Anyone up for homemade oatmeal cream pies? You’re gonna love these pumpkin oatmeal cream pies with maple cream cheese filling. They’re ridiculously good. I grew up eating tf out of those Lil Debbie Oatmeal Cream Pies. I *still* nosh on them from time to time. Not because I think they’re delicious, but because they remind me of my childhood. But, in the grand tradition of growing up, I had to elevate them. So, here’s my rendition of the oatmeal cream pie — but with a twist.
If you don’t like maple OR pumpkin, guess what? You can totally leave them out
Want that signature crackle top? Press the cookies down with the bottom of a glass as soon as they’re out of the oven.
Little Masterpieces
The cookies are very, very soft and very moist. Here’s the thing, this recipe is very adaptable. If you don’t like pumpkin, or just don’t have any on hand — you can leave it out! The pumpkin does lend some extra moisture, but not so much that if you left it out the cookies would suffer. “Hey Resha, I don’t have maple extract!”. Ok, leave it out boo. Or, if you have grade B maple syrup, use that instead. Grade B has a much stronger maple flavor that’s best suited for baking, whereas Grade A is better for actual eating (in my humble opinion). Again, if you don’t have either, don’t even trip. Even the molasses is optional. Some folks don’t like the flavor of it, and that’s totally fine.
Quick word about the oats. You should use the quick cooking oats for this recipe, as they’re already precooked and come out softer. However — if you only have old fashioned rolled oats, you can use those too. Here’s how: simply grind them down to as fine a powder as you can get them. Use your high-powered blender or food processor to grind them down to basically a flour. The cookies will still come out great, I’ve tried both ways.
Print
Maple-Pumpkin Oatmeal Cream Pies
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 12
Ingredients
- 2.5 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
- 1 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temp
- 2 tsp molasses (optional)
- 1/4 cup pumpking puree (optional)
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 tsp maple extract (optional)
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 3 cups quick cooking oats oats (if using whole oats, grind them down to a fine powder)
Maple Cream Cheese Filling:
- 1.5 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
- 8oz. cream cheese, softened
- 3 cups confectioners sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp maple extract, or 2 tbsp Grade B maple syrup (both optional)
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Line a large baking sheet with silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
- In a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (you can use a handheld mixer too), cream the butter and sugars together on medium-high speed until light and creamy, about a minute. Add the egg, vanilla extract, maple extract, pumpkin puree, and molasses, scraping down the sides as needed. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.
- With the mixer running on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Then add the oats. The dough will be thick and moist, so use a rubber spatula or spoon to continue mixing by hand until you no longer see dry pockets of flour/oats. Scoop dough with a large cookie scoop, or use rounded 2 tablespoon measurements of dough. Cookies will spread in the oven if using quick oats, so drop each ball of dough 3 inches apart. If using whole ground oats, the cookies will spread but not as much, so either flatten them with moist fingers before baking, or gently press them down as soon as they’re out of the oven with the bottom of a glass — which is also how you’ll get that signature oatmeal cookie crackle on top.
- Bake for 10 minutes or until cookies are lightly golden around the edges. Let the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the filling:
- In a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment (you can use a handheld mixer), beat the softened butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed until creamy and combined, about a minute. Add the confectioners sugar and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add vanilla extract, maple extract OR maple syrup if using. Beat on high for 2-3 minutes until fluffy and ribbony. Give it a taste and add a pinch as needed. If your filling is too thick, add a few drops of heavy cream or half and half. If it’s too loose, add a bit more powdered sugar. Place filling into a piping bag, or simply spread it onto half the cookies, placing the other unfrosted half on top. If you have an odd number of extra cookies, don’t worry about it. Just eat them as is, or dip them in remaining filling.
- These sandwich cookies will stay fresh and soft at room temperature for about 2 days in an airtight container. You can also store them in individual ziploc bags — if they last that long. Enjoy!
Notes
adapted from MyRecipes.com
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
I came across this recipe last year on YouTube and was excited to make it since I loved oatmeal cream pies growing up. Just gave this a shot over the weekend, and they came out absolutely delicious! It was full of flavor and the cookies were moist, gradually crumbling with every bite just like my childhood treats would. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
★★★★★
Question: Is it possible to make these sheet style, like two giant slabs, put the cream over one, cover it with the other, and cut it into squares? I made the cookies for a Cookie party, they were bomb, but I’m looking to make them for my students so I’d like a quicker, less messy way to make them.
Wow! So happy to hear from you and that things are going well. I look forward to trying out this recipe!