A Truly Chewy Pumpkin Cookie
Another recipe that you can thank Zach for 😂! If you guys recall from my pumpkin bread, all of the pumpkin recipes around here are carefully designed to suit his tastes because I’m not much of a pumpkin fan! Despite that I did eat approximately one dozen of these pumpkin cookies on my own, so I think there’s something to be said for that. These are truly delicious, even I have to admit it. They’re soft and chewy and the pumpkin flavor shines through, beautifully enhanced by pumpkin spice and complemented by that beautiful vanilla glaze. They’re easy to make, no mixer needed, and while they do require a bit of chilling they’re so worth the wait. Let’s get to that recipe!
What You Need
Our ingredient list is pretty simple, standard cookie ingredients with a Fall flavor (spy that pumpkin and pumpkin spice?). You might notice the corn syrup up there, it doesn’t go in the cookies! It’s an ingredient I love to use in my glaze, though you can leave it out if needed (more on that a bit later on). Tip: Make sure you buy canned pumpkin and not “pumpkin pie mix”. The ingredient list should be 100% pumpkin. Pie mixes have other additives that will make your pumpkin cookies turn out not-so-great.
How to Keep Pumpkin Cookies From Being Cakey
Cakey-ness has no place in my cookie recipes. A good pumpkin cookie should be soft and chewy, but (frustratingly) this can be difficult to achieve. This is because pumpkin is mostly water. And all that extra water fluffs up the dough, making for a thick and cakey crumb. This is great if we’re making pumpkin cupcakes, but not so much for cookies. So what’s a chewy cookie lover to do? Simple, we eliminate some extra moisture. I tackle this two different ways with this recipe: Tip: To keep the pumpkin cookies soft and chewy, you want them to be slightly under-baked and to finish baking all the way on the cookie sheet. Cook them for too long and they’ll be harder and crispier.
A Simple Vanilla Glaze
It’s also essentially foolproof (which I love). The consistency should be thin enough that it drizzles in a ribbon off the whisk, but thick enough that it holds its shape for a second or two before dissolving back into the bowl. Too thin? Just add more sugar (a spoonful at a time). Too thick? A splash more milk will do the trick (a teaspoon at a time). Tip: Make sure the pumpkin cookies cool completely before dipping in the glaze. They’re very soft and a bit fragile when still warm. If they’re not cooled completely they will bend and break from the weight of the frosting.
More Recipes You Might Like
Pumpkin MuffinsPumpkin CheesecakePumpkin BarsPumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Enjoy! I can’t wait to hear how you like my recipe for chewy pumpkin cookies! Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think when you try them! Let’s bake together! Make sure to check out the how-to VIDEO in the recipe card! This recipe was originally published October 14th 2015. I’ve updated the recipe, photos, and text to improve upon the recipe!
