Spiced Pumpkin Cookies
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
With warm fall spices like cinnamon, ginger and cloves, these pumpkin cookies are soft inside and slightly crisp on the outside.
These little pumpkin are imbued with warm autumn spices, like cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. They have a cakey texture with a bit of crunch from the raw sugar sprinkled on top. My family flocks to the kitchen as soon as I pull them out of the oven, and the first batch disappears before the second trays are even done. Because of their soft and tender texture, they’re best enjoyed fresh out of the oven, so I recommend chilling (or freezing) the dough and baking as needed.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need to Make Spiced Pumpkin Cookies
Step-by-Step Instructions
To begin, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves in a bowl.
Whisk well and set aside.
Next, in the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar.
Beat until light and fluffy.
Beat in the eggs one at a time.
Then add the vanilla extract and pumpkin purée.
Beat to combine. The mixture will look a little curdled at this point — that’s okay.
Add the dry ingredients.
Mix on low speed to combine.
Scoop heaping tablespoons of cookie dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets. It’s easiest to use a 1-1/2 tablespoon ice cream scoop (and it will make your cookies will be prettier).
Sprinkle the cookie dough with turbinado sugar. This is just a large crystal, natural brown sugar; most grocery stores carry it but you can always use the “Sugar in the Raw” brown packets found at coffee shops. Then bake until puffed and slightly browned around the edges, about 20 minutes.
Let the cookies cool on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Note that these cookies are best fresh out of the oven, so I suggest refrigerating the dough and baking as needed. It will keep for up to four days in the fridge.
You May Also Like
Spiced Pumpkin Cookies
With warm fall spices like cinnamon, ginger and cloves, these pumpkin cookies are soft inside and slightly crisp on the outside.
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off with back edge of knife
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1¼ cups canned pumpkin purée (from one 15-ounce can, though you'll have some left over)
- 2 to 3 tablespoons turbinado (or demerara) sugar
Instructions
- Arrange oven racks in upper and middle thirds and preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter with the granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, a few minutes. Scrape down the bowl, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the vanilla and pumpkin puree. The mixture will look somewhat curdled at this point -- that's okay. Scrape down the bowl, then mix in the flour mixture on low speed. Scoop the dough by heaping tablespoons (it's easiest to use a 1½ tablespoon ice cream scoop) onto the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle cookies evenly with turbinado sugar and bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating pans midway through, until puffed and slightly browned around the edges. Remove from the oven and let rest for a few minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer with a spatula to a wire rack. These cookies are best enjoyed warm out of the oven, or on the same day.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The Cookie Dough can be Frozen for up to 3 Months: Roll the dough into balls, let set on a baking sheet in the freezer, then place in a sealable bag and press out as much air as possible. Bake as needed directly from the freezer. (Allow 1 to 2 minutes longer in the oven.) To Freeze After Baking: Let the cookies cool completely and store in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature.
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Serving size: 2 cookies
- Calories: 173
- Fat: 7 g
- Saturated fat: 4 g
- Carbohydrates: 26 g
- Sugar: 16 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Sodium: 105 mg
- Cholesterol: 30 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
hi jenn, do you think this will work if i half the recipe?
Yes, should be fine 🙂
My daughter sent me this pumpkin cookie recipe and it looks great. I can’t wait to make it.
Please subscribe me to your wonderful service. I am a fellow Marylander and would love to get some more of your recipes.
Thank you,
Ruth
Jen,
Let me start off by saying that I began following you about a year ago, and every recipe, from you chocolate banana bread and chocolate chip blondies to your moroccan chicken (a family favorite) and fettucini bolognese (my husband thinks your recipe is better than the bon appetite one and I have to agree) has been a huge hit in my household! Thank you for such wonderful, and easy recipes. They make life for a working foodie like me so much easier.
On that note, if I wanted to add chocolate chips to these cookies, would i need to change anything (ie amounts of ingredients)?
Thank you , thank you, thank you !
Thanks so much, Jessica…that is so nice to hear! No need to change anything if you want to add choc chips. Hope you like the cookies 🙂
These look so simple and delicious!
I can’t wait to try these! I’ve made pumpkin cookies that had halved raw cranberries, orange zest and nuts — all which tasted great in a pumpkin cookie! Might be worth a try, but I’m going to try it without this year for the sake of the kiddos! I have a little girl that does not like chunkies in her baked goods! Thanks again for a great recipe! 😉
Jenn – would omitting the turbinado make a huge difference in taste or is it just for texture? My 19 month old may have a problem with chewing the sugar. Thanks
Hi Diane, It’s no problem at all to leave it out. The cookies are on the cakey side, so it’s there just for some additional texture. Hope you enjoy them!
These cookies are yummy and were so easy to make! Thanks much for posting such tasty recipes every week — we love many of your recipes and I look forward to your weekly posts.
BTW, for those of you looking for organic pumpkin, Trader Joe’s in Southern CA just started selling it.
I always get inspired to bake in the Fall too! These look yummy!
These look GREAT – thinking that I could add some raisins as well? 🙂
Hi Megan, I was very tempted to add raisins (and nuts) but opted to keep them plain for the kids. I think it’d be delicious with though 🙂
This is one I’m going to try for the holiday’s. Looks fantastic….
Ooo these would be good cookies for ice cream sandwiches!