The Best Chewy Pumpkin Cookies

When I first attempted chewy pumpkin cookies, they always spread into flat, orange pancakes—not exactly the cozy, bakery-style treat I had in mind. Sarah next door finally took pity on me and showed me her trick – blotting the pumpkin with paper towels first.

Game changer! Now I make these every October and my kids actually fight over the last one.

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Look, I’ve bombed plenty of pumpkin cookies. These actually work. They stay soft, taste like real pumpkin, and don’t need any weird steps. Just blot, mix, bake. That’s it.

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📝 Ingredient List

For the Cookies (Makes About 18 Cookies):

• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 egg yolks, room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• ½ cup canned pumpkin purée, blotted and reduced to about ¼ cup
• 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt

For Rolling:

• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

I don’t have pumpkin pie spice? Mix 2 tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp ginger, ¼ tsp nutmeg, pinch of cloves. Works fine. You can use whole eggs too but they won’t be as chewy.

🔍 Why These Ingredients Work

Brown sugar has molasses. Molasses keeps cookies soft longer than white sugar. That’s why day-old cookies still taste good.

Egg yolks instead of whole eggs? Found this out by accident. Yolks make them chewy without puffing up too much.

And seriously, blot that pumpkin. Canned pumpkin is basically orange water. Nobody wants soggy cookies.

Essential Tools and Equipment

• Big bowl for mixing
• Hand mixer (or stand mixer)
• Measuring cups
• Paper towels (lots of them)
• Cookie scoop or spoon
• Baking sheets
• Parchment paper

👩🍳How To Make Chewy Pumpkin Cookies

1. Blot the pumpkin: Spread pumpkin on paper towels. Press more towels on top. Keep blotting until you use up half a roll of paper towels. This step matters more than anything else.

2. Mix dry stuff: Flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder, salt. Whisk it around. Set aside.

3. Cream butter and sugar: Beat butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Takes about 3-4 minutes. Don’t rush this.

4. Add eggs and pumpkin: Mix in egg yolks and vanilla. Then add your blotted pumpkin. Looks weird? That’s normal.

5. Add flour mixture: Dump in the flour stuff. Mix until just combined. Stop when you can’t see white flour anymore.

6. Heat oven, prep sugar: Oven to 350°F. Mix granulated sugar with pumpkin pie spice in a small bowl.

7. Shape and roll: Make golf ball-sized scoops. Roll each one in the spiced sugar. Put on baking sheets about 2 inches apart.

8. Bake: 12-14 minutes. I do 12 for super chewy, 14 for firmer edges. They puff up then settle down.

9. Cool: Leave on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Then move to cooling rack. They’ll fall apart if you move them too soon.

Tips from Well-Known Chefs

My mom always said “Don’t skip the basics.” She was right. Room temperature ingredients, proper mixing, right oven temp. That’s it.

❗ You Must Know

Blot the pumpkin or your cookies will be flat orange messes. I learned this the hard way. Twice.

Personal Secret: I put extra cinnamon in the rolling sugar. Makes people think I’m fancy.

💡 Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

Take butter and eggs out 30 minutes before baking. Cold ingredients don’t mix right.

Don’t overbake. They look underdone when you pull them out but keep cooking on the hot pan.

Cookie scoop makes them all the same size. No scoop? Spoon works.

Put bread in your cookie jar. Keeps them soft. No idea why but it works.

My mistakes:

• Skipped blotting pumpkin (disaster)
• Mixed dough too much (tough cookies)
• Baked too long (hockey pucks)

🎨 Flavor Variations & Suggestions

Add chocolate chips: About ½ cup mini ones. Kids love these.

Maple glaze: Powdered sugar + maple syrup + milk. Drizzle on top.

Cream cheese frosting: These taste like little pumpkin cupcakes.

Spicy: Tiny bit of cayenne in the rolling sugar. Good with coffee.

⏲️ Make-Ahead Options

Make dough up to 2 days ahead. Keep in fridge. Let it warm up before baking.

Freeze shaped cookies on a baking sheet. Once solid, put in freezer bag. Bake from frozen – add 1-2 minutes.

Baked cookies freeze for 2 weeks. Thaw on counter.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

Different pumpkin brands have different water amounts. Blotting fixes this problem.

Dough seems stiff? Good. That’s what makes them chewy. Too sticky? Fridge for 15 minutes.

Live somewhere humid? Blot the pumpkin extra.

🍽️ Serving Suggestions

Good with milk, coffee, hot cider. I crumble them over ice cream sometimes.

Great for lunch boxes or bake sales. Put them out with apple slices for parties.

Hope these work for you like they do for me. My family demolishes a batch every weekend. 🍪

🧊 How to Store Your Chewy Pumpkin Cookies

Counter: Airtight container, 3 days max.

Freezer: Up to 2 weeks. Thaw on counter.

Reheating: 300°F oven for 2-3 minutes.

⚠️ Allergy Information

Has: Eggs, butter, flour

Swaps:

• Vegan butter instead of regular butter
• Gluten-free flour blend
• 2 tbsp applesauce instead of egg yolks (different texture though)

❓ Questions I Get Aske A Lot

Fresh pumpkin instead of canned?

Sure. Roast it, puree it, then blot it really well. Fresh has more water than canned.

Why do my cookies spread?

You didn’t blot the pumpkin enough. Or your butter was too warm.

No pumpkin pie spice?

2 tsp cinnamon + ½ tsp ginger + ¼ tsp nutmeg + pinch cloves.

How do I know they’re done?

Edges look set but centers still soft. They finish cooking on the hot pan.

Can I double this?

Yep. Just need more baking sheets.

💬 Tried this recipe? Leave a comment and rating below! I’d love to hear how your chewy pumpkin cookies turned out and any creative variations you tried. Did you add chocolate chips? Try the maple glaze? Share your baking adventures—your tips might help another baker!