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These pumpkin spice hazelnut cookies are covered with a sweet maple glaze and strike a great balance between hardy and delicate. They are full of delicious warm fall flavors and make the perfect treat for a fall afternoon.
This post was originally published on Oct. 3, 2013.
Ingredients for this recipe:
For the cookies:
- 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 16 tablespoons softened, unsalted butter (cut into pieces)
- 2.5 teaspoons pumpkin spice
- 3 tablespoons chopped hazelnuts
- 3 tablespoons softened cream cheese
For the glaze:
- 1.5 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon softened cream cheese
- 1 to 2 tablespoons milk
- a few drops maple extract
How to make pumpkin spice hazelnut cookies step by step:
Step 1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, the sugar and the salt.
Step 2. In a standing mixer or with a handheld electric mixer, whip the butter into the flour and keep whipping until the mix turns crumbly.
Step 3. Add the spice, the hazelnuts and the cream cheese. Keep whipping until everything is well combined.
RECIPE NOTE: Cream cheese is an unusual ingredient in cookie dough but it works very nicely here. It doesn’t make the cookies taste tangy, it just adds richness and gives the cookies a nicely tender texture.
Step 4. Turn the dough out onto a cutting board or other work surface.
Step 5. Bring the dough together by hand into a disk.
Step 6. Cut the disk roughly in half, then wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Step 7. Heat the oven to 375 degrees F., take one disk out of the fridge, roll it out, cut out the cookies and bake them on a parchment-lined baking sheet for 10 to 12 minutes. Repeat with the second disk.
RECIPE TIP: To avoid adding additional flour to the dough, I recommend rolling it out between two sheets of plastic wrap. Remove the sheets after you’ve rolled out the dough, then cut out the cookies.
How to make the maple glaze:
There is cream cheese in the glaze for these cookies as well and here you can taste it just a little bit. Mostly though the cream cheese adds great texture to the glaze and the predominant flavors are sweetness from powdered sugar and intense maple flavor from maple extract. Simply whisk all ingredients together and drizzle the glaze on the cookies once they’re cooled.
How to serve the cookies:
I suggest you serve these cookies along with a cup of hot chocolate (or a mocha) topped with this Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Ganache:
More delicious cookie recipes:
- Vanilla Bean Cookies
- Spiced Linzer Cookies with Dulce de Leche
- Linzer Cookies with Ginger Cardamom Raspberry Jam
- Cardamom Meringue Cookies
Pumpkin Spice Hazelnut Cookies
Ingredients:
For the cookies:
- 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cups sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 16 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2.5 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 3 tablespoons cream cheese at room temperature
- 3 tablespoons chopped hazelnuts
For the glaze:
- 1 tablespoon cream cheese
- 1.5 cups powdered sugar
- a few drops of maple extract
- 1-2 tablespoons milk
Instructions:
For the cookies:
- Whisk together flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a standing mixer.
- Cut the butter into chunks and slowly beat into the flour/sugar mix.
- Continue to beat until the dough starts to get crumbly, then add the spice, 3 tablespoons of cream cheese and the nuts. Mix a little more, until everything is well combined.
- Bring the dough together by hand, form into two disks, wrap them each in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Heat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Roll out the dough between two sheets of plastic wrap,* remove the plastic after you’ve rolled out the dough, then cut out the cookies.
- Bake the cookies on a parchment-lined cookie sheet for 10-12 minutes.
For the glaze:
- Whisk remaining tablespoon of cream cheese together with powdered sugar, maple extract and milk and glaze the cookies with it.
- If you feel like it, make another batch of glaze without the maple extract and drizzle on top.
Notes:
Nutrition
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