Skip the slice and preheat your oven for a top-rated recipe for The Best Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Frosting.
I’m a huge fan of individual desserts, and with a layer of cream cheese frosting sandwiched between two pumpkin cakes, Pumpkin Whoopie Pies are the perfect sweet finale to any feast. There’s no need to save these beauties for Thanksgiving, but they sure would make for quite the stunner on your Turkey Day dessert spread.
Part cookie and part cake, this recipe was inspired by my original chocolate foray into this classic dessert. While I’m all for pumpkin desserts, there’s just something about the texture of pumpkin cake that I much prefer to the classic pie.
The miniature cakes bake up in less than 15 minutes. They’re the perfect combination of light, pillowy and super-moist cake texture while also being sturdy enough to be sandwiched together with your choice of filling.
Cream cheese frosting and buttercream both would be fantastic, but there’s just something about the tanginess of cream cheese frosting that pairs so perfectly with pumpkin … and pumpkin spices!
The boys absolutely devoured these, as they were the perfect size for their little hands. They also travel surprisingly well and can be packed up for potlucks or bake sales and will arrive in perfect shape.
So preheat your oven, ditch the pie dough and celebrate all things autumn with The Best Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Cream Cheese Frosting!
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Ingredients
For the whoopie pies:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 Tablespoon ground cloves
- 2 cups packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 cups canned pumpkin purée, chilled
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the filling:
- 1 8-oz. package cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
Instructions
Make the whoopie pies:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves and set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and oil until combined. Add the canned pumpkin purée and whisk to combine thoroughly. Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk until combined.
- Sprinkle portions of the flour mixture intermittently into the pumpkin mixture, whisking in each part until well combined.
- Use an ice cream scoop to drop portions of the batter onto each of the prepared baking sheets, spacing them at least 3 inches apart.
- Bake the whoopie pies for 12 to 15 minutes until the cakes are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Remove the whoopie pies from the oven and let them cool completely while you make the filling.
Make the filling:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the cream cheese, butter and vanilla until incorporated, about 2 minutes.
- Turn off the mixture and add half of the sifted powdered sugar to the cream cheese mixture, beating to combine. Add the second half of the powdered sugar and beat until combined.
- Assemble the whoopie pies by spreading a portion of the filling onto the flat sides of half of the cakes. Top each with an unfrosted second cake to form sandwiches.
Kelly's Note:
- Double the frosting recipe above if you want to have a sufficient amount to pipe a thick layer between whoopie pies, rather than a smaller slathering.
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Nutrition
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Recipe adapted from Serious Eats.
Mine fell flat. I’m not sure what I did wrong. Suggestions? Delicious still.
Hi Christy – It’s hard to say what might cause this. Are your baking powder and baking soda fresh?
What’s the measurement of the canned pumpkin purée?
Hi Nahielly! As noted in the recipe above, you’ll need 3 cups canned pumpkin purée, chilled. :)
I made these for my company’s office party. They were delicious!
Thrilled you enjoyed the recipe, Jane!
Would you have to adjust the baking time much if you wanted to make these even smaller?
Hi Sara! Yes, I’d definitely adjust the baking time.
Thanks I am trying the filling recipe for my sugar cookies so far it taste wonderful.
I am so glad I found this recipe. I want my kids to eat pumkin and this will be. Good way to entice them. Love your site too!
Argggh, these look so fluffy! Can’t wait to make them for my boyfriend’s coworkers.
I just made these this morning and they are SO delicious! I’m not a big fan of cream cheese frosting so I made a homemade marshmallow cream and the combo is out-of-this-world.
Simply bring 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar up to a boil, and continue boiling until “hard ball” stage-260 F or so. Whip 3 egg whites into stiff peaks and drizzle boiling sugar into eggs as they continue to mix. Add 1 tsp vanilla extract.
Thanks for this recipe and the gorgeous photos! Truth be told, the photos are what made me decide to try this recipe.
I made a healthier version of these, and they turned out delicious! Thanks for the great recipe. My version, with nods to you is featured here: http://fitfeasts.blogspot.com/2009/11/pumpkin-whoopie-pies.html
Kelly,
These look incredible! I can almost taste the pumpkin and cloves just looking at the photos!
Noma