These are the BEST Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies! These pumpkin cookies are soft and chewy, brimming with pumpkin flavor, and chock full of extra dark chocolate chips. They're going to be one of your favorite Thanksgiving holiday cookie recipes.
When fall baking season came around this year, I just knew I had to get a new cookie recipe on the blog. I was working on my Pumpkin Pie blog post and updating all the photos, and I ended up with some leftover pumpkin puree.
Hmmm, I thought. What better way to use up leftover pumpkin puree than in a batch of easy pumpkin chocolate chip cookies?
When I was a kid, I hated pie. I know... I've changed my ways. But these would have made a great alternative that are just as festive. Pumpkin is a fall staple!
What You’ll Love About This Recipe
- Easy. First of all, this recipe is so easy! Everything for this pumpkin cookie recipe gets mixed up in one bowl. Stir it up with a wooden spoon, and since there's no egg in this recipe, be sure to lick the spoon when you're done!
- Delicious and soft. This pumpkin cookie is a soft cookie with an ever-so-slight amount of crunch on the outside. The dark chocolate chips add an extra layer of flavor that really makes this cookie the best pumpkin chocolate chip cookie.
- Freezer-friendly. This pumpkin cookie dough is freezer friendly, so it's the perfect cookie to make a huge batch and then freeze. I freeze them in pre-portioned cookie balls so that I can bake a few any time I want!
Recipe Notes
This cookie dough is the same cookie dough that I use in my Easy Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting. I just swap the frosting for the chocolate chips. I usually have to make both kinds because my daughter loves them frosted with powdered sugar and my husband loves them with chocolate chips, so I usually split the batch and make half of each.
Ingredients you'll need for pumpkin cookies
- Butter: For this recipe, you'll melt the butter and then let it come to room temperature.
- Sugar: Both granulated white sugar and brown sugar.
- Flour: I used all-purpose flour. You can also use a gluten-free flour baking blend in these cookies. King Arthur's is a brand that I have had good success with.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: I use a homemade blend. If you'd like the recipe — grab it HERE! Or see the recipe card notes for a quick substitution for pumpkin pie spice.
- Baking soda and salt: For leavening.
- Corn starch: Cornstarch helps to create a dense, chewy texture in these cookies.
- Vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste: Either one will work in this recipe. Use a teaspoon of vanilla paste, if using.
- Chocolate chips: I use an entire bag of chocolate chips, a full 11.5 ounces. You can adjust the recipe to use your favorite brand of chocolate chips. I am a diehard Guittard Chocolate fan when it comes to baking.
How to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
Strain the pumpkin. Strain the pumpkin by lining a small mesh strainer with a paper towel. Add the pumpkin and then let it drain until you are ready to use it.
Use this method whether you are using fresh or canned pumpkin. The goal is to reduce any extra moisture as much as you can.
Combine the dry ingredients. Mix together the flour, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk together in a medium bowl and set aside.
Melt the butter. Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. Once it is cool, add it to a medium sized bowl and whisk.
Combine the wet ingredients. Mix together the granulated sugar and the brown sugar in a medium-sized bowl. Add the sugars to the melted butter (or vice versa). Whisk to combine.
Add the pumpkin and the vanilla to the sugar. Whisk one more time.
Add the dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture. Mix with a wooden spoon until the flour is just combined.
Add the chocolate chips. I love Guittard Extra Dark Chocolate Chips to balance out the pumpkin spice cookies. But you can for sure use semi sweet chocolate chips, or even white chocolate chips!
Make cookie balls. Use a cookie scoop to make 36 cookie dough balls. Chill for 30 minutes to an hour before baking.
Bake. Preheat the oven to 325℉. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and bake for 14 minutes.
The cookies will be puffy and slightly brown on the edges. Lay them on a wire rack to cool.
FAQs and Expert Tips
The best way to store pumpkin cookies is in an airtight container. Storing pumpkin cookies in the fridge of the freezer will definitely make them last longer.
Yes, you can freeze these pumpkin cookies. Not only can you freeze the unbaked dough balls, but you can also freeze the baked cookies. This cookie recipe freezes beautifully.
I use pumpkin and peanut butter to make pumpkin dog cookies. You can grab the recipe HERE! No chocolate, butter, and sugars for the doggos, of course.
Canned pumpkin is essentially canned pumpkin puree. Be careful to not use pumpkin pie filling, which is already sweetened and includes added spices like cinnamon and nutmeg.
You can tell when your pumpkin cookies are done because they will puff up in the oven and the edges will be ever so slightly golden brown. You don't have to worry too much about under baking because there is no egg in this recipe.
Adding baking soda to cookies adds to the fluffy texture. Baking soda releases CO2, puffing the cookies into delectable bites of yummy that melt in your mouth.
Other Holiday Cookie Recipes That You’ll Love
- Chocolate Dipped Shortbread
- Double Dark Chocolate Chip Shortbread
- Soft and Chewy Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Fleur de Sel Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Milk Bar's Compost Cookies
- Persimmon Cookies
- Pecan Shortbread Cookies
- Pumpkin Dog Cookies
- Keto Snowball Christmas Cookies
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Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cookie Batter
- 1 cup butter melted and cooled
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ⅔ cup brown sugar packed
- ¾ cup canned pumpkin strained in a mesh colander and paper towel (see note 1)
- ½ tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons corn starch
- 2 ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon¼ baking soda
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice see note
- 11.5 ounces dark chocolate chips 1 package
Instructions
How to make pumpkin cookies
- Melt the butter. Melt the butter in a saucepan or in the microwave. Then let it cool.
- Combine the dry ingredient. Combine the dry ingredients including the all-purpose flour, spices, salt, and baking soda. whisk together and then set aside.
- Strain the pumpkin. Line a small fine-mesh sieve with a paper towel. and add the ¾ cup of pumpkin and let it drain while you are mixing together the rest of the ingredients.
- Combine the sugar and butter. In a medium bowl combine the sugars and the cooled butter. Whisk together.
- Add in pumpkin. Add in the pumpkin and the vanilla extract.
- Dry ingredients. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
- Add the chocolate chips. Add the chocolate chips and stir in until they are combined.
- Scoop cookies. Use a cookie scoop to form balls of cookie dough.
- Chill. Chill for 1 hour.
- Bake. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Bake for 10-14 minutes.
Video
Laura's Tips + Notes
- Drain the pumpkin. Remove as much water from the pumpkin as you can. Do this by lining a small mesh strainer with a paper towel. Then add the ¾ cup of pumpkin and let it strain until you are ready to use it. This step helps to keep the cookies chewier and less cakey.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: If you don't have any pumpkin pie spice you can grab the download of my DIY Pumpkin Pie Spice HERE.
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Brei
Delicious! I'm a sucker for any chocolate chip cookie recipe with cornstarch in it 😉 I made these yesterday, and the family is quickly demolishing them (which is a very good thing, because otherwise I'd be eating them all). I tried to follow the recipe exactly - however, I did end up adding an egg, because I think I either drained the pumpkin too much (over the course of an hour or so, I kept replacing the paper towels under the canned pumpkin as they became saturated - you should probably follow Laura's suggestion of just draining the pumpkin while you mix the remaining ingredients!). Another possible thing that caused my cookie dough to be too dry to mix the chocolate chips in (before adding the egg) was that I melted the butter and let it cool maybe two hours before using it, so it may have solidified a bit and lost some moisture. I used the Organic Good & Gather Dark Chocolate Chunks from Target. I was worried that they might be a little too bitter for my youngest kids, but they ended up being perfect. We'll definitely be making these every year to kick off fall!
Laura Reigel
Thank you for the review! I'm so glad that you're family loved these cookies. And thanks for making all of the notes on this recipe. Happy baking!!!