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Vegan Pumpkin Pie Cookies

Vegan pumpkin pie cookies with a warm maple glaze bake up soft and pillowy, with tender, cake-like centers. The cozy pumpkin spice dough is mixed in one bowl and finished with a glaze that lightly soaks for a melt-in-your-mouth bite.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 14 minutes
Total Time 39 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 230
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Cookies
  • 1.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp baking soda
  • 0.5 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
  • 0.5 cup vegan butter softened
  • 0.75 cup brown sugar
  • 0.5 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Maple Glaze
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 tbsp maple syrup
  • 1 tbsp plant milk plus more as needed (1–2 tbsp total)
  • 0.25 tsp ground cinnamon

Equipment

  • 1 sheet pan

Method
 

Bake the cookies
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
  2. Whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice until evenly combined, with no visible spice clumps.
  3. Cream vegan butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy, looking paler and slightly increased in volume.
  4. Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla extract until smooth and uniform in color.
  5. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until a soft dough forms, stopping once no dry streaks remain.
  6. Scoop dough onto the baking sheet, spacing cookies 2 inches apart, then flatten slightly so they bake evenly.
  7. Bake for 12–14 minutes at 350°F, until edges are set while centers stay soft and look slightly underdone in the middle.
  8. Cool the cookies on the sheet for 5 minutes, until they hold their shape when gently moved.
  9. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before glazing.
Glaze and finish
  1. Whisk powdered sugar, maple syrup, and plant milk until smooth and pourable, adjusting with more plant milk if needed.
  2. Drizzle the glaze over cooled cookies so some soaks in slightly rather than sitting as a thick layer.
  3. Dust with ground cinnamon and let the glaze set before serving.

Notes

For the soft, cake-like centers, don’t overbake—pull cookies when edges look set but the centers still look slightly puffy and underbaked. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days; refrigerate up to 5 days for best glaze texture. Freezing is yes: freeze unglazed cookies up to 2 months and thaw, then glaze fresh. For a gluten-free swap, use a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour blend (with xanthan gum) in place of all-purpose flour and bake times may vary by a minute or two.