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The BEST Chewy Pumpkin Cookies
Soft and chewy Pumpkin Cookies are the quintessential Fall cookie! They are not cakey at all - they are dense and chewy and they stay soft for days! Brown butter and warm spices make these cookies absolutely irresistible.
Ingredients
Cookie dough:
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter
- ¾ cup (165g) packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 tablespoon (15ml) honey
- 1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup (80ml) pure pumpkin puree, blotted to reduce to ¼ cup (*see notes above in the EXPERT TIPS section for alternatives)
- 1 ¼ cups (180g) all purpose flour (measure accurately since too much flour will make these cookies dry)
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or make your own homemade pumpkin pie spice)
- ½-¾ teaspoon baking soda (see notes in FAQ section for adjustments for thinner cookies)
- heaped ¼ teaspoon salt
For rolling:
- 3 tablespoon (42g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp teaspoon ground cinnamon
NOTE: for best results, use a kitchen scale to weigh the ingredients.
Instructions
- First brown the butter. Follow the instructions in this post here to learn how to brown butter. It’s easy! Melt it in a medium saucepan and continue to cook allowing it to gently boil over medium heat. It will start foaming and turn golden brown with a nutty aroma. Make sure you are stirring and watching closely so it doesn't burn. Brown specks and a dense golden foam will form at the surface when it is nearly ready. This whole process takes around 8-10 minutes. Immediately pour it into a large mixing bowl and let it cool for 20-30 minutes until it reaches room temperature and is fluid but no longer hot.
- Prepare the pumpkin puree. Spread ⅓ cup of canned pumpkin on a plate. Fold a paper towel in half and lightly press or blot the pumpkin puree with the folded paper towel to absorb the excess moisture. Repeat this step 2 more times so that you've used 3 paper towels. The pumpkin should be dry enough that it goes from being ⅓ cup down to ¼ cup. Measure the puree after you've blotted 3 times and if it is still too much, use one more paper towel to remove more water.NOTE: Removing the moisture from pumpkin puree will create extra chewy cookies. You can skip this step of blotting the pumpkin if you are fine with slightly softer, cakier cookies.
- Combine cooled brown butter and brown sugar in a large bowl and stir to blend. It will look like clumpy wet sand. Add egg yolk, honey and vanilla and stir until it is smooth and glossy. Add dried pumpkin puree and stir to incorporate.
- Add baking soda, salt and pumpkin pie spice to the wet ingredients and whisk to blend well. Add the flour and use a rubber spatula fold it in until just combined.
- Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes while you preheat the oven.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Use a 1.35-oz cookie scoop to portion mounds of dough and roll into smooth balls about 1 ½ inch diameter. If you don't have a scoop, divide the dough into 12 equal balls. If the cookies are too small, they won't spread enough.
- Combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and stir to blend evenly. Drop the dough balls into the cinnamon sugar mixture and roll them around to coat evenly. Place them onto the baking sheet, spaced about 3 inches apart from each other and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the edges are browned and the centers looks puffed and slightly cracked. They will still be soft in the middle. Allow them to rest on the baking sheet for a 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
