugar and the spice.
2. Separately whisk the warm water, corn syrup, and extract.
3. Pour the liquid into the spiced powdered sugar, then stir, stir, stir.

It will come together, I promise.

You’ll know the pumpkin spice royal icing is done when you drop a line of icing onto itself and it vanishes in about 12 seconds. Adjust as needed by adding a drop of water at a time to thin it out or a sprinkle of powdered sugar to thicken it up.

This royal icing is forgiving but it’s also sensitive, meaning a little goes a long way. Remember that line when adjusting the viscosity.

I always prefer to use gel coloring because they don’t thin out icing and the colors are so rich.

How to store Pumpkin Cookies with Icing

These cookies stay fresh and crisp covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. For longer storage, you can freeze these cookies frosted or unfrosted, up to 3 months. I prefer to freeze them unfrosted, but they will still be perfect when thawed with frosting. Thaw at room temperature.

As I mentioned, these cookies are a sugar cookie base, perfect for cutting out shapes. They are pumpkin spice cookies without pumpkin pureé, so if you’re looking for cookies packed with actual pumpkin, my pumpkin spice cookies are for you (they’re kind of like a pumpkin snickerdoodle!).

If you’re here for the cut-outs where the warm fall flavors comes from spice and extract and have room for all the cute fall decorations, you’re in the right spot.

I have kept the integrity of my classic cut-out sugar cookies for these pumpkin spice cutout cookies, which creates incredibly soft centers with sturdy edges and cookies that keep their shape. It’s my go-to for all things shaped, and I think you’ll love it as much as so many of my readers do.

Combined with my incredibly easy royal icing recipe, these cookies are great for a simple icing flood, easy faces on ghosts and cats, and textured lines on pumpkins.

Keep it simple– because these pumpkin roll out cookies totally speak for themselves! And they’re great for dunking into a pumpkin spice latte.

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