These chewy pumpkin snickerdoodles contain everything you love about a snickerdoodle but with a fall twist. The perfect soft and chewy pumpkin cookie that’s coated in plenty of cinnamon sugar then baked to perfection. Bake up a batch, pour yourself a cup of hot apple cider then sit back and enjoy the colors changing.
Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies
My son doesn’t like chocolate, which means that no chocolate chip cookies for us. He does, however, love snickerdoodles. So when I say that I’ve tried a lot of snickerdoodles over the past ten years, you can believe me. Snickerdoodles and sugar cookies are a staple in our house.
I wanted to try something new for the fall this year since he won’t eat normal pumpkin cookies, and these pumpkin snickerdoodles were a hit even with my super picky boys. And if they’re a hit with my boys, you know they’re good!
Who can resist the tangy goodness of a well-baked snickerdoodle? I know I sure can’t, especially not once it’s infused with pumpkin spice. These pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies are simply too good to resist.
These soft pumpkin cookies have the best chewy texture with just enough pumpkin purée and fall spices to balance out the sweetness of the cinnamon-sugar mixture, resulting in the best fall cookie.
These snickerdoodle pumpkin cookies are the perfect fall cookie to Boo your neighbors or to bring along for a Halloween baby shower. Or don’t share them and eat them all yourself with a hot mug of hot chocolate, that works too.
Whatever reason you make these, just remember to save the recipe so you can make them again soon.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Pumpkin flavor – perfect amount of pumpkin flavor with not only the addition of pure pumpkin puree but also pumpkin spice.
- Great texture – these chewy cookies are fluffy and thick, just like you want out of a delicious cookie.
- Year-round – pumpkin desserts are typically found in the fall but this recipe is one you can make any time of year with ingredients that are always available at the grocery store. No need to wait till the leaves fall to get your pumpkin spice fix.
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Butter – you can use salted or unsalted butter for this recipe. I’ve done both and either one is great!
- Brown sugar – this pumpkin snickerdoodle recipes calls for light brown sugar but you can use dark as well, it’ll just give it a richer flavor.
- Egg yolk - separate the yolk in a small bowl to ensure you don’t get shells or egg white in it. Then once it’s separated from the egg white, add it to the cookie dough.
- Pumpkin puree – both store-bought and homemade pumpkin puree will work. Make sure it’s pumpkin puree (or pure pumpkin), not pumpkin pie filling. Save that for the pumpkin slab pie!
- Pumpkin pie spice - add a fourth teaspoon of nutmeg, cloves, and allspice as a substitute if needed.
How to make pumpkin spice snickerdoodles
These chewy snickerdoodles are super easy to make no matter what level of baker you are.
I’ve made it even easier by providing detailed instructions with pictures below and a printable recipe card at the bottom of the post. Let’s get baking!
1 – Make The Dough
First, in a large bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice, ground cinnamon, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Set dry ingredients aside until later.
Next, in another large mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar together with a hand or stand mixer until smooth and creamy.
Then, slowly mix in the egg yolk, vanilla extract, and pumpkin puree until they are fully combined.
Once the wet ingredients are all mixed together, add in the flour mixture.
Mix all ingredients together to form a sticky dough.
Once the dough is completed, wrap it with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
2 – Roll Dough Balls
While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Make the cinnamon sugar by mixing the granulated sugar and cinnamon until combined in a medium bowl.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Take about two tablespoons of dough and roll it into a ball with your hands then place into the bowl of cinnamon sugar.
Roll the dough into the cinnamon sugar until it is fully coated.
Place the dough onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Leave about 1 1/2 inches of space between each ball of dough.
3 – Bake and Serve
Bake the cookies for 10-13 minutes or until the cookies just start to crack and turn golden brown on the edges.
Once the cookies are done, remove them from the oven and let them cool to your desired temperature on a wire cooling rack.
Once the cookies are cooled, enjoy either slightly warm or at room temperature! These also make great gifts if you want to wrap some up and add a Thanksgiving gift tag (or a more generic thank you tag).
Expert Tips And Storage Info
Place rolled cookies back in the fridge while you wait to put them in the oven so they don’t get too soft.
Allow cookies to sit on the hot pan for five minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack will help the cookies set properly.
Store cooked pumpkin snickerdoodles in a an airtight container at room temperature for up to five days.
Freeze baked pumpkin cookies in a freezer-safe container for up to three months.
Freeze formed dough balls (that have not been tossed in cinnamon sugar) in a freezer-safe container for up to three months. Then when you’re ready to bake, remove from the freezer and allow the cookie dough to come to room temperature. Roll in sugar and bake as directed.
Recipe FAQs
Why did my snickerdoodles come out cakey?
If your snickerdoodles are cakey, it is likely that you over-mixed the dough creating too much gluten in you cookies.
Why do my snickerdoodles go flat?
If your snickerdoodles are flat, the dough likely got too warm causing the butter to get too soft. To avoid this, keep the cookie dough chilling in the fridge until you’re ready to roll and immediately bake the cookies.
If you’d like to roll the cookies ahead of time, you can also roll them and place them on a baking sheet in the fridge until you’re ready to bake.
What can I use instead of cream of tartar?
Instead of cream of tartar, you can use two teaspoons of lemon juice. If you want to double the recipe, just keep the ratio of one teaspoon of lemon juice for every 1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar you’d like to replace.
More Easy Pumpkin Favorites
If you’re a fan of pumpkin, you have to try out these other delicious pumpkin recipes!
- Magic pumpkin cake – this layered pumpkin cake is so easy to make, it’s magic!
- Pumpkin balls – simple pumpkin treats that are perfect for fall parties, gifts, and more!
- Pumpkin cupcakes – moist pumpkin cupcakes topped with the most delicious cheesecake frosting, these are my go-to fall recipe!
- Pumpkin crunch cake – my family’s go to Thanksgiving dessert, layers of pumpkin with lots of crunch!
- No bake pumpkin pie – if you don’t like traditional pumpkin pie, this is a must-try. It’s delicious, creamy, and so easy to make!
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Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- ¼ cup light brown sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup pumpkin puree
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
Cinnamon Sugar Coating
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 TBS sugar
Instructions
- First, in a large bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice, ground cinnamon, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt. Set dry ingredients aside until later.1 tsp cream of tartar, 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp salt, 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- Next, in another large mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and brown sugar together with a hand or stand mixer until smooth and creamy.1/2 cup unsalted butter, 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 cup light brown sugar
- Slowly mix in the egg yolk, vanilla, and pumpkin puree until they are fully combined.1 egg yolk, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
- Once the wet ingredients are all mixed together, add in the flour mixture to form a sticky dough.
- Then cover the dough and chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- With two tablespoons of dough, form a ball by rolling it in your hands.
- Roll the dough into the cinnamon sugar until it is fully coated
- Place the dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Leave about 1 1/2 inches of space between each ball of dough.
- Bake the cookies for 10-13 minutes.
- Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool to your desired temperature.
Cinnamon Sugar
- Make the cinnamon sugar by mixing the granulated sugar and cinnamon until combined.1 tsp ground cinnamon, 2 TBS sugar
Tips & Notes:
- Canned pumpkin puree/pure pumpkin or homemade can be used, do not use pumpkin pie filling
- Light or dark brown sugar can be used, dark will give the cookies a richer flavor
- Substitute pumpkin pie spice with a 1/4 tsp each of nutmeg, ground cloves, and allspice if necessary.
- Cream of tarter can be replaced with two teaspoons of lemon juice if necessary.
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