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These are the best soft and chewy pumpkin snickerdoodles. You will love this soft brown butter pumpkin cinnamon sugar cookie and will become your new favorite Fall pumpkin cookie recipe.
These may go down as my ultimate Fall cookie recipe. I make A LOT of cookies so that is a bold claim.
I have been making snickerdoodles since I was a little girl and my FAMOUS snickerdoodle cookie recipe is insanely popular on Modern Honey.
So I wanted to create a pumpkin version of the popular snickerdoodle cookie by adding the perfect amount of pumpkin puree.
It is always a little tricky when adding pumpkin puree to cookies to ensure it doesn’t turn the cookies too cakey. I figured out a way to navigate that to make the BEST Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe. I will share all of my baking tips and tricks below.
Why you will love these Pumpkin Snickerdoodles:
- This pumpkin cinnamon sugar cookie has the perfect amount of pumpkin without being too overpowering. This is definitely a light pumpkin flavored cookie. If a snickerdoodle and a pumpkin cookie had a baby, it would be this pumpkin snickerdoodle cookie recipe!
- The cinnamon sugar paired with the soft pumpkin cookie will just blow your mind.
- The browned butter gives these cookies so much warmth and depth of flavor that puts them over the top.
Ingredients:
These soft and chewy pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies use simple ingredients you may already have in your refrigerator and pantry. These Browned Butter Pumpkin Snickerdoodles are absolute perfection.
- Butter — use salted or unsalted butter in this recipe. If you use salted butter, reduce salt by 1/4 teaspoon.
- Brown Sugar
- Sugar
- Egg Yolk — adds the perfect amount of chewy texture.
- Vanilla Extract
- Pure Pumpkin Puree — use only 100% pure pumpkin puree, NOT pumpkin pie filling. See tips below on the brand of pumpkin puree to use.
- Flour — use all-purpose flour.
- Cream of Tartar — adds the perfect amount of tang without overpowering.
- Baking Soda
- Salt
- Cinnamon — if you want a mixture of warm spices, you may use pumpkin pie spice instead of cinnamon.
- Cinnamon Sugar Mixture — double roll the cookie dough balls into the cinnamon sugar for extra cinnamon sugar coating.
What type of pumpkin should I use?
The brand of pumpkin puree you use does make a difference in the pumpkin snickerdoodles. I bought three different brands of pumpkin puree and tested them out to see which one reigns supreme.
I recipe tested with Libby’s, Target’s generic brand Good and Gather, and the Kroger Pumpkin Puree. I found that Libby’s was less watery and was more pumpkin forward than the other two. I was surprised with how watery the pumpkin puree could be which will affect the end result.
I suggest using Libby’s canned pure pumpkin in this pumpkin snickerdoodle recipe.
Remove any excess liquid from the pumpkin puree
This can be done by placing the pumpkin puree on several paper towels and blotting to remove excess moisture.
How to make Chewy Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies:
- Start by browning the butter. This is an important step as it creates a nutty, toffee flavor in pumpkin cookies. Watch carefully to not burn the butter. Stir in the sugars. Set aside to cool before adding the egg yolk.
- Blot the pumpkin puree with paper towels to remove excess liquid. This helps to make the cookies chewier without them being cakey. I suggest stacking several paper towels and after measuring the pumpkin, placing the pumpkin puree on the paper towels. The paper towels will soak up the excess water content.
- Stir in pumpkin puree, egg yolk, and vanilla.
- Fold in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. For extra warm spice flavors, you may add pumpkin pie spice instead.
- Roll into balls and then generously roll into cinnamon sugar, coating well. Place on a light colored baking sheet covered with parchment paper.
- Bake just until a light golden color. Do not overbake — these are soft, chewy brown butter snickerdoodles.
Storing:
I suggest storing these pumpkin cinnamon sugar snickerdoodles in an airtight container.
These fall cookies freeze beautifully for several months. Place in a freezer-safe Ziploc bag in the freezer.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Since we only use 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree, these cookies do have a light pumpkin flavor. If you want a little more pumpkin flavor, you may increase the pumpkin puree to 2/3 cup.
This recipe calls for cinnamon with an option of using pumpkin pie spice instead. Pumpkin pie spice is generally made with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice so it definitely adds more warm spice flavor.
If you love snickerdoodles, check out my Caramel Stuffed Snickerdoodles and my Frosted Snickerdoodle Cookie Recipe.
Popular Fall Recipes:
Here are some fan-favorite Fall recipes that always get 5-star reviews…
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Best Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter
- 1 cup Brown Sugar
- 3/4 cup Sugar
- 1/2 cup Canned Pure Pumpkin Puree *
- 2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 1 large Egg Yolk
- 2 1/4 cups Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon Cream of Tartar
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice)
Cinnamon Sugar:
- 1/4 cup Sugar
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
Instructions
- In a large pot, heat butter over medium low heat until melted. Watch carefully as it begins to change colors from light yellow to a deep golden color. Brown the butter for about 5-7 minutes, do not allow it to become too brown or burn.
- Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar and sugar until smooth. Set aside to cool for about 20 minutes. If you want to expedite it, you can cover it and place it in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes. Just don't forget it…or the mixture will harden.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, measure out pumpkin puree. If you want a more pumpkin flavor, use 2/3 cup of pumpkin puree instead of 1/2 cup. Stack several paper towels and place the pumpkin puree on the paper towels, allowing the paper towels to soak up extra moisture.
- Once the butter mixture has cooled to room temperature, stir in pumpkin puree, vanilla extract, and egg yolk until combined.
- Fold in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.
- In a small bowl, combine the 1/4 cup of sugar and 1 1/2 Tablespoons of cinnamon.
- Roll the cookie dough into balls. Generously coat each ball in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Place on a light colored, parchement paper lined baking sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees for about 9 minutes. Do not overbake these cookies as they are meant to be soft and chewy.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
How big are the balls supposed to be? There’s a fb video of a woman making them. Her cookie was not done in the middle.
I saw where even Katie Couric discovered how yummy these snickerdoodles are! These are a new favorite for our family.
These are so yummy!!!
You are right about the brand of pumpkin. Libby’s is the best and these cookies are the BOMB!!! I made them a couple of times around TG this year and they were gobbled up immediately So good.
Made these last minute for a early family Thanksgiving meal and they loved them. I made 24 and there was only one left after everything. I used more pumpkin purée and was able to use the pumpkin pie spice which gave it that little pumpkin flavor and was still soft.
These are really very, very good. I did use the suggestion of 2/3 cup of pumpkin rather than 1/2 cup. I would highly suggest them.
I hadn’t browned butter in a long time, guess it’s worth it. 😉
Thank you for sharing the recipe.
I’m so happy Modern Honey posted a pumpkin snickerdoodle recipe….I can always count on her recipes being fabulous….and again I wasn’t disappointed. Love these cookies!
How much salt is needed?
Recipe says 1/2 tsp
I made this tonight to take to work tomorrow. I did add Nestle White Morsels to them because, well most everything needs chips 😆 I made them 3 ounces and cooked them for 9 minutes. Tried one … pretty good! I think my co workers are going to love them! First time I’ve made anything with browned butter. Always thought it too much trouble! Boy was I wrong! Not really any trouble and I’ll be interested in see if my co workers notice a difference! I always love your cookie ideas! Thank You!