Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies

Why I Love These Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies

Fall is just the best. Spending cozy days indoors as the weather gets cooler, the house filled with the smell of pumpkin desserts baking. These soft, chewy, zingy, totally phenom pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies have me fully on the bandwagon! Is there anything more synonymous with fall than pumpkin spice? Here’s why I love ’em:

• Filled with fall spice. Spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and ginger really speak to me this time of year, and these snickerdoodles are packed with wonderfully spicy, sugary crunch. Using a pumpkin pie spice blend means you don’t have to measure out the individual spices (but you can do that, too, if you want to).
• Simple to make. I love this recipe because the cookie dough is super simple. Partly because, and this might offend some snickerdoodle purists, I don’t add cream of tartar to these snickerdoodles. While I let the collective gasp settle, I encourage you to throw caution to the wind. These pumpkin spiced cookies come out soft, chewy, and tender just the same!
• A spiced twist on a classic. I really only make this pumpkin snickerdoodle recipe once the leaves start changing, but they’re worth the wait. They’re a fun fall twist on classic snickerdoodle cookies and they’re just as great on a holiday cookie platter. Enjoy them with a glass of milk into the festive season and beyond.

Looking for more easy cookie recipes? Try these soft-baked pumpkin cookies packed with pumpkin puree and these pumpkin crumb cake cookies topped with a delicious buttery crumble.

What You’ll Need

Below are some notes on what you’ll need to make these pumpkin pie spice cookies from scratch. Scroll to the recipe card for a printable list with amounts.

• Pumpkin Pie Spice – Also called mixed spice, you can find this in the spice aisle of most supermarkets. It’s a blend of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, clove, and allspice. You can also make it yourself, see below.
• Butter – Unsalted and brought to room temperature beforehand.
• Sugar – You’ll need both granulated sugar and light brown sugar.
• Eggs – Whole eggs, plus one egg yolk. The extra yolk makes the cookies extra chewy. For best results, bring your eggs to room temperature, too.
• Vanilla – Make sure it’s real vanilla extract and not imitation!
• All-Purpose Flour – If you don’t have a kitchen scale, use the trusted spoon and sweep method for measuring: Use a spoon to fill and level the measuring cup so that the flour doesn’t get packed too firmly (and turn the cookies dry).
• Baking Powder and Salt – Check the date on your baking powder to make sure it hasn’t expired. Fun fact: some baking powders actually contain cream of tartar as their acidic part. Snickerdoodle purists, rejoice! At least a little.

What Can I Use if I Don’t Have Pumpkin Pie Spice?

To make one tablespoon of homemade pumpkin pie spice, combine 2 teaspoons of cinnamon with ½ teaspoon of ginger, ½ teaspoon of nutmeg, and about ⅛ teaspoon of allspice or cloves. Whisk everything together and it’s ready to use.

You can even scale up the batch and store this spice blend airtight in the pantry. Use it in more baking recipes, from classic homemade pumpkin pie to pumpkin spice sugar cookies and pumpkin spice Krispie Treats.

How to Make Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

I can attest that after making this recipe both with and without cream of tartar, I personally can’t taste the difference! That being said, if you can’t imagine your snickerdoodle cookies without, use the dough from my classic snickerdoodles and simply substitute pumpkin spice in place of cinnamon in the sugar coating.

Follow these steps to make this (equally) deliciously chewy version. Scroll down to the recipe card for the printable instructions!

• Make the cookie dough. Start by creaming butter with both sugars, then beat in the eggs and an extra egg yolk, followed by the vanilla. Next, add the pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt, and slowly mix in the flour to form the dough.
• Chill the dough. Once the dough is ready, cover and chill it in the fridge for an hour. In the meantime, I usually mix the pumpkin pie spice with light brown sugar for the coating.
• Roll and coat the dough. Take out your cookie dough and scoop it into large, even-sized balls. Coat each ball in the prepared spiced sugar and then arrange them on a lined baking sheet.
• Bake. Bake in a 375ºF oven for 7-8 minutes until the bottoms are browning slightly. Afterward, transfer the snickerdoodles from the tray to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!

Tips for Success

• Easily separate the egg yolk. Over a bowl, crack an egg into your hand and allow the egg white to drip into a bowl to be disregarded. You can place the yolk in a separate bowl or add it directly to the butter mixture.
• No mixer? No problem. If you don’t have a stand or hand mixer, you can give the wet ingredients a good beating with a whisk instead, and fold the cookie dough together by hand.
• Chill the dough. Chilling the snickerdoodle cookie dough before baking keeps the cookies from spreading too thin in the oven. Your dough can be chilled anywhere between 30 minutes to 1 hour for best results.
• Don’t over-measure. I mentioned it earlier, but spooning and sweeping is a tried-and-true method to ensure you don’t use too much flour in your cookies. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup instead of scooping the cup directly into the flour, and level it without packing it too firmly.
• Make the dough ahead. You can freeze the raw cookie dough balls (without the sugar coating) for up to 3 months. Check out my post on how to freeze cookie dough for some tips on how to do it.

How to Store

• On the counter. Store these pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3-5 days (though in my house, they rarely last that long!).
• Freeze. You can freeze the baked cookies for up to 3 months. Store them airtight and thaw the cookies at room temperature before serving.

More Easy Cookie Recipes

• Gingerdoodles
• Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies
• Cake Mix Pumpkin Cookies
• Chewy Apple Cider Cookies
• Salted Honey Chewy Pumpkin Cookies