Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies

Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies are full of pumpkin spice flavor, with an irresistible cinnamon-sugar coating and a creamy cheesecake filling!

INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS

In a small size bowl combine together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.
Divide the cream cheese mix into 10 equal tsp placed onto a lined sheet.
Put in freezer for at least 20 minutes or until hard and frozen (meanwhile prepare cookie dough).

If you're using homemade pumpkin puree or if your canned pumpkin puree is watery, cook it for some minutes over low heat keeping on stirring, until it becomes dry, thick and very dense. Set aside to cool.
In a large bowl cream together butter, brown sugar, caster sugar, vanilla until become smooth and well combined. You can use a spatula or a hand mixer.
Incorporate the egg yolk and the pumpkin puree. Don't worry if it lumps a bit, it will turn out smooth after you adding flour mix.
In a medium size bowl sift and mix together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and all the spices.
Add the flour mix in 3 times into the butter mix: use a spatula to combine or, if you are using a hand mixer, don't overmix! Your cookie dough may need a bit more/less flour depending on how much watery was your pumpkin puree. The dough should be very soft but not too sticky.
Place the cookie dough into refrigerator for at least 20 minutes, mostly if you live in a hot climate. You can skip the refrigerating time if you live in a cold climate.

Coating

In a small bowl mix together sugar and cinnamon.
Use a 5cm-2inch large ice cream scooper to scoop the cookie dough.
Flatten the cookie dough ball into a circle and place in the center a frozen scoop of cheesecake filling.
Fold the edges of the cookie dough circle around the cheesecake filling and roll into a ball: mostly if you live in a hot climate, roll quickly the cookies because cream cheese filling tends to melt quickly; you can return the cheesecake filling to freezer for minutes more if it melts.
Repeat for the rest of the dough: you’ll get 10 large stuffed cookie balls (or 15 if you're using a smaller scooper).
Roll every ball into the sugar-cinnamon coating, place 5 balls onto a lined baking sheet (at least 5 cm-2 inch apart) and slightly flatten the top.
Bake in preheated fan oven (upper+lower heat) at 180°C-350°F for about 9 minutes or until the sides become slighlty golden. Don't over bake!
Cool down completely on a wire rack before serving.