The Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookie recipe went viral on TikTok not so long ago. And while we all love a good pumpkin cookie (and um…hello cheesecake?!), they’re not always a stellar choice when keeping an eye on your health goals. Imagine, a better-for-you pumpkin cheesecake cookie recipe that, dare I say, TASTES AMAZING?
So, what makes these cookies so special? Well let’s run down the list…
– Pumpkin – Check
– Cheesecake – Check
– Protein – Check
– Fiber – Check
– Keto-Friendly?? – Check
– Gluten free?? – Check!
Say what?! These PROTEIN PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE cookies legit check all the boxes – and then some!
So, whether you’ve been scouring the internet for keto recipes, gluten free cookies, or a guiltless treat to satisfy your sweet tooth – we’ve got a cookie for you! Read on to learn how these Protein Cheesecake Cookies can fit into your keto lifestyle and support your health goals!!
Now, I’d be lying if I said making these cookies are easy. There are A LOT of steps. But I think you’ll find the end result TOTALLY worth it!
Let’s get our ingredient list together:
Cheesecake Filling
– 8 oz cream cheese, regular or low fat (at room temperature)
– 3 Tbsp allulose
– 1 tsp vanilla extract – 1 scoop GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla Cream
Pumpkin Cookie Dough
– ½ cup canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
– 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
– 1 ¾ cup almond flour
– ¾ cup allulose
– ½ cup butter (at room temperature)
– 2 egg yolks (at room temperature)
– ½ tsp baking powder
– ½ tsp baking soda
– ½ tsp salt – 1 scoop GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla Cream
Let’s talk swaps:
Given that the original recipe called for sugar (which isn’t keto) and flour (again, not keto-friendly and certainly not gluten free) AND it didn’t include protein powder…there was a lot of experimentation involved. Here’s how I made it work:
Almond flour
Almond flour is replacing the traditional all-purpose flour that the original recipe calls for. Almond flour is grain-free, gluten free, and lower in carbohydrates compared to all-purpose flour which checks our keto friendly and gluten free boxes.
Allulose
Allulose is a sugar substitute gaining popularity. It’s keto-friendly (yay!) and found in very small amounts in foods like kiwi, dried figs and raisins (1). However, the amount in food is so small that allulose is considered a “rare sugar”. Most of the allulose we use today is manufactured through an enzymatic process which converts fructose (from corn, beets and other vegetables) into allulose (2). And when compared to sucrose (table sugar), allulose has about 95% fewer calories and approximately 70% relative sweetness (1).
Additional Ingredients GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla Cream – Whey protein powder was added to bump up the protein content of these cookies. The vanilla cream flavor really added…flavor!
How To Make Protein Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies
Time to walk through the process of making these delectable treats that can fit into your keto lifestyle.
Make The Protein Cheesecake Filling
The first step of our cookie process is to make our cheesecake filling. In a bowl, using a hand or stand mixer on a medium setting, combine room temperature cream cheese, vanilla extract, allulose and one scoop of GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein Powder until it reaches a smooth, creamy consistency.
Next, you’ll want to line a small cookie sheet with parchment paper. Scoop about one tablespoons worth of cheesecake mixture and place on the cookie sheet to yield 14 cheesecake balls. Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for at least 30 minutes until they are frozen or very firm.
Make the Pumpkin Cookie Dough
Preheat your oven to 350° and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Measure your canned pumpkin puree and place it onto a plate. Press and blot the pumpkin puree using a paper towel to remove moisture. This step may sound silly (and annoying) but necessary – with too much moisture your cookies will not hold their shape and end up cake-like. Go ahead and blot, and blot and blot and blot until the puree has reduced from ½ cup to about ¼ cup in volume.
In another bowl, prepare your dry ingredients by whisking together almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, one scoop of protein powder and the star of the show – pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and allulose on a high setting with an electric hand or stand mixer until fluffy. This can take a couple of minutes.
Now it’s time to add our room-temperature egg yolks and vanilla. Mix again until fluffy. Now add the “dried pumpkin” and mix again.
And finally, add your dry ingredients to combine fully on a low speed. The “dough” will appear dry, but I assure you, it is not.
Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookie Assembly
Remove your frozen cheesecake balls from the freezer. Scoop about two Tablespoons worth of pumpkin cookie dough and insert a cheesecake ball. Using your hands, roll into a ball to seal in the goodness. Place on a cookie sheet and repeat till you’ve made 14 pumpkin cheesecake cookies! You’ll want 4-6 per cookie sheet.
Bake!
Your oven should be good and ready for baking by now. Place your two cookie sheets in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes (oven temps vary so keep an eye on them!). About halfway through the baking process I removed and squashed them down a bit. They were baking like a cookie ball and I wanted them to look more “cookie-like”, so I used the bottom of a glass jar and applied slight pressure. Pop them back into the oven for the remaining time.
When time is up, remove from the oven and allow cookies to sit for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool.
Enjoy!
Pro tip – I found storing my cookies overnight in the fridge really helped to develop the flavor.
So, there you have it! Protein Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies! Keto-friendly, gluten free and packing a whopping 8 grams of protein per cookie!
Protein Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies
Ingredients:
Cheesecake Filling
– 8oz cream cheese, regular or low fat (at room temperature)
– 3 Tbsp allulose
– 1 tsp vanilla extract – GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla Cream
Pumpkin Cookie Dough
– ½ cup canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
– 1 Tbsp pumpkin pie spice
– 1 ¾ cup almond flour
– ¾ cup allulose
– ½ cup butter (at room temperature)
– 2 egg yolks (at room temperature)
– ½ tsp baking powder
– ½ tsp baking soda
– ½ tsp salt – GNC Pro Performance 100% Whey Protein Powder, Vanilla Cream
Instructions:
1. Combine cream cheese, allulose, vanilla and protein powder. Mix until smooth and creamy.
2. Portion 1 Tbsp cheesecake balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (for a total of 14 cheesecake balls). Freeze.
3. Preheat oven to 350°.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (almond flour, protein powder, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder and salt). Set aside.
5. Mix softened butter and allulose together on a medium setting until fluffy.
6. Add two room-temperature egg yolks and vanilla, mix to incorporate.
7. Add “dried pumpkin” and mix to incorporate.
8. Add dry ingredients to wet and combine.
9. Remove frozen cheesecake balls from freezer.
10. Scoop two Tbsp of pumpkin dough, insert cheesecake ball and roll to enclose. Place on baking sheets. Repeat.
11. Place baking sheets in 350° oven and cook for 20-25 minutes.
12. Remove halfway through the baking process to “squash” and create a “cookie look”.
13. Finish baking for allotted time.
14. Remove from oven and allow to sit for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire cookie rack until cooled completely.
15. Enjoy! For best results, refrigerate overnight!
Nutrition Information
Per 1 cookie:
· 220 calories
· 18g total fat
· 22g total carbohydrates
o 2g fiber
o 16g allulose (zero calorie sweetner)
o 4g net carbohydrates*
· 2g dietary fiber
· 8g protein
*While these cookies may look a wee bit high on the carb side, more than half are coming from allulose, which has 0g net carbs. To calculate the net carbs of a product, subtract both the grams of fiber and sugar substitute from the total carbohydrates listed on the nutrition facts panel. In this instance, allulose was used providing 16g of carbohydrate. The additional carbohydrates are likely coming from the
pumpkin, almond flour, and cream cheese. But because pumpkin and almond flour are also providing fiber, we can subtract that from total carbohydrates as well, which results in… 4g of net carbs!
References:
1. Franchi F, Yaranov DM, Rollini F, Rivas A, Rivas Rios J, Been L, Tani Y, Tokuda M, Iida T, Hayashi N, Angiolillo DJ, Mooradian AD. Effects of D-allulose on glucose tolerance and insulin response to a standard oral sucrose load: results of a prospective, randomized, crossover study. BMJ Open Diabetes Res Care. 2021 Feb;9(1):e001939. doi: 10.1136/bmjdrc-2020-001939. PMID: 33637605; PMCID: PMC7919569. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7919569/
2. Xiao Q, Niu J, Liu H, Liu Y, Zhou X. High Conversion of D-Fructose into D-Allulose by Enzymes Coupling with an ATP Regeneration System. Mol Biotechnol. 2019;61(6):432-441. doi:10.1007/s12033-019-00174-6 https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30963480/
