Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

5 from 1 vote

These pumpkin snickerdoodles are soft, chewy, and full of cozy brown butter flavor. Rolled in cinnamon sugar and baked until just set, they have crisp edges and gooey centers. Drying the pumpkin puree is the secret to a chewy cookie instead of a cakey one.

Prep Time10

Cook Time10

Total Time25

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings: cookies

Author: Eden

Cost: $15

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter browned
1/2 cup pumpkin puree dried (see below)
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp ground cinnamon for rolling
1/8 cup granulated sugar for rolling

Instructions

Brown the butter. Melt 1/2 cup unsalted butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. It will foam, then settle, then turn golden with toasty brown bits at the bottom, about 6 to 8 minutes. Stir often so it does not burn. When it smells nutty, pour it into a bowl and scrape in every brown bit, then chill in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes. It should feel cool but still be completely liquid.
Dry the pumpkin. Spread 1/2 cup pumpkin puree onto a plate and press paper towels into it to soak up the liquid. Scrape it back into a pile, spread it out, and press again with fresh towels until it feels like soft play dough. This keeps the cookies chewy instead of cakey.
Whisk the butter and sugars. In a large bowl, whisk the cooled brown butter with 1/2 cup dark brown sugar and 1/2 cup granulated sugar for 2 minutes, until it looks like wet sand.
Add the yolks and pumpkin. Whisk in 2 large egg yolks and the dried pumpkin puree until the mixture is glossy and smooth.
Add the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 tsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp cream of tartar, 1 tsp salt, and 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice. Add to the wet ingredients and stir just until no streaks of flour remain.
Chill the dough. Refrigerate for 10 to 15 minutes, just until it is firm enough to scoop. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C), line two baking sheets with parchment, and stir together 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 2 tsp ground cinnamon in a small bowl.
Scoop and roll. Scoop 50 gram portions of dough (a medium cookie scoop works well) and roll into smooth balls. Roll each one through the cinnamon sugar until fully coated. Roll a second time for a thicker, crunchier crust.
Bake. Arrange 6 cookies per baking sheet, spaced a few inches apart. Bake at 350°F for 9 to 10 minutes, until the edges are set and the centers still look slightly underbaked. Do not overbake. They finish setting as they cool.
Cool. Let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. The edges will be lightly crisp and the centers soft and chewy.

Video

Notes

How to Store

Room temperature: keep them in an airtight container for up to 4 days, and they will stay soft the whole time.

Refrigerate the dough: scoop it into balls and chill for up to 24 hours, then let them sit out a few minutes so they are soft enough to roll.

Freeze: freeze the plain dough balls without the cinnamon sugar, or freeze the baked cookies, for up to 2 months. Bake from frozen and add an extra minute or two.

Reheat: two or three minutes in a 300°F oven brings a day-old cookie right back to life.

Eden's Tips

Make sure your can says 100% pure pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling. I reach for Libby's every time because it runs drier than the other brands, and in a cookie that really does matter.

Let your baking sheets cool completely between batches. A warm pan starts melting the butter the second the dough touches it, which is usually why a second batch spreads more than the first.

Spoon your flour into the measuring cup and level it off, or weigh it if you have a scale. Flour is the structure holding these together, so if it's a little short, you will feel it.

Weigh your dough at 50 grams per ball. It sounds fussy, but it means every cookie bakes at the same rate instead of some coming out perfect and some still raw in the middle.

Nutrition