Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies with White Chocolate Chips
I didn’t know perfect fall cookies existed until I tried Pumpkin Snickerdoodle cookies. Incredibly soft and chewy, with cozy fall spices, pumpkin flavor, and white chocolate chips in every bite. My family gave this recipe 5 stars, and yours will too!
If you like classic snickerdoodle cookies, you are in for a treat. These are out of this world, with warm, earthy cinnamon and nutmeg flavors and the signature pumpkin aroma of the season. I usually double the recipe and even give some away for Halloween instead of candy.
Table of contents
Made with pumpkin puree and a few pantry staples that I always have on hand, I can make these whenever a pumpkin craving hits. Soft and buttery, with delightfully tender and chewy centers, they are worth baking on repeat all season long. These are the treats my friends beg me to make, and once you try them, you will understand why.
Why you will love this recipe
- A new flavor for a favorite cookie: Snickerdoodles are one of my favorites, and adding pumpkin to them was a no-brainer. With a little pumpkin puree and pumpkin pie spices, these cookies become a scrumptious fall dessert.
- Basic ingredients: I usually have everything I need on hand, like butter, sugar, eggs, flour, and baking powder. I need some pumpkin puree and white chocolate chips for extra flavor.
- Crunchy cinnamon coating: The cinnamon sugar coating gives these cookies a delicious, crackly crunch that makes every bite sweet and crispy. It’s what makes snickerdoodles stand out.
- Soft centers: With my cream of tartar, these cookies have crisp edges and chewy centers. I love the way the contrasting texture makes them feel slightly gooey.
What you will need
- Wet ingredients: Melted and cooled butter prevents greasy or cakey cookies and creates a chewy, dense cookie. Canned pumpkin puree works best because its uniform consistency and color mean you don’t have to worry about it being too watery. Egg yolk adds fat to keep cookies tender and prevent sogginess. Pure vanilla extract adds depth of flavor and balances the cream of tartar’s tang. White chocolate chips add a gooey, creamy sweetness to every bite.
- Dry ingredients: All-purpose flour provides structure while staying soft and absorbent. Baking powder lifts the heavy ingredients and keeps the cookies from getting too dense. Cream of tartar adds moisture and starch, helping the baking powder lift the dough and puff and crack the surface for crinkly tops. It is what makes the cookies soft in the middle and crispy on the edges.
- Seasonings: Besides salt, I also use white granulated sugar for pure sweetness, crisp edges, and crackly tops. Light brown sugar adds moisture and a sweet flavor with hints of molasses. Ground cinnamon gives snickerdoodles their signature sweet warmth with an earthy undertone. I also add ground nutmeg to enhance the sweetness of the cinnamon and pumpkin and build the fall spice profile.
For the topping
- Seasonings: White granulated sugar mixes with ground cinnamon to make the caramelized, slightly crunchy outer layer. It also creates a cracked exterior that gives these cookies their signature look.
How to prepare
Beat the butter: First, I beat the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until well combined, scraping down the sides as I go. Next, I whisk in the vanilla, egg yolk, and pumpkin puree.
Mix it all: In another bowl, I whisk together the flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cream of tartar, baking powder, and salt. Then, I gradually stir it into the pumpkin mixture, beating on low speed until combined, scraping the sides and bottom as I go. Lastly, I use a rubber spatula to fold in the chocolate chips.
Chill the dough: I roll the dough into a ball, cover it with plastic, and chill it in the fridge for an hour.
Preheat the oven: When it is ready, I preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, cover 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper, and mix the topping ingredients in a small bowl.
Make the cookies: Then, I remove the dough, use a cookie scoop to form balls, roll them to smooth them, then roll them in the topping before placing them on the baking sheet 2 inches apart.
Bake the cookies: Once I finish the cookies, I bake them for 10 to 12 minutes.
Cool and serve: Finally, let them cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Expert tip
How to absorb moisture from pumpkin puree
Maybe you’ve never heard of this before. Many people have never done this and are asking why or how. It is pretty obvious why. Especially if you’ve ever made your own pumpkin puree. Pumpkin has a lot of water. Even canned pumpkin puree has excess water that you should press out before using it in baked goods. It’s easy to do. Spread it on a flat plate and pat it with paper towels until it is no longer moist. That’s all there is to it!
More tips to consider:
- Keep extra cookie dough in the fridge while the cookies bake.
- Also, wait for the cookie sheets to cool completely before adding new cookies. Never place cookie dough on a hot cookie sheet, or it will melt.
- Be sure to chill the dough. This keeps the cookies from flattening.
- Blot pumpkin puree with paper towels to remove excess water before using it.
- Better to undercook than overcook. They will finish setting as they rest.
Recipe variations and add-ins:
- Browned butter cookies: For extra buttery richness, brown the butter in a saucepan and let it cool completely before using.
- Pumpkin pie spice: Instead of cinnamon and nutmeg, use a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice for full fall flavor.
- Almond extract: Use almond extract instead of vanilla extract for a nutty flavor.
- Other extracts: There are so many extract flavors to experiment with; these cookies taste amazing with maple, cranberry, or apple.
- Caramel sauce: For a truly decadent taste, drizzle some of my thick, rich homemade caramel sauce on top.
Serving suggestions:
These cookies are truly dunkworthy. The kids dunk them in their milk, but I dunk mine in coffee. For something extra special, try them with my Starbucks pumpkin spice latte copycat. This is so easy to make and will save you so much money, you’ll wonder why you ever went to Starbucks. They also taste amazing, dipped in apple cider. The tangy apple juice soaks in, making them extra tender and sweet.
For dinner, I start with pumpkin pork chops so tender they fall off the bone. The maple mustard sauce on top is so flavorful it makes this a big hit, and I serve it with pumpkin and apples on the side. I also serve it with cheesy pumpkin gratin, smooth, savory, and easy to make with Gruyère cheese, heavy cream, and pumpkin puree. This is the perfect pumpkin spice meal to pair with these cookies and a cranberry margarita to perk things up. Kids and non-drinkers can have it without the booze or try this cranberry mocktail instead.
How to store leftovers:
- Refrigerate: Store leftover snickerdoodles in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days.
- Freezing: I freeze leftover cookies in freezer bags for up to 3 months.
- Defrost: Before serving, I thaw cookies overnight in the fridge.
Frequently asked questions
The most common cause is overbaking. Don’t bake your cookies too long. It is better to take them out too early and let them finish baking on the hot pan than to overbake them. Too much flour is another common problem. Do not scoop your flour with a measuring cup. Use the spoon and level method. First, sift the flour. Then gently spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level it with the back of a knife.
Although I usually opt for homemade ingredients, homemade pumpkin puree has much more water than canned puree, and it can ruin the cookies’ texture. I am not saying you can’t use it, but it is a lot more work. When I use mine, I let it drain in a cheesecloth-lined sieve in the refrigerator overnight, then press it out thoroughly afterward. Even then, you risk not getting all the water out, and you’ll still have lumps or strings to worry about.
First, blot all the excess water from the pumpkin puree. Even if it is canned puree, you still need to blot it to remove excess moisture. Press it with paper towels until it’s dry again. Skipping the chilling step can also make them mushy. The fats need to firm up and hydrate the flour. Warm dough spreads too fast and stays soft. Using a whole egg instead of just the yolk can also make cookies mushy. Try to keep the dough as dry as possible.
Cream of tartar helps the cookies puff up in the oven and then crinkle and crack as they cool. That is what gives these cookies their signature look. It also adds a tangy taste that helps them stand out from other cookies. However, it may be less noticeable in these cookies because of the pumpkin flavor. In my opinion, without cream of tartar, they won’t have that chewy softness in the center that I really love. However, you can make the cookies without it.
More recipes with pumpkin that you should try:
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Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter melted and cooled to almost room temperature
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup light brown sugar packed
- 1/4 cup pumpkin puree I used canned – but homemade is fine too
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup white chocolate chips
Topping:
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a large bowl, beat the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until well combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Add the pumpkin puree, egg yolk, and vanilla extract, then whisk until combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking powder, cream of tartar, and salt.
- Next, gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until well combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Finally, add the chocolate chips and fold them in with a rubber spatula.
- Gather the dough in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350F (175C). Cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, mix the topping ingredients and set aside.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and scoop it into 1 ½ Tablespoon-sized balls or use 2 tablespoons for large cookies. Roll the balls between your palms to smooth them, then roll them through the cinnamon-and-sugar mixture. Arrange them onto the prepared cookie sheet, at least 2" apart.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes.
- If you are using only one cookie sheet and need to bake the rest later, keep the rolled cookies or remaining dough refrigerated. Also, don't place cookie dough on a hot baking sheet.
- Remove the baked cookies from the oven and let them cool completely on the cookie sheet before serving.
Video
Notes
How to absorb moisture from pumpkin puree
Maybe you’ve never heard of this before. Many people have never done this and are asking why or how. It is pretty obvious why. Especially if you’ve ever made your own pumpkin puree. Pumpkin has a lot of water. Even canned pumpkin puree has excess water that you should press out before using it in baked goods. It’s easy to do. Spread it on a flat plate and pat it with paper towels until it is no longer moist. That’s all there is to it!More tips to consider:
- Keep extra cookie dough in the fridge while the cookies bake.
- Also, wait for the cookie sheets to cool completely before adding new cookies. Never place cookie dough on a hot cookie sheet, or it will melt.
- Be sure to chill the dough. This keeps the cookies from flattening.
- Blot pumpkin puree with paper towels to remove excess water before using it.
- Better to undercook than overcook. They will finish setting as they rest.
Why only egg yolk and not whole egg?
Adding pumpkin to snickerdoodles was such a stroke of genius. The pumpkin and cinnamon flavor of the cookies work perfectly together!
I can’t wait to try these! They look and sound SO delicious!!
Looks absolutely delicious! I wanna make a basket of this!
These were really good! My kids couldn’t stop eating these! Thanks!
I would love this so much. I am big on pumpkin desserts.
I have been craving pumpkin and these cookies are the perfect recipe. I need to make these cookies.
My kids would love these pumpkin cookies, they look delicious.
Yum, I love pumpkin season! These cookies look so yummy, I’ll add it to my pumpkin recipe list haha!
Wow! My kids are absolutely gonna love this pumpkin cookies! It taste so good for sure!
I love Snickerdoodles and adding pumpkin sounds like a delicious twist!
I love Snickerdoodles but never thought about adding pumpkin taste. Yummy!
These sound so amazing. I will have to make some for my family. I never thought to add pumpkin to them.
I had no idea it’s called snipdoodles but I do enjoy cinnamon sugar cookies. Thank you for sharing your recipe. I would love to make some this weekend.
There is nothing better than an absolutely delicious recipe like this one. My son would love this for sure
Pumpkin snickerdoodles sound amazing, and I’m sure this would make my house smell wonderful too! We love fall recipes.
A perfect cookie recipe for fall! Must make
Not the biggest pumpkin fan but these cookies might have changed my mind! So delicious and easy to make. Now I’m going to try your pumpkin pound cake recipe.
It looks delicious and I like how well the preparation is explained. Will definitely try this one out.
I’ve never liked Snickerdoodles, all I had to do was add the pumpkin & now they’re perfect!! I love pumpkin so these were a welcome change. Thank you for sharing 😊