Ok… with this recipe I’ve totally been busted. It’s late April and here I am with a pumpkin post. That can only mean one thing- I’ve had a can of pumpkin in my pantry since last Thanksgiving. Absurd! I know! That little pumpkin gem must have gotten pushed to the back of the line in the past few months. Well, it’s seen the light of day in these most delicious cookies.
These Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies are a combination of cookie, cake and pancake and quick bread. They’re super soft, moist and cakey. They’re full of pumpkin and spice flavor, and the chocolate just sends them over the top.
I know I can’t be the only one with a lonely can of pumpkin in the pantry. These cookies are a simple and delicious was to celebrate that forgotten can! Throw some vanilla ice cream in, and life has suddenly improved. It’s as easy as that!
The basic recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies allows for creativity. Instead of regular chocolate chips try mini chocolate chips, or butterscotch chips, or (better yet) both!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Big Fat Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola or corn oil
1 cup canned pumpkin
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips, or any chip you like
Position a rack in the middle of the oven . Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and butter the paper.
Stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix the oil, pumpkin, and vanilla until blended. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chips.
Using an ice cream scoop with a 1/4-cup capacity, scoop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least 2 1/2-inches apart. You could also simply use a 1/4-cup measuring cup if you don’t have a scoop. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth and flatten the rounds.
Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, about 16 minutes. Cool them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool cimpletely.
Dust the cooled cookies lightly with powdered sugar. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Delvia
How many cookies I can made with these recipes.
Devi
Made these today – so good!
Jessica Bakes
These are amazing with Coconut oil instead of the listed oil!
Sharon B
10/14/14; have made this recipe (wi/a couple modifications) 2 X for co-workers & they raved about them!! Love the lightness, softness & spiciness; mini chocolate chips work great with the smaller size of the cookie. This is my new most fave chocolate chip cookie recipe!
Megan
Hi! Love love love these cookies. I made these(with homemade pumpkin puree) and they are awesome. I always use extra puree, so end up adding extra flour. We ice them with cream cheese icing, store bought because I have a milk allergy. Thanks for the recipe!
Tracy
Can’t. Stop. Licking. Batter. Sooo good.
Alle
Absolutely delicious! I’ll be making these non-stop until Christmas I’m sure. I just need to make them and give them away so I don’t eat a dozen at a time!! I substituted half of the oil with coconut oil and they were fabulous and fluffy, even at high altitude!!
Lindsay Bullock
In the middle of making these I realized I didn’t have any pumpkin! The closest thing to pumpkin in my house was an old bag of frozen turnips so I cooked and pureed them and used a cup of it instead, and amazingly it worked! You end up with a very different cookie (tastes like a spice cookie-no turnip flavor in there), but just in case anyone else happens to have a year old bag of frozen turnips they’re trying to get rid of, here’s your recipe! :0) My kids can’t get enough of these things. Next time I’ll be more prepared and make the original recipe though– love the soft texture.
Megan
So I am absolutely DYING for fall to get here and decided to make these and OH.MY.GOODNESS…they are incredible!!! They are everything you promised texture-wise. Wonderful soft pillows of autumn’s promises. :) My whole family has declared this their new number one cookie recipe. Thank you so much!
Christine
Holy buckets, are these cookies amazing. I live at 9,000 feet and wanted a good high altitude recipe – yours came up because of a comment that mentioned high altitude. He was right! No issues. I baked them this evening for my students (boarding high school), and they LOVED them. I even forgot the chocolate chips, and they were still a hit. Only one thing: a student requested that I leave feedback to change the name of these cookies to pumpkin pillows, since they were much more like pillows than cookies. :)
Suny
Just made these cookies — i also will say these worked perfectly for high altitude :) – I made these in mini muffin pan for my sons bake sale and the worked perfectly — I used white chocolate chips and in the second half of batter I added 1/4 cup chopped cranberries which I soaked in OJ. They took about 19 min in the mini muffin pan. All I have to say is delish!!!!
Thank you Joy :)
Judy
I just made the pumpkin chocolate chip cookies—-I am new to this site, but I am converted to the ways
of Joy the Baker. I figure I will be working my way through the posted recipes–two at a time (one sweet/one savory)—I am a closet vegetarian–I have not baked much (except for bread)–anyway, the orange surgar is definitely brilliant–I wonder if other citrus will work, I will have to try—the cookies taste superior—the best I have ever made. Thank you for your recipes.
Eileen
OK, a friend just brought these to our holiday potluck and they were amazing. However, she used milk chocolate, white chocolate and butterscotch chips. Best use of pumpkin, ever.
jenny
What’s the yield for this recipe?
Lisa
Just made these for a pre-Thanksgiving treat and they are literally my new favorite cookie! I could eat the entire batch for myself right now… I might make them a bit smaller next time, just so I can have more to go around :)
Alaina
Fantastic. They’re like little clouds of deliciousness! I’m going to need to stock up on pumpkin now so I can make pumpkin baked goods throughout the year, I see absolutely nothing wrong with that :) I used walnut oil (which I use a lot–that or hazelnut oil–while baking) and added a bit of cardamom and allspice but kept the overall spice amount at 1.5 teaspoons (ok, they were heaping :) Also, I threw some chopped pecans in there, and after I made them I was worried they would be wrong for the light texture of the cookie, but they’re still good!
Joy, I love your blog!!! Thanks for coming up with all this wonderfulness, I want to make every recipe in here!
jen
any suggestions for vegan-ish adaptations? the thing i’m most concerned about are the eggs, because i’m planning on making this for a friend and i know for sure they don’t eat those. any immediate advice would be greatly appreciated as i would like to make them tonight. thank you thank you!!!
True
Hey Jen, for a vegan option you could substitute the 2 eggs for flax eggs. ( 2tbsp ground flax+6tbsp water for 2 eggs)
To make these a bit healthier instead of 2 cups of all purpose flour, do 1 cup all purpose and 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour and for the oil you could use coconut oil or safflower oil.
Hope this helps :)
Jeannette French
I made these cookies, and I loved them! They reminded me of carrot cake, so that got me to thinking: Could I make these Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies into Carrot Cake Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting? I decided to try it! I made these cookies again and this time I subbed the pumpkin with 1 cup of finely grated carrot and subbed the chocolate chips with 1/2 cup of raisins and 1/2 cup of toasted and chopped walnuts. I made a basic cream cheese frosting recipe and once the cookies were completely cool I frosted them. Delicious!! Thanks, Joy, for the inspiration! I now have TWO new delicious cookie recipes! :)
Stephanie
THESE LOOK DELISH!!!
charity
I just made these for second time and love them still so much! I used 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup flaxseed meal, and 1 cup all purpose flour to up the health factor a bit. I used extra light olive oil (using it in most of baking now) too. Still used cardamom since I love it. Came out really delicious!!
They did end up a bit too moist (but I will still eat them!) so next I am will be more exact with the liquid or perhaps dial down the olive oil by 1/4 of cup. They get really moist over a couple of days which I think is due to the pumpkin. Will make again soon though it is the spring time in Chicago.
Ari
Oh My – not a good idea to make this when you’re home alone. Only bake these when you can share them. Made them last night, late night snacking & had 3 with a glass of cold goat’s milk. Delish! I didn’t realize they were mini pancake size, I wasn’t impressed when someone wrote they ate 3 (big deal) – I’ll take that back . I made sure to give them out today. I’ve already had 4 and i’m glad they are gone – don’t think I could have stopped myself from eating them. Yes, i had a can of pumpkin left from the holidays, hence pumpkin recipe in March. Thanks for sharing – this is a great blog. Let’s see what i find next.
Charity
I am usually not a cookie fan but something about this recipe just called to me. I made them when we got a blizzard here in Chicago. I added 1/8 teaspoon of cardamom since I had it and I like it. These were amazing with a big glass of milk! Totally a cake-cookie hybrid. Eating my last one today.
Though I did have to bake these for 18-20 minutes even though my seperate oven thermometer said 325F.
I am wondering if I could make them with sweet potato puree instead? I find canned pumpkin kind of a scarce thing except in November. Might have to try it out and will report back with results.
Amber
Ohhhhh, Joy. I wanted to make cookies and had no butter but a can of pumpkin on hand, so I was thrilled to find this recipe in your archives. I just made these and they’re incredible. They really are more like muffin tops…so I won’t feel bad when I have one of them for breakfast tomorrow morning. Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Maggie
these were AH-MAZE-ING
more like little muffin tops of joy if you ask me. Perfect cross between a muffin and a cookie.
i cut the oil in half and they are still “fantastique”!
April
Everybody who tried these LOVED them. Extremely easy to make too!!!!
Kristin
Think I can double the pumpkin (use the whole can) and nix or cut the oil?
Gail
Wow. I love these. I couldn’t stop eating them… I will definitely be making a ton of these for the Christmas season for gift baskets. I’m sure they will be a hit!
Stephanie
Favorite. Cookies. Ever.
Caryn
Oh my gosh…my search for the perfect pumpkin cookie is over! Love your blog, thank you!
Erin
Joy, I so loved these cookies…would it work to throw the batter in a bread pan and make pumpkin bread? or would it be a total fail?
Gail
Great idea! I bet it would work. Probably would have to bake for about 30-45 min, though. I’m going to try that, too! I’d also love to try mini loaves. :)
Rynn
Oh, Joy. These are perfect. (: Even at High Altitude, which is rad. Thank you.
Maria
Um, I just made these cookies this weekend and they’re the best, most delicious cookies I’ve had in a LONG time. Thank you so much for this recipe!!
Meaghan
Holy CRAP. I just made these. Then ate about 3. They are the softest cookies I have ever made, plus the flavor is incredible. Its like a happy little pillow of fall. Thank you, thank you, thank you for these!
Liz
I made these last night. I used nutmeg from a spice bottle. Not fresh nutmeg. Maybe that’s what went wrong. I didn’t use enough of it either, I think. I did put in cinnamon. I don’t know. And I could barely taste the pumpkin. It was really old pumpkin, though. I mean, it is August. But they were super soft! I feel like a stalker for commenting so many entries. Oh, no! But I love your blog. I always turn to here for recipes first. *fangurl*
Lyn
How big are your cans of pumpkin? Being an Aussie, we don’t have canned pumpkin, so I wanted to replace with mashed butternut…
Help?!
joythebaker
hi lyn. our cans of pumpkin are 15 ounces. mashed butternut squash would be just lovely! happy baking!
Get Ready Dad
These are out of this world… I made these for breakfast this morning and have a very happy wife right now!
AmyEDA
I made pumpkin waffles for breakfast the other day and had a cup of pumpkin left over that I had to use. I looked online for pumpkin muffin recipes. Why do I go anywhere but your site Joy?? I decided to make my kids (& Husband) super happy and make these cookies for breakfast this morning. They were DELICIOUS!!! So light and yummy, easy to make. And, I scored major points giving everyone cookies for Breakfast. You were right though, they are the perfect combo of cookie, muffin, pancake & quick bread. I’ve made so many of your recipes and each one is better than the last. I’m curious if you ever make any flops?? Thanks for your great site, I LOVE it!!!
saveur
I wanted to let you know that I made the cookies, with a few modifications. I thought they were great even if I didn’t include the chocolate chips. :)
http://tastespace.wordpress.com/2009/12/06/super-soft-pumpkin-cookies-with-cranberries-walnuts-and-orange-zest/
help me!
i love these cookies. however, i’ve made them 3 times, and they’ve come out differently each time. the 2nd time they came out amazing, soft, moist, but at the same time perfectly dense and and rich. sadly, the other two times they came out much cakier and muffin-like. any advice as to what subtle things i may have done without noticing to make them come out cakier? the batter was runnier the 3rd time than it was the 2nd time. i am a novice baker so i’m really not sure what is making the difference… any advice? do i need to stick to bigger eggs? would the type of flour make a big difference? i’m pretty sure my measurements were right…
thanks!
kris
Yum! My 4 year old and his friend both gave them 2 thumbs up.
Sara
I made these last week and they were amazing! Thanks for the great recipe :) This would be a great (and healthier) addition to a Thanksgiving dessert table.
Jennifer
One of the people I follow on Twitter linked to this recipe. I have a batch in the oven now and my kitchen smells heavenly. I used some toffee chips that I had in the back of my pantry. Thinking it will be a killer combination.
Thanks!
ShaQuan
I tried this pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe and it was outstanding! I took them to a party and my friends couldn’t stop eating them! My husband suggested putting chocolate covered raisins in with the chocolate chips. We’re going to try that on the next batch.
Jessica
DELISH!!
Jess in MD
These are amazing! I made half the batch plain with turbinado sugar sprinkled on top and then made the other half w/ semi-sweet choc chips. Curious about how I can store them layered so they don’t stick together. Any suggestions? Thanks!
Katie
I just made these…they are SOOO good. I hardly ever eat what I bake (normally I make things for others) but I have already had two…and I can’t wait to have more. SO GOOD!!
Maria
These are amazing!! Easy to make, and perfect everytime. This is a fall cookie STAPLE. Brought them to work and everyone loves em. Perfect, perfect, perfect!
Anna
These are the best cookies on this earth… they’re just heavenly to be exact. Soft, crumbly, melt-in-your mouth goodness. I made them with butterscotch chips, and a few with craisins mixed in. Even the dough is good, I must have eaten a whole cookies worth just waiting for the first batch to come out of the oven. Thank you so much for sharing.
luvstobake
I am trying these out after seeing pumpkin chocolate cookies mentioned in a book- they sounded delicious so I wanted to try. The batter looks lovely- almost quick-bread like in consistency- they smell great too. I used mini semi-sweet choco chips- thanks for the great recipe!
Cris
I LOVE THESE! Ty so much for sharing this recipe!!!! They are just too good. God Bless
Katie
These are amazing! Thank you!
TJ
instead of carob could you use dark chocolate chips for your vegan friends?
I assumed “spices” in the recipe meant the cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg..
I’m baking these *right now* and it smells SO good. I love the texture of the dough too.
Great recipe!
Grey
Also, I’m in love with these. I ended up adding the cloves and nutmeg after I mixed the flour mixture into the egg mixture, and they turned out great :)
Grey
…I don’t know if you realized it, but…nowhere in the recipe does it say nutmeg or cloves, except for in the ingredients list. ;_;
Kayla
This recipe was exactly what I was looking for to satisfy my pumpkin craving. These cookies turn out like delicious little muffin tops!
Johanna
Thank you so much for posting this recipe. I have been in search of the perfect pumpkin chip cookie recipe for the past ten years. Silly I know to be so obsessed with a cookie, but it is my favorite. I have tried many recipes but none have compared. An enormous Thank You.
sophia
made them today with bittersweet and butterscotch chips…and they turned out great!
erin
would be interesting with sweet potato and chocolate. this is a combo i tried once and loved. thanks!
Kari
These cookies are AWESOME! My husband said that they were the best cookies that I have ever made.
Evan
Its official: these little cake bites are amazing! Even the hubby approves…and he’s the biggest cookie snob ever! Thanks lady!
Evan
On my list of things to do tomorrow…yep.
Uberhappybaker
And I thought my family was the only ones who made these for Halloween. ;) Happy memories, these make my kitchen smell like fall.
Also if you have vegan friends you can substitute extra soft tofu for egg and still have a decent texture. Although carob will never be choc chips to me my vegan friends love this variation on the recipe.
Corey
OMGosh! These are delishious. Thank you for the recipe! I’m taking these to a friends house this afternoon…that is, if I don’t eat them all before I get there!
Katie
These looked so delicious I just couldn’t resist baking them. Being October pumpkin recipes are everywhere, but this one looked too amazing to pass up. These are delicious! I added white chocolate chip which was a perfect combo to the smooth pumpkin. I am definitely making these for years to come! This is a must try!
Sarah
so my mom went and bought some of these type cookies at city market (our local grocer) and i had never had them before. After one taste i could tell i was hooked.. but 6 cookies for 2.99 seemed a little steep and WAY out of my price range so the hunt was on for the cake like pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe… i googled and found yours the pictures were a dead give away thank you for blessing my family and my taste budds and tummy with your very yummy recipe!!!
beverlyz
These cookies made me extra hungry especially with icecream!!
RavingRecipes
OMG! I think I just died and went to Heaven! I have been looking for months for a delicious pumpkin cookie recipe! And I finally found my treasure at JoyTheBaker’s!! Thank you so much for sharing! I can’t wait to try this recipe out! YUMMY!
Jenn
These are pretty good, although I do suggest semi-sweet chocolate chips. I used milk chocolate and they are almost too sweet. Thanks for the recipe!
Sarah
I made these for my mom today – they are delicious! You aren’t kidding when you say super soft. The cookies are moist and chocolately and smell wonderful. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
ButterScotchie
I make mine with butterscotch chips and craisins. ohmigosh they’re good!
Miri
Dear Joy, these cookies look so wonderful, that they’ve caused me a great cookie-craving! The second photo is simply amazing!
Mike
Haha, for what its worth, I still have a bag of cranberries in my freezer, so a happy belated Thanksgiving to you, too! ;-)
These look like excellent cookies and I don’t think I’ve ever had anything like them. I’ll have to remember this when pumpkins come in season again…
Sharona May
Your cookies look great and super moist. YUM
Sharona May
giz
These cookies just so look like cocaine (not that I would know) but I have this feeling there’s an addictive quality to them
Sarah
Yes! I have made a recipe very similar to these, except they had white chocolate chips and macadamia nuts. They were the best cookies – I still can’t stop thinking about them. You’ve inspired me to bake them again!
Beth
These are beautiful!! Who cares that it’s April – pumpkin is delicious any time of year — and besides, it’s autumn somewhere in the world! :)
Kris
OK so this might sound crazy, but try making the simple cookie recipe on the back of the Nestle chocolate chip bag, only substitute 1/2 cup pumpkin for the brown sugar. The cookies don’t come out pumpkin flavored, but have an incredible, cakey texture that is to die for. Just another suggestion for those of you with that extra can of pumpkin lying around!
Cecilia
These cookies sound fabulous! I LOVE pumpkin-flavored baked goods, so I might run out to the store and get a can of pumpkin puree to make these cookies. Thanks for sharing.
megan
Pumpkin is my favorite. It’s a shame that it is thought of as seasonal.
These will be pushed to the front of my *must make* list.
Thanks Joy! I can always count on you to deliver a great recipe.
Eli
I agree, pumpkin is fab, even if it is only spring. These look amazing.
Mari
Those cookies look so good, I wish I had some now to go with the vanilla ice cream I just made! Don’t you love getting creative with goodies from the deep dark recesses of your cabinets? LOL!
Deborah
I enjoy pumpkin – no matter what time of year it is!! And yes, I probably do have a lone can of pumpkin somewhere in my pantry!
patsyk
Oh, I have a can of pumpkin in my pantry from Thanksgiving as well… I think I’ve found the perfect use for it!