Pumpkin Spice Cookies

It seems like fall starts earlier every year. And with fall comes pumpkin spice season. These pumpkin spice cookies are soft, chewy and have just the right amount of sweetness. Throw some vanilla ice cream between two cookies and they make a mean ice cream sandwich as well.

This pumpkin cookies recipe is also a great way to use up the pumpkin puree we made from all the pumpkins we grow in our garden.

There is one important step when making these cookies. You need to remove the excess moisture from the pumpkin puree before adding it to the batter. It’s easy to do, and I have pictures below showing exactly what it should look like. If you skip this step, the cookies can become dense and not bake properly.

Why You’ll Love These Pumpkin Spice Cookies

• Real pumpkin puree: A great way to use up homemade pumpkin puree from pumpkins you grew yourself, or you can use store-bought pumpkin puree.
• Pumpkin spice and molasses: The combination gives these cookies that warm fall flavour without being overpowering.
• Simple ingredients: Nothing complicated here. Most of the ingredients are probably already in your pantry.
• Quick to bake: Once the dough is ready, the cookies only need about 15 minutes in the oven.
• Soft and chewy: These pumpkin spice cookies stay soft in the center and become chewier as they cool.

Ingredients for Pumpkin Spice Cookies

You only need a handful of simple ingredients to make these pumpkin spice cookies:

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup (113 g) butter, melted
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree, excess moisture removed
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice
• 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Sea salt, for sprinkling

There are a few ingredients that are particularly important to the flavour and texture of these cookies.

Pumpkin Puree

We make our own pumpkin puree from the pumpkins we grow in our garden, but store-bought pumpkin puree will work as well.

Pumpkin puree has a lot of moisture in it, so some of that moisture needs to be removed before adding it to the cookie dough. I’ll show you exactly how I do this below.

Pumpkin Spice

We make our own pumpkin spice using a very simple recipe.

• 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice

This makes just under 5 tablespoons of pumpkin spice, so we store the extra in a spice bottle. Store-bought pumpkin spice can also be used.

Molasses

Molasses gives these cookies a deeper flavour and a little extra sweetness. It pairs really well with the pumpkin and warm spices, which is why I use 2 tablespoons in this recipe.

Butter

I use melted butter for these pumpkin spice cookies rather than softened butter. There’s no need to wait for the butter to come to room temperature. Simply melt it and mix it with the sugar before adding the rest of the wet ingredients.

How to Remove Moisture From Pumpkin Puree

Pumpkin puree holds a lot of moisture, and we want to remove some of that before adding it to the cookie dough. Luckily, this only takes about a minute.

Spread 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree onto a plate. Take about 4-6 sheets of paper towel and press them directly onto the pumpkin puree. Continue pressing down gently for about 30 seconds to give the paper towel time to absorb the excess liquid.

Peel the paper towel away from the pumpkin puree. The puree should now be noticeably thicker and should easily hold its shape.

How to Make Pumpkin Spice Cookies

1. Combine the Butter and Sugar

Add the melted butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Using a hand mixer, mix until well combined.

2. Add the Pumpkin and Wet Ingredients

Add the egg, vanilla, molasses and prepared pumpkin puree. Continue mixing with the hand mixer until everything is combined.

3. Add the Dry Ingredients

Add the pumpkin spice, baking soda and flour. Use the hand mixer to mix until the dough comes together and the ingredients are combined.

4. Finished Cookie Dough

The finished dough should hold its shape in the bowl but be very soft and easy to scoop.

5. Scoop the Cookie Dough

Use a regular tablespoon to scoop the cookie dough onto a large baking sheet, spacing them evenly apart. This recipe makes about 15 cookies, which fit on one large baking sheet.

The cookies don’t need to be rolled or flattened before baking. They will spread and flatten on their own in the oven.

6. Bake the Pumpkin Cookies

Bake at 350°F for approximately 15 minutes.

The cookies are done when the edges are starting to brown. They will still be quite soft when they first come out of the oven but will become chewier as they cool.

While the cookies are still warm, lightly sprinkle the tops with sea salt.

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 10 minutes before moving them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

How Do You Know When Pumpkin Cookies Are Done?

These pumpkin spice cookies are finished baking when the edges of the cookies start to brown.

The centers will still feel very soft to the touch when they come out of the oven, but the cookies will continue to set as they cool.

Tips for Making Pumpkin Spice Cookies

• Remove the excess moisture from the pumpkin puree. This is important for getting the right texture.
• Bake them a little longer for a firmer cookie. An extra 2–3 minutes will make the cookies firmer and chewier.
• Don’t flatten the dough before baking. The cookies will spread and flatten on their own in the oven.

How to Store Pumpkin Spice Cookies

Store completely cooled pumpkin spice cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. We use a cake stand with a lid, and they store well for 3–5 days.

For longer storage, these cookies freeze extremely well. Loosely pack them into a freezer bag or freezer-safe container. There’s no need to separate them with parchment paper as the cookies separate easily once frozen.

When you’re ready to eat one, simply take it out of the freezer and let it thaw at room temperature for about 15 minutes.

More Fall Recipes to Try

If you’re looking for more recipes to make this fall, here are a few of our favourites:

• Pumpkin Oatmeal Bars: Another great way to use up pumpkin puree, these oatmeal bars make an easy fall breakfast.
• Apple Fritter Bread: A sweet homemade bread packed with apples and perfect for apple season.
• Apple Crisp with Homemade Granola Topping: One of our favourite ways to turn fresh fall apples into an easy dessert.
• Apple Chips in a Dehydrator: If you have more apples than you know what to do with, homemade apple chips are an easy way to preserve them.