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Best Pumpkin Snickerdoodles Cookie Recipe

Best Pumpkin Snickerdoodles Cookie Recipe

Soft pumpkin snickerdoodles with warm spices, tender centers, and a generous cinnamon-sugar coating. The recipe yields approximately 24–30 cookies.
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Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 13 minutes
Total Time 1 minute
Servings: 24 servings
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Cookie Dough
  • 1 cup (226 g) Unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup (200 g) Granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) Packed light brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup (about 185 g) Plain pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling
  • 1 large Large egg yolk
  • 2 teaspoons Pure vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cups (281 g) All-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon Cream of tartar
  • 1 teaspoon Baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon Fine salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon Ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon Ground cloves
Cinnamon-Sugar Coating
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) Granulated sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons Ground cinnamon

Method
 

Step-by-Step
  1. Whisk the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves together in a medium bowl.
  2. Beat the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and creamy. Mix in the pumpkin purée, egg yolk, and vanilla; the mixture may look slightly curdled.
  3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture and mix just until no dry flour remains. Cover the dough and chill it for at least 30 minutes.
  4. Combine the coating sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl. Scoop about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough per cookie, roll into balls, and coat generously.
  5. Arrange the cookies on parchment-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart, slightly flattening them if desired. Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 10–13 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers remain soft.
  6. Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to finish setting.

Notes

Use plain canned pumpkin purée and measure it accurately because extra moisture can make the dough difficult to shape. Do not overbake; soft-looking centers produce chewy cookies after cooling. For a deeper nutty flavor, brown the butter first and cool it to room temperature before mixing.