These Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cookies are super easy to make with vanilla cake mix. Canned pumpkin, butter and cream cheese are added for the perfect gooey texture. A generous dusting of powdered sugar finishes off this fall treat.
Gooey Butter originated here in the St. Louis area and is a family favorite. I grew up eating my grandma’s recipe and love just about any variation of it. It is traditionally made in cake form, but this cookie version is a fun way to mix things up for fall. I also, posted another cookie variation of this recipe that is perfect for the Christmas season. Gooey Butter Lemon Bars are another great take on the classic recipe. I’m slightly obsessed with it if you can’t tell!
I used my original gooey butter cookie recipe for the base of these, but ended up throwing a few tbsp. of flour in the cake mix to make up for the extra pumpkin I added. It was extremely important to me that you still taste the pumpkin with plenty of powdered sugar on top. There is NO such thing as too much powdered sugar on gooey butter. If it ends up all over your fingers and lap after a few, you’ve done something right!
I chill the dough in the fridge for around 3 hours to make it easier to work with. Although, you may still end up with gooey goodness on your hands. A sprinkle or three of powdered sugar on your cookie dough aids in the ease of rolling perfectly rounded cake balls. It also, doesn’t hurt to roll the dough balls in additional powdered sugar before baking. They bake for around 12 minutes and remain the perfect mixture of cakey and gooey once completed.
MORE TO LOVE
- 1 Box vanilla cake mix
- 1/2 c. sugar
- 3 tbsp. flour
- 1/2 c. canned pumpkin
- 1 stick butter; softened
- 8 oz. cream cheese; softened
- 1 1/2 tsp. tsp. pumpkin pie spice
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1/2 c. powdered sugar
- 1 egg
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In a mixing bowl, cream together the egg, sugar, pumpkin spice, vanilla and butter.
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Beat in the cream cheese and pumpkin.
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Slowly beat in the cake mix and flour.
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Chill the cookie dough for 3 hours.
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Form the cookie dough into balls by rounded tablespoon. Roll the cookie dough into a bowl of powdered sugar.
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Place cookie dough balls on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
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Bake at 375 degrees for around 12 minutes or until light golden brown.
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Sprinkle baked cookies with additional powdered sugar if desired.