Soft and chewy pumpkin sugar cookies that everyone will love! These pumpkin cookies are full of fall flavor with a cinnamon sugar topping.
Call me basic, but I love pumpkin spice. I love the bold, spicy flavors of pumpkin pie, balanced with a sweet dessert. It just tastes like fall! I’m always testing new pumpkin cookie and dessert recipes because my whole family is a fan.
Make these pumpkin cookies for your next Fall or holiday gathering. They are sure to be a crowd-pleaser!
Make this delicious pumpkin sangria to serve with your cookies too!
Soft and Chewy Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
These pumpkin sugar cookies are soft and chewy with crisp edges. And they are full of flavor! The recipe calls for just a bit of pumpkin and a lot of pumpkin spice!
What You Need to Make These Cookies
The Tools
- Mixing bowls
- Rubber spatula
- Handmixer (or a stand mixer)
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper (or silicone baking mats)
The Ingredients
- 1 egg
- Vanilla extract
- Softened butter
- Granulated sugar
- Pumpkin puree
- All-purpose flour
- Pumpkin Pie spice (or homemade spice blend)
- Cinnamon + sugar mixture (for topping)
Pumpkin Pie Spice vs. Homemade Spice Mixture
For this recipe, you can use pumpkin pie spice or a homemade spice mixture. So what’s in pumpkin pie spice? It is typically a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Some spice blends also include ginger.
My homemade spice mixture is roughly made of sixty percent cinnamon, thirty percent nutmeg, and ten percent cloves. This recipe calls for 3 teaspoons of pumpkin spice. These are the amounts of each spice I used to make my mixture:
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 3/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp cloves
How to Make Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
It only takes about 20 minutes to mix the ingredients for these delicious pumpkin sugar cookies. To, start whisk together the egg and vanilla in a small mixing bowl. Then set that mixture off to the side.
Next, cream the room temperature butter until it’s fluffy. You can use either a handheld mixture or a stand mixer. Scrape down the butter on the sides of the bowl using a rubber spatula. Add the sugar and mix for another minute.
Next, add the egg mixture and pumpkin puree. Mix for another minute, until well combined.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and pumpkin pie spice. Then add that mixture to the wet ingredients. Mix at a low speed until well combined. Chill the dough in the refrigerator for about 2 hours.
The pumpkin sugar cookie dough has a wetter consistency than traditional sugar cookies. This makes them more difficult to cut using a cookie cutter. So there is no need to roll out the dough like you would with regular sugar cookies. Chilling the dough here simply helps the cookies hold their shape. This keeps them from spreading in the pan.
After the dough chills, preheat your oven to 325 degrees. And line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Roll the dough into 1.5-inch balls and place on the baking sheet.
Then gently press each dough ball down until it forms a roughly 2-inch cookie. Sprinkle the tops with a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes. Or until the edges are golden brown.
Pumpkin spice desserts taste best after they have completely cooled, so allow at least 30 minutes of cooling before enjoying!
More Recipes for That Leftover Pumpkin
Most cans of pumpkin contain 16 oz, or 2 cups, of pumpkin puree. Since this recipe only calls for 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree, what do you do with the rest? Try some of these other delicious pumpkin dessert recipes!
- Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Chip Cookies (our family’s favorite cookie!)
- Pumpkin Spice Scones
- Pumpkin Bread
- Pumpkin Dip
Storing Leftover Pumpkin Puree
Canned pumpkin puree may also be stored in the refrigerator for up to 7 days in an airtight container.
Or freeze it for up to a year! I’d recommend freezing it in half a cup increments. Just to keep it the perfect size for future recipes.
Pumpkin Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- 1 hand mixer
- 1 rubber spatula
- 1 baking sheet
- parchment paper or silicone baking mat
Ingredients
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
- 1/4 cup cinnamon sugar mixture
Instructions
- Whisk egg and vanilla in a small bowl. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter until fluffy using a handheld mixer.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Then add the sugar. Mix for another 2-3 minutes.
- Pour in the egg and vanilla mixture and add the pumpkin puree. Mix for an additional minute until well combined.
- Whisk together flour and pumpkin pie spice.
- Add the flour mixture and mix at low speed until well combined.
- Chill dough in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Roll cookie dough into 1.5-inch balls. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- Press your fingers into the dough to flatten it down to 2-inch cookies.
- Sprinkle cookies with a cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Until the edges are golden brown.
- Allow cookies to cool fully before enjoying!
