Home > Desserts > Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies February 9, 2020 | 65 Comments SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Jump to Recipe This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy. The best ever Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies! These cookies are soft and chewy with crisp edges instead of typical cake-like pumpkin cookies. For cake-like cookies, try these soft pumpkin cookies. These pumpkin oatmeal cookies are another favorite pumpkin cookie recipe! Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies While I love the big, soft, cake-y, muffin-top-like pumpkin cookies, nothing compares to these cookies. They’ve got everything you love about regular chewy chocolate chip cookies, but with a pumpkin spice twist. With actual pumpkin and fall-inspired spices in the dough, these cookies are carefully created to give you a soft and chewy center with crisp edges. How to make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Melt the butter. Melted butter gives these cookies that soft and chewy texture Add sugars to the cooled butter. Once the butter is melted, it needs to cool back down to room temperature; otherwise, the butter will melt the sugars and make these cookies greasy and flat Stir the sugars into the butter until smooth. Add the pumpkin, vanilla extract, and the yolk of an egg. Save the white for a different recipe like this egg wrap. Mix until smooth. Add in all the spices, salt, and baking soda. Spices can be added to personal preference, but how the recipe is written is exactly how we like these cookies. You could also replace all the spices (except the cinnamon) with 1 to 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice. Stir until everything is well incorporated; we don’t want a pocket of spice ending up in one cookie! Add in flour and chocolate chips. We love milk chocolate chips in this recipe, but semi-sweet or dark chocolate would also be delicious, so use whichever is your favorite Mix until you’ve got a thick (and sticky), cohesive dough. Cover tightly and chill the dough for one hour. Roll cookie dough balls that are taller rather than wider. Cookie dough balls should be 1 and 1/2 tablespoons of dough or about 30 grams if you’ve got a food scale handy. Cookie troubleshooting Why are my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies hard? Most likely because the cookies were baked too long or at too high a temperature. Make sure your oven is correctly calibrated and watch the cookies closely near the end of bake time. Your cookies could also be hard if you over-measured the flour or if other ingredients weren’t fresh. Make sure your baking soda is fresh and your brown sugar isn’t too hard. Why are my Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies flat? Most likely because the cookie dough did not chill long enough. Since there is melted butter in the batter, it needs a chance to firm up again. Also, if the butter was too hot when you added in other ingredients, they’ll likely end up a bit flat and greasy. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies will also be flat if the flour was under-measured. One other factor that comes into play is if you live in a high-altitude area. How do you keep cookies soft after baking? After baking the cookies, let them cool completely on a wire rack (this will keep the bottoms from getting soggy from the steam). Once cooled, place cookies in an airtight container and store at room temperature. For tips on how to “revive” cookies, check out these tips from Cooks Illustrated. Note that these cookies are best eaten within 3 days; after that they begin to lose texture and flavor. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie tips Be prepared time-wise. These cookies require some patience: the melted butter needs to be cooled to room temperature and the actual dough needs to chill twice. Don’t rush these steps or the cookies won’t turn out properly. Use good, firm pumpkin. If your canned pumpkin is watery, the cookies won’t taste as good and the texture will be off. I recommend Libby’s® canned pumpkin (not sponsored). Make them pretty. Press some chocolate chips onto the tops of the cookies as soon as you take them out of the oven; this ensures even dispersion of chocolate and they also look more appetizing. Spoon and level the flour: If you press a measuring cup into a bag of flour you will pack in way too much flour; use a spoon to spoon it into a measuring cup and then level the top with the back of a butter knife. If your Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies turn out cake-y, there was likely too much flour added. Roll cookie dough balls higher instead of wider. This technique ensures that the bottom part of the dough cooks first, giving you those delicious crisp edges. The top of the cookie dough ball cooks down last, leaving it slightly less baked and ultra soft and chewy! QUICK TIP Make sure to use the right type of canned pumpkin! Pumpkin Pie Mix contains cooked, pureed pumpkin PLUS milk, sweetener, and spices. It’s ready to pour in a pie shell and bake. This is NOT what we want. Look for 100% pure cooked and pureed pumpkin. The ingredient list should show only pumpkin puree. Freezing these cookies Instead of freezing already-baked cookies, freeze the dough! Drop the cookie dough balls on a large sheet pan and freeze until solid. Once solid, transfer the frozen cookie dough balls into an airtight container/bag and freeze for up to 3 months. To bake: you can bake straight from the freezer; just add 1-3 minutes to the cooking time (or thaw the dough in the fridge and bake according to directions). Bonus: you’re the super star when you can give your family freshly baked homemade cookies with just a moment’s notice! More fall desserts Pumpkin Creme Brûlée Acorn Donut Holes Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bread Thanksgiving Cookies Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars FOLLOW ALONG! Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for the latest updates, recipes and content. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies 4.93 from 27 votes - Review this recipe The best-ever Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies! These cookies are soft and chewy with crisp edges instead of typical cake-like pumpkin cookies. SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Print Recipe Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies 4.93 from 27 votes - Review this recipe SAVE TO RECIPE BOX Print Recipe The best-ever Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies! These cookies are soft and chewy with crisp edges instead of typical cake-like pumpkin cookies. Course Dessert, Snack Cuisine American Keyword pumpkin chocolate chip cookies Prep Time 25 minutes Cook Time 9 minutes Chilling Time 1 hour Total Time 1 hour 34 minutes Servings 22 -24 cookies Calories 159kcal Author Chelsea Lords Cost $5.17 Ingredients▢ 1/2 cup unsalted butter▢ 1/4 cup white sugar▢ 3/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed▢ 1 large egg yolk (discard whites or save for another recipe)▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla▢ 1/3 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling; not an entire can)▢ 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt▢ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon▢ 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger▢ 1/8 teaspoon EACH: ground cloves and nutmeg▢ 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice▢ 3/4 teaspoon baking soda▢ 1 and 1/2 cups white all-purpose flour▢ 2/3 cup chocolate chipsUS - Metric USMetric InstructionsMELT BUTTER: In a large, microwave-safe bowl, melt the 1/2 cup butter. Let the butter stand until cooled to room temperature. It is very important the butter isn't hot or it will melt the sugars and cause greasy cookies.ADD SUGARS: Add in 1/4 cup white sugar and 3/4 cup lightly packed light brown sugar to the room-temperature melted butter. Stir until smooth with a wooden spoon.REMAINING WET: Add in the large egg yolk (discard or save the whites for a different recipe), 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 1/3 cup canned pumpkin. Make sure the pumpkin isn't watery; dab off excess moisture with a paper towel if it is. Stir until ingredients are combined.SPICES: Add 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice, and 3/4 teaspoon baking soda. Stir until spices are well incorporated.FLOUR AND CHOCOLATE: Spoon and level (See Note 1) to measure 1 and 1/2 cups flour and add to the bowl. Add the 2/3 cup chocolate chips. Gently stir to form a dough. It will seem dry at first, but continue to stir until you have a thick and sticky dough. Cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate for one hour.BAKE: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or a Silpat liner. Measure 1 and 1/2 tablespoons (or 30 grams) dough per cookie ball. Roll the balls so they are taller rather than wider (see photo in post). Place 6 cookie dough balls on the sheet pan and then place in the freezer for 8 minutes. Remove and bake for 8-11 minutes (we like them best at 9 minutes; slightly under-baked will yield super-soft and chewy cookies) or until no longer glossy on top. Remove from the oven and let cookies stand on the sheet pan for 5 minutes. If desired, press a few more chocolate chips into the tops of the cookies.STORAGE: Using a metal spatula, transfer cookies to a cooling rack and allow the cookies to finish cooling. They firm up more as they cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Video Recipe NotesNote 1: Measuring flour: If you press a measuring cup into a bag of flour, you will pack in way too much flour; use a spoon to scoop it into a measuring cup and then level the top with the back of a table knife. If your Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies turn out cake-y, there was likely too much flour added. To be as accurate as possible, use a food scale to measure precisely 190 grams of flour. Nutrition FactsServing: 24cookies | Calories: 159kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 21mg | Sodium: 69mg | Potassium: 38mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 704IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg We do our best to provide accurate nutritional analysis for our recipes. Our nutritional data is calculated using a third-party algorithm and may vary, based on individual cooking styles, measurements, and ingredient sizes. Please use this information for comparison purposes and consult a health professional for nutrition guidance as needed. DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? I love hearing from you when you've made one of my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @ChelseasMessyApron or leave me a comment below.
These look amazing. And kudos to the ” exactly complete” intructions in the recipe! Nice, no mistaking that huh? =) Can’t wait to try them. I love pumpkin, and chocolate, yay! Reply
I love that this is a “non-cakey” recipe. I do love the cakey kind but I would love to try some that aren’t! I will have to try! Thanks! Reply
These look so perfect I wish I had one right now. Going to have to find some time to make these this week! Reply
Hi Chelsea, I loved these just as much as your chewy pumpkin oatmeal cookies, they are awesome! Not too spicey which is perfect for me, and awesomely chewy. Thanks for another great cookie recipe!!! Robin Reply
Could I form the cookies and then refridgerate overnight and bake the cookies the next morning? Or would that make it too chilled and affect the baking? Reply
That should work great! Cover them tightly and note that you might need to bake a minute or two longer. Enjoy 🙂 Reply
I made these when I got a pumpkin at a market, seeing how it is August and I have been waiting months to make something with pumpkin, I couldnt wait! But, because it is August, and its too hot to turn on my oven, I decided to make the batter the night before and freeze the balls of dough to pop in the oven early the next morning on one of the colder mornings of the week. I had to cook them for 5 minutes more, and they didnt quite spread like the picture, but they taste great! If you want them to spread out, I dont recommend baking from frozen. Happy that I now have some leftover dough balls in the freezer for when Im craving for more pumpkin cookies! Thanks for the recipe! Reply
You put frozen cookie dough into the oven to bake? Frozen dough is very different from chilled dough. Typically you don’t have to chill a drop cookie recipe, but to actually freeze it.. not surprised they didn’t cook in the middle. It’s the first time I’ve ever heard of baking a frozen cookie dough. Reply
These look so great! Do you have any idea how long these could stay fresh? And how I could possibly ship them? Thank you, excited to try these!! Reply
Thank you so much! I think these are best eaten by 3-4 days. I really have no idea on shipping these; I’ve never tried that. Wish I could be of more help, but hopefully someone else can chime in! 🙂 Reply
I made these today and they are prefect! A new Go To recipe! I will be doubling or tripling next time though since it ONLY makes two dozen ? Reply
Haha 🙂 Yes, ONLY making two dozen is definitely a fault of this recipe 😉 Thank you so much Bethany! I’m thrilled you enjoyed these! Reply
These cookies are absolutely delicious!!! I used coconut oil in place of butter and dairy free chocolate chips to make them suitable for a friend! They turned out chewy like you described! We enjoyed them so much I am making another batch tonight! Reply
I’m so thrilled to hear that! 🙂 Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a comment Kylie 🙂 Reply
These were amazing! I had made the “cake” ones the last few years. While I’d say those are more pumpkin-y, these are a more well rounded fall flavor due to the spices. I am making a second batch today after I roast up the porch pumpkins 🙂 Thanks for sharing this recipe! Reply
These were excellent, wonderful flavor, and simple, although mine still came out cakey on two different batches. The second time I followed the instructions more about chilling, but either way, they were a taller cookie, unlike the photo, still moist and cakey, but delicious! Would have liked to have seen a photo of the stacking method of placing them on the pan. I don’t mind them cakey, I would make them again! Reply
I’m happy you enjoyed these overall Erin! They may have come out more cakey than desired due to too much flour; did you spoon and level the flour when you measured it? Glad to hear you’d make these again though! I’ll be working on getting a video tutorial up for these 🙂 Reply
Chelsea, instead of rolling two balls of dough per cookie, what would happen if you just rolled one larger ball of dough per cookie? I haven’t made them yet, but am getting ready to, right now. But, I’m omitting the chocolate chips, I just want a pumpkin cookie. I always omit chocolate chips and usually use raisins and nuts, in chocolate chip recipes, but these will just be pumpkin cookies w/ no added ingredients. Aren’t they awfully sweet, w/ 1 cup of sugar to 1-1/2 cups of flour, plus chocolate chips? Reply
Yes that’s fine; just make sure it’s taller rather than wider 🙂 I don’t find them overly sweet, but if you’re worried you could likely leave out some of the sugar! Enjoy! Reply
I could not wait the full hour for chilling these because I was just too excited to eat them!!! I have never been able to get a cookie to be cakey, and I didn’t have that problem with these either. Oh my gosh these cookies are good!!! Reply
My four year old and I are making them as we speak they are currently chilling. I cannot wait for the final product!! However I feel silly that I do not understand the “stacking” method… any help!? Reply
I made these tonight for my sister’s Halloween party and they turned out perfectly! The detailed instructions helped a lot. Most of my cookies turned out perfectly round, but a couple were a little more oval-shaped because of the way the rectangular stack decided to melt. I was a little confused at first about what the stack was supposed to look like so a picture of that might help. But no complaints, they look and taste great! Thank you. Reply
So happy to hear you enjoyed the cookies and the instructions were helpful 🙂 I’ll work on getting a process picture up on these 🙂 Thanks Renee! Reply
Someone I know made this recipe. The cookies were soo delicious I asked her for the recipe! Her cookies were cakey but still delicious. Please will you post a pic of the rectangle stack or draw it out even? It would be sooo helpful! I see that others have asked the for the same thing. Thank you! Reply
I’m so happy you’ve enjoyed these cookies! 🙂 Here’s a good visual (different cookies I’ve made, but same shape! :)) https://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Cookie-Dough.jpg Enjoy! Reply
I’ve made many cookies but I’ve never found a recipe as good as this one! I’ve already passed on the recipe a couple of times it’s that good! I really love how this is a non-cakey pumpkin cookie. Thank you! Reply
These are very delicious! I love how all the ingredients like the spices can be adjusted and your encouraged to adjust to your preference! I used the stove top for the butter because i don’t have a microwave any longer. These filled my house with a delicious fall aroma! Thanks for the recipe! Happy Fall Ya’ll!! Reply
Hi there, I don’t quite understand the stacking process. Could you explain with a tiny bit more detail? Thanks. Reply
Hey Carol! Check out the 2nd photo in this post: https://www.chelseasmessyapron.com/best-snickerdoodle-cookies/ that’s the shape and size 🙂 Reply
Omg these cookies are delicious!!! The perfect combination of pumpkin, spices & of course chocolate! I don’t mind my cookies cakey, so after chilling the dough for an hour I formed single sized balls on cookie sheets (12 /sheet) and baked them for 12 minutes each. I think they turned out perfectly!! So happy I came across this recipe, thanks! 🙂 Reply
Amazing cookies! I couldn’t stop eating them. 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup coconut oil mix was fine too! Can we freeze the cookies? How long can we leave in the freezer? Reply
So happy to hear you enjoyed!! I would recommend freezing the dough (rolled into balls first and stored in an airtight bag), not the actual cookies (I’ve found freezing the baked cookies loses texture/flavor). Freeze dough balls for up to 1 month! 🙂 Reply
I made these for my husband to take to work a couple years ago and I frequently was asked when I’d send him to work with more! I’m so excited fall is back around and it is time to whip these up again. Honestly the best cookies I’ve ever had! Reply
So happy to hear these were the best cookies you’ve ever had! 🙂 Makes my day!! Thanks for the comment and review! Reply
I’m sorry I’ve never tested this recipe with gluten free flour and am not familiar enough to give recommendations. Reply
So good! I halved the recipe because all the cookies in my house get eaten whether there are a lot or only a few, lol. But I kept the pumpkin to 1/3, and added 1/4 cup flour (to the halved amount) to make up for the extra wet ingredient. I’m a no-fuss baker so I didn’t shape or chill the dough or anything, just plopped it down. Baked for 11 mins and they’re so yummy! I’m sure the consistency is more “cakey”? than what a cookie should be, but everyone loved them anyway! If I need more than 12 cookies I’ll follow the recipe as written. ? Reply
I have made many pumpkin cookie recipes over the years and none compare to this incredible recipe! Officially a family staple for years to come Reply
These cookies were easy to make and absolutely delicious! The recipe has great tips to making the cookies come out perfectly. I loved the tip to place more chocolate chips on top straight out of the oven so they look even more appetizing! The cookies turned out great and so did the picture I took of them! Reply
I made these today using a real baking pumpkin vs. canned and they took way longer to cook than indicated in recipe. They still didn’t come out anywhere near as good as the ones I made last year which is disappointing since it had so many steps. Reply
Can these be made gluten free by substituting gluten free flour? This recipe looks delicious, but I have to eat gluten free. Reply
I’m so sorry I’ve never tested these with gluten free flour and am not very experienced with gluten free baking to be honest. Wish I could be of more help Reply
I made these over the weekend and these have got to be some of the best cookies I’ve ever made! Definitely making a second batch this week just to have ready to go in the freezer and to share the love with others. Thank you for this killer recipe! Reply
I made half these cookies GF using King Arthur Measure for Measure 1:1 and they came out delicious! Very very tasty. However, I used a bigger scoop than recommended (24), and I still baked them for 11 minutes as recommended. They came up chewy, borderline raw (I still love them like that but my husband had trouble with the cookie sticking to the roof of his mouth) I wonder how much longer do I need to bake them. “Under baking” is a new thing for me and I am not sure if is normal or not to have such chewiness. Thank you! Reply
If you make bigger cookie balls, you’ll want to cook them for a couple minutes longer 🙂 I usually bake until they are set, no longer glossy on top! Glad the recipe worked with the GF flour! Reply
Ive made this recipe every fall for years. However, I just noticed that the baking instructions are now different. I always place two balls on top of each other and bake for 11-12 minutes per instructions from years past. These are a favourite of everyone I know! Reply
