Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until creamy and smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as necessary.

Place a couple of paper towels on a plate or in a bowl. Place the pumpkin puree in the center of the paper towels. Use another paper towel to blot the pumpkin, 5 or 6 times to soak up some of the moisture.

Add the blotted pumpkin, egg yolk, and vanilla to the mixing bowl. Beat until well combined.

With the mixer on low, beat in the dry ingredients until just combined. Don’t over mix. Stir in the oats.

Use a cookie scoop to drop the dough onto the prepared baking sheet, about 1.5 tablespoons of dough per cookie, leaving about 2 inches of space in between because the cookies will spread.

Bake for 12 to 14 minutes or until cookies are set around the edges but still soft in the center. Remove from oven and sprinkle with flaky sea salt, if desire. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet. Transfer to a wire cooling rack and cool completely.

While the cookies are cooling, make the frosting. Place the butter in a medium saucepan and melt over medium heat, stirring often, until it foams, smells nutty, and browns. This will take about 5 to 7 minutes. Scrape the browned butter into a medium bowl. Place the bowl in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or until the butter is completely cooled and is mostly resolidified. Remove from the refrigerator and let it come back to room temperature if it’s too cold. You want it to be a soft solid, but not cold so it will mix in with the cream cheese.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the brown butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add the vanilla and salt and mix again.

Gradually, mix in the confectioner’s sugar, about 3/4 cup at a time, until all the sugar has been added. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and mix again until smooth.

To assemble the cream pies, pipe or spread the filling on the flat side of half of the cookies and put the remaining cookies on top. You might have a little leftover filling.