Name: Sourdough Pumpkin Snickerdoodles (with cheesecake filling)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 22 min
Ingredients: 3 ½ cups (420g) all-purpose flour; 2 tsp cream of tartar; 1 tsp baking soda; 2 tsp ground cinnamon; ½ tsp ground ginger; ¼ tsp ground nutmeg; ⅛ tsp ground cardamom; ¾ tsp salt; 1 ½ Tbsp (12g) cornstarch; ¾ cup (170g) unsalted butter, softened; 1 ¼ cups (250g) white sugar; ⅔ cup (135g) pumpkin purée; 1 egg; 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract; ½ cup (120g) sourdough discard, unfed; ½ cup (100g) white sugar; 1 ¼ tsp ground cinnamon; ½ tsp ground ginger; ¼ tsp ground nutmeg; ⅛ tsp ground cardamom; 6 oz (170g) cream cheese (softened); ⅓ cup (65g) white sugar; 1 Tbsp (8g) flour; ½ tsp vanilla extract; 1/8 tsp sea salt

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These Sourdough Pumpkin Snickerdoodles (with cheesecake filling) are going to be you favorite fall cookie, hands down. Soft and spiced pumpkin snickerdoodle cookie dough filled with cheesecake center, need I say more? Rolled in a spiced sugar coating and baked to perfection, think pumpkin cheesecake meets classic snickerdoodle. They’re festive, cozy, and completely irresistible.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe:

Using up that extra discard was never so delicious. Packed with fall spices to make these cookies extra cozy and pumpkin for tenderness and flavor, these cookies use simple ingredients and have that perfect tender center and crispy edge.

If you’re a cheesecake lover, the cream cheese center will win you over if the cookie hasn’t already! This recipe is make-ahead friendly, the filling can be frozen and the dough chilled for stress-free baking.

Why Should I Add Sourdough Starter to my Cookies?

Incorporating sourdough starter discard into your cookie dough not only adds a unique depth of flavor but also introduces a fermentation process that enhances the dough’s complexity. Allowing the dough to rest in the refrigerator overnight facilitates this fermentation, as the natural bacteria and yeasts in the sourdough starter continue to develop the dough’s fermentation.

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Tools You’ll Need:

Large mixing bowl or stand mixer bowl- for mixing your cookie dough.
Electric mixer (stand or hand-held)– for combining dough.
Spatula– for scraping down bowl.
Parchment paper or silicone mats– to line cookie sheet to avoid burning.
Baking sheets– to bake cookies.
2-ounce (approximately 2 tablespoons) cookie scoop– for shaping large cookies linked here.
Smaller 2 teaspoon cookie scoop (optional)– for scooping the cheesecake filling. I use this scoop linked here.
Wire cooling rack- for allowing cookies to rest properly.

Next, Gather Your Ingredients:

Unsalted Butter – Makes cookies chewy and moist. You can use salted butter just reduce the salt in the recipe by 1/4 teaspoon.
White Granulated Sugar- Sweetens cookies. Helps give cookies that crackly top and crisp edge. Used to coat the cookie for that classic snickerdoodle taste and appearance.
Egg – Adds richness and binds the cookie.
Sourdough discard– Adds flavor and moisture and is the magic that ferments your cookie dough. Can be used fed, past peak, or straight from the fridge.
Vanilla extract – Adds depth and warmth to cookies.
All-purpose flour – Provides structure and lift to the cookies.
Cream of Tartar – Works with baking soda to lift the cookie, commonly used in snickerdoodles. If you want to substitute for baking powder, leave out the baking soda and cream of tartar and use 2 teaspoons baking powder. This can make the cookie more cakey.
Baking Soda – Creates the perfect lift without overpuffing the cookies.
Cornstarch (optional)- this makes the cookie softer and more tender. If you want a chewier and flatter cookie, leave this out.
Sea salt – Enhances overall flavor.
Pumpkin Puree- Adds moisture and softness to the cookie and that classic pumpkin flavor.
Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg, and Cardamom – The perfect spices to blend into this cookie to add that “pumpkin spice” taste. You can substitute even amounts for a pre-mixed pumpkin pie spice, but I love to blend my own spices to achieve the same flavors each time.
Cream Cheese- makes that creamy cheesecake center. Don’t use cream cheese spread!

Now let’s bake some cookies!

Instructions

Step 1: Make the Cheesecake Filling

Make sure your cream cheese is room temperature. Transfer the cream cheese to a bowl, and add the white sugar, flour, vanilla, and salt.

Cream together the ingredients with a hand mixer on high until smooth and creamy.

Cream together until smooth on high — Add ingredients to a bowl

Line a baking sheet with parchment, and scoop 2 teaspoon scoops of the cheesecake filling onto the parchment. Freeze the cheesecake filling balls for later. The colder these are, the easier the cookies will be to shape.

Scoop and freeze cheesecake filling balls

Step 2: Make the Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Dough

Make sure your butter has reached room temperature. Add your butter and white sugar to a bowl and cream for 2 minutes on high until pale and creamy.

Blot any excess water from your pumpkin puree.

Add in your pumpkin puree, egg, sourdough discard, and vanilla. Mix with your hand beaters or stand mixer on medium speed until well incorporated.

Cream together butter and sugars — Cream together butter and sugar

Add remaining wet ingredients — Cream together butter and sugar

Whisk together your flour, cream of tartar, cornstarch, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix gently until the dough is mixed and no streaks remain. Be careful not to overmix the dough at this point, or the cookies will be tough.

Add to wet ingredients — Mix dry ingredients

Scoop your cookies into 1/4 cup balls and transfer to a parchment lined cookie sheet. Chill the dough at least two hours, optimally overnight so they’re easiest to shape. If the dough is too wet to scoop, chill for 20-30 minutes first then scoop and chill.

Step 3: Shape the Cookies

Before you shape your cookies, mix the sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom in a shallow bowl for the sugar coating.

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Gather your baking sheets with the cream cheese filling and the pre-scooped cookie dough.

Using your thumbs, shape the cookie dough balls into a bowl shape. Place a cream cheese filling ball into the bowl of cookie dough, and close the bowl with your thumbs so that the cookie dough covers the cream cheese filling.

Roll your cookie dough ball in the sugar coating until it’s completely coated in the spiced sugar.

Repeat this step with all of the remaining cookies. See below for photos showing the steps.

Place filling in the center of the bowl — Form a bowl with your thumbs

Note: When you scoop the dough and cheesecake filling, you should have 13 cookies and 12 centers. I usually hold back this extra cookie dough ball to use to cover any holes on my cookies if I need to. The less cracks that you have in the cookies, the more the center will hold inside the cookie.

Place your filled cookies on the 2 parchment lined cookie sheets, I like to do 6 cookies per sheet in 2 by 3 rows. These are larger cookies, so make sure they have plenty of space on the pan!

Step 4: Bake the Cookies

Transfer the cookie sheets to center racks of the oven. Bake the cookies for 18-20 minutes, checking doneness at this time. I usually need about 22-24 minutes to get these cookies fully baked, you want the edges to be set and the center to be set (not doughy) but still shiny.

Remove the cookies from the oven when done baking, and sprinkle with more of the spiced sugar topping. If you want a flatter cookie, you can gently flatten the tops with a flat spatula, just be careful not to squeeze out the cream cheese filling. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack to finish setting for about 30 minutes.

Enjoy!

Yields 12 large (2 oz) cookies

How to Store:

Room temperature- Keep in an airtight container for 1 day. Because of the cream cheese, these are best not left out.

Refrigerator- Store cooled cookies in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Because of the cream cheese filling, they keep best chilled.

FAQ’S:

Do I really need to chill the dough?

Yes! Chilling helps the butter firm up and prevents spreading, giving you thick, chewy cookies.

Do these cookies taste like sourdough?

Not strongly. The discard just adds a subtle complexity and balances sweetness without tasting “sour.”

Can I make the filling ahead?

Absolutely! The cream cheese filling can be made and frozen in little scoops days in advance, which makes assembly even easier.

Why do I need to blot the pumpkin purée?

Pumpkin is very watery, and excess moisture can make the cookies cakey. Blotting ensures your cookies stay soft and chewy instead of fluffy.

Can I use pumpkin pie filling?

No. Pumpkin puree is what you want to use, pumpkin pie filling has sugar and other ingredients added that will change the cookies.

If you enjoyed this recipe, drop a comment and don’t forget to try my other seasonal pumpkin recipes!

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