These sweet Pumpkin Cut-Out Sandwich Cookies are an adorable addition to your fall festivities and fun to make with the whole family!
Sweet-tart orange marmalade is sandwiched between orange zest flavored pumpkin-shaped cookies for an irresistible treat.
If there was an official cookie for fall, I think these pumpkin cut-out sandwich cookies would be it.
Sure, molasses and gingerbread cookies are full of cozy fall flavors, but they’re also pretty divisive—not everyone’s a fan. But buttery pumpkin cut-out cookies sandwiching a layer of jammy marmalade? What’s not to love!?
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Pumpkin Cut-Out Sandwich Cookies
These cookies are so much fun and easy to make, it’s very likely they’ll become a fall tradition for your family. Whip up the cookie dough, which is similar to my Butterscotch Shortbread Cookies, minus the butterscotch.
Use cookie cutters to cut your pumpkins (kids love helping with this part!), and then bake them to golden brown perfection. All that’s left to do is add the marmalade and stick your cookie sandwiches together!
I’ll also add that just like Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars and Miniature Chocolate Chip Cookies, these pumpkin cut-out sandwich cookies are super versatile.
You don’t have to use pumpkin cookie cutters, and you can definitely switch up the filling and add other little touches to make this recipe your own. (I’ll share some ideas for you later in this post, too.)
Why You’ll Love These Cookies
- Make them all throughout fall – My kids adore Witch Finger Cookies, Eyeball Cookies and Halloween Chocolate Covered Oreos, but after Halloween’s over, so is the season for those recipes. These pumpkin sandwich cookies, like my No-Bake Peanut Butter Pumpkins, are in season all the way through to Thanksgiving!
- Easier than you think – A lot of sandwich cookie recipes require you to whip up a fancy filling, but using orange marmalade makes these pumpkin cut-out sandwiches a cinch to prepare.
- Kids can help – There are lots of opportunities for kids of all ages to help with this recipe, from mixing up the cookie dough to cutting the pumpkins and slathering on the marmalade.
- Perfect for parties – These adorable cookies are a festive addition to any dessert table!
Ingredients and Substitutions
- All-Purpose Flour – Lightly spoon this into the measuring cup rather than scooping it.
- Salt – Just a bit enhances to overall flavor of the recipe.
- Granulated Sugar – Sugar doesn’t just sweeten these cookies, but helps keep them moist.
- Orange Zest – For some zippy flavor in the cookie dough.
- Butter – Unlike most cookie recipes, you want the butter cold here.
- Egg – Egg is key to binding all the ingredients together.
- Orange Marmalade – Your favorite brand.
- Icing Sugar – Just a bit, for sprinkling over the cookies.
Variations
- For gluten-free pumpkin cut-out sandwich cookies, use a measure-for-measure gluten-free flour substitute formulated for baking. A single gluten-free flour, like coconut or almond flour, will not work here.
- After pressing the cookies together, you can scatter chocolate sprinkles over the exposed marmalade.
- Although orange marmalade has a vibrant color perfect for fall, you can also substitute another jam or preserve.
- Drizzle melted white chocolate over the cookies, or use royal icing to make an outline around the pumpkins or add other decorative touches.
Helpful Tools
- Rolling Pin – You’ll need to roll out the dough before cutting out the pumpkins.
- Cookie Cutters – First, you’ll need a pumpkin cookie cutter. Then, you’ll need a smaller cookie cutter that fits inside the pumpkin. You can see here that I used a flower shape—it doesn’t have to be another pumpkin!
- Rubber Spatula – This makes it easy to scrape your mixing bowl.
- Baking Sheet – I recommend lighter baking sheets because they are less likely to over-bake the bottoms of your cookies.
- Parchment Paper – Parchment makes it easy to remove your cookies from the pan.
- Wire Cooling Rack – It’s important to transfer your cookies from the pan to a wire rack so they cool without softening.
How to Make
An overview, visit the printable recipe card for complete ingredients and instructions.
- Make the Dough – Mix the dry ingredients, then incorporate the butter. Add the egg.
- Chill – Flatten the dough into a disk and refrigerate it for an hour.
- Cut – Next, roll out the dough and cut out the pumpkin shapes; cut out the centers of half the cookies.
- Bake and Cool – After the cookies are done baking, let them cool on the sheet. Sprinkle on the icing sugar and finish cooling on a wire rack.
- Assemble – Spread the marmalade on the cookies without the cut-outs, then place the cookies with the cut-outs on top. Finally, press gently to seal.
Shortcuts
If you don’t have the time to make these cookies from scratch, you can use a store-bought sugar cookie dough.
Tips
- You can add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the dough for added flavor. Almond extract is another option.
- Make sure the butter is cold and solid when you add it to the flour mixture. Otherwise, you won’t get the crumbly texture you need when mixing it with the dry ingredients.
- If, when gathering the scraps, re-rolling, and cutting, you notice the dough starts to feel warm, take a break and refrigerate it until it’s chilled again.
- Remember to let the cookies cool completely before you assemble them with the marmalade. The marmalade will melt and absorb into hot cookies.
How to Store
Room Temperature – Store your Halloween pumpkin cut-out cookies in an airtight container for 1 to 2 days at room temperature.
Refrigerate – For longer storage, refrigerate your cookies in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days.
Freeze – Store these cookies in a freezer-safe plastic bag or container with wax paper between any layers. Thaw at room temperature, then serve.
Frequently Asked Questions
The key to cut out cookies is to chill the dough before rolling it out. Chilling the dough ensures that it won’t spread while baking and you’ll get cleaner cookie shapes.
If your cut out cookies are losing their shape while baking, chances are that your butter wasn’t cold enough when you added it to the dough or your dough got too warm in the process of rolling and cutting it.
The best thickness for cutout cookies is about 1/4 inch. Rolling the dough too thin will make it difficult to transfer the cookies from your work surface to the baking sheet.
Stick to using thicker, firmer jams and marmalades. If there’s a lot of liquid in your marmalade, it may make the cookies soggy. Also make sure the cookie is completely cooled before spreading any filling on it.
Halloween Pumpkin Cut-Out Sandwich Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, 240 grams
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, 125 grams
- Zest of one orange
- ½ cup cold butter, 113 grams
- 1 egg
- ½ cup orange marmalade
- 3-4 tablespoons icing sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350℉ / 180℃ and line your baking tray with parchment paper and keep aside.
- In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, sugar, and zest together; set aside.
- Cut the cold butter into small cubes and add it to the flour. (The butter needs to be cold and hard). Start kneading the mixture with your hand till the consistency comes to a sand-like texture.
- Add the egg and combine the flour quickly with your hands to make the dough (do not overwork the dough as the heat from your hands might melt the butter and the cookies might spread while baking).
- Flatten the dough to form a disc and wrap it with a cling wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Once chilled, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to ¼ inch thickness and cut out pumpkin shapes. Now, use any other shaped (smaller) cookie cutter that you like and cut out the center of half of the cookies.
- Re-roll any scarps and repeat the process. (keep the cut-outs in the fridge while working with scraps)
- Place the cut-outs on the prepared baking tray and bake for at least 10-12 min in a preheated oven.
- Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes in the baking tray. Now, sprinkle icing sugar on top of center-cut cookies while they’re still warm. Transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
- ASSEMBLING:
- Apply a layer of marmalade on the base cookie and then place the center cut cookie on top and press gently.
- Serve and Enjoy! Happy Halloween!!
Notes
- You can store these cookies in an airtight container for 1-2 days at room temperature or for 4-5 days in the refrigerator.
- You can add 1 tsp of vanilla extract to the dough for an added flavor.
- You can use any other jam, spread, or preserve of your choice in place of orange marmalade.
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