These chewy pumpkin cookies are crispy on the edges, chewy and soft in the middle, and it is spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger.
These cookies are so delicious and made with simple ingredients! You can use fresh pumpkin puree or canned pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling), but ensure that you are draining the excess liquids.
Most pumpkin cookies have a cakey texture, but these have a perfect chewy in the middle and crispy on the edges texture.
If you like pumpkin desserts, check out our pumpkin scones, mini pumpkin cheesecakes, pumpkin bread with cream cheese frosting, banana pumpkin muffins, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin snickerdoodles, and pumpkin cheesecake.
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Why this recipe works
- Texture- These cookies have the best texture! They are perfectly chewy in the middle and crispy on the edges!
- Flavor- They have the best flavor as well! They are spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, and are made with pumpkin puree!
- Perfect for the colder months- These cookies are perfect for fall and winter, and especially for the holiday season!
- Simple- they are really easy to make and use super simple ingredients!
- Cinnamon sugar- these cookies are rolled in cinnamon sugar for extra flavor and a crunchy exterior.
Ingredients
Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
Butter- use unsalted butter for this recipe. Only butter will work for this recipe, no margarine, and no coconut oil. Margarine has a weird taste and can ruin the flavor of these delicious cookies.
Granulated sugar– we like to use granulated sugar, also the most common sugar used in baking. Caster sugar will work great as well.
Brown sugar- adds a caramelly flavor and chewy texture to the cookies.
Pumpkin puree- we like making our own pumpkin puree from fresh pumpkins. You can use either canned pumpkin puree or homemade pumpkin puree, make sure that you strain the extra liquids from your fresh pumpkins.
Baking soda – baking soda helps the cookies rise and spread. Make sure that your baking soda isn’t expired. Don’t replace baking soda with baking powder!
Egg yolks- you will need 2 large egg yolks for this recipe. Make sure that your egg yolks are at room temperature.
Cinnamon- gives these cookies an amazing taste and compliments the apples perfectly.
Spices- we like adding nutmeg and ginger for pumpkin desserts, but you can use your favorite spices like cloves, pumpkin spice, etc.
Vanilla extract- adds extra flavor.
Kosher salt- you will need about ½ teaspoon of kosher salt for this recipe.
Flour– we used all-purpose flour for this recipe, self-rising flour, and cake flour will work great as well.
Instructions
Into a big mixing bowl, add the room temperature butter, sugar, brown sugar, and cream it with an electric hand mixer for 2-3 minutes or until it’s creamy and light in color.
Add the egg yolks, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, kosher salt, nutmeg, ginger, vanilla extract, and mix well.
Add the flour, baking soda, and mix until just combined. Do not overmix this cookie dough to prevent these cookies from turning cakey.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. We let the dough rest in the fridge overnight.
In a small mixing bowl, add the cinnamon, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Mix with a spoon until well combined.
Use a cookie scooper to scoop out the cookies or scoop the cookies with a tbsp, 1 ½ tablespoon at a time. Roll the cookie dough balls into balls using your clean hands.
Roll each cookie in the cinnamon sugar mixture, place the cookie dough balls onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and bake in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 12-14 minutes.
Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Expert Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly.
- Don’t overmix the batter, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
- Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with a back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
- Use a cookies scoop to scoop out the cookies, that way you will have even-sized cookies, plus it ensures that your cookies bake evenly.
- Be patient! I know it’s incredibly tempting to eat these cookies as they are pulled out of the oven, but let these cookies cool for at least 15 minutes so they will be more firm and won’t crumble up.
- Let these cookies cool for 5 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool for at least 10 more minutes. This step ensures that the bottom of your cookies will not be soggy from the steam.
Faq's
These cookies will last for up to 5 days stored at room temperature in an airtight container.
We use all-purpose flour for these cookies. Cake flour will work great as well.
This usually means that there is too much flour in the dough. It is very important to measure your flour correctly. Check out our expert tips for how to measure flour correctly.
Yes! You can double or triple this recipe. There is an option to automatically double, half, or triple this recipe in the recipe card below!
Storing
It’s okay to store these cookies at room temperature. Make sure that you store them in an airtight container. These will last for up to 5 days at room temperature.
Freezing
Simply, follow the instructions as written and make the dough balls, roll them in the cinnamon sugar mixture, then transfer the dough balls into a freezer-friendly airtight ziplock bag, and freeze the cookie dough ball for up to 3 months.
When ready to bake the cookies, bake them right away, no need to thaw them. Add an extra minute or so for the baking time.
Make these ahead of time
You can make these cookies ahead of time by baking them 1-2 days ahead of time and storing them in an airtight container to keep them fresh.
Another way to make these ahead of time is freezing the cookie dough balls and baking them without thawing them and baking them for additional 1-2 minutes.
Substitutions
Gluten-free- you can make these gluten-free by swapping the flour with gluten-free flour!
Dairy-free - If you are dairy-free, replace the butter with vegan butter or plant-based butter. Do not use margarine. It will change the flavor of these cookies and leave a weird taste.
Variations
Chocolate chips- these cookies taste great with chocolate chips, add ½ a cup to the batter and bake it according to the instructions.
Spices- add your favorite pumpkin spices like pumpkin pie spice, cloves, allspice, etc.
Equipment
- Baking sheet and rack set (our fave)
- Cookies scoop set of 3 (the best cookie scoop we used)
- Whisk Set (pack of 3) to whisk the ingredients together
More fall recipes
Apple crisp bars- These apple crisp bars are made with a shortcrust base, topped with a spiced apple mixture, topped with a crumble topping, and topped with caramel sauce.
Banana coffee cake- This banana coffee cake is made with soft cinnamon banana cake, filled with a cinnamon swirl filling, cinnamon crumble topping and a delicious glaze.
Caramel pecan cheesecake- This caramel pecan cheesecake is made with a cinnamon crust, creamy cinnamon cheesecake filling, and a caramel pecan topping.
If you tried this recipe, don’t forget to leave a rating and a comment below. We love hearing from you.
If you liked this recipe
📖 Recipe
Chewy Pumpkin Cookies
Ingredients
- 230 g Butter softened
- ½ cup Granulated sugar
- 1 cup Dark brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- ⅓ cup Pumpkin puree
- 2 Egg yolks
- 2 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon Ginger
- 2 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 2 ⅔ cups Flour AP
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
Cinnamon sugar (for rolling)
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- 2 tablespoon Brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon Granulated sugar
Instructions
- Into a big mixing bowl, add the room temperature butter, sugar, brown sugar, and cream it with an electric hand mixer for 2-3 minutes or until it’s creamy and light in color.
- Add the egg yolks, pumpkin puree, cinnamon, kosher salt, nutmeg, ginger, vanilla extract, and mix well.
- Add the flour, baking soda, and mix until just combined. Do not overmix this cookie dough to prevent from these cookies from turning cakey.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. We let the dough rest in the fridge overnight.
- Into a small mixing bowl, add the cinnamon, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Mix with a spoon until well combined.
- Use a cookie scooper to scoop out the cookies or scoop the cookies with a tbsp, 1 ½ tablespoon at a time. Roll the cookie dough balls into balls using your clean hands.
- Roll each cookie in the cinnamon sugar mixture, and place the cookie dough balls onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, and bake in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 12-14 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly.
- Don’t overmix the batter, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
- Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with a back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
- Use a cookies scoop to scoop out the cookies, that way you will have even-sized cookies, plus it ensures that your cookies bake evenly.
- Before making this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
- Be patient! I know it’s incredibly tempting to eat these cookies as they are pulled out of the oven, but let these cookies cool for at least 15 minutes so they will be more firm and won’t crumble up.
- Let these cookies cool for 5 minutes and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool for at least 10 more minutes. This step ensures that the bottom of your cookies will not be soggy from the steam.
Anabell Hernandez
Really liked the texture of these cookies, flavors are amazing. However I don’t taste the pumpkin at all.. I used 1/3 cup and I packed it too. Could you add more with this recipe
Carol
Does this recipe really only make 17? Curious before I make them.
RichandDelish
Yes, 17 medium-large cookies!
Be
Rolling sugar measurements not listed
RichandDelish
Fixed!