Bake These Soft and Cakey Pumpkin Spice Cookies to Welcome Fall

Chewy, moist, and bursting dried currants and fall spices, these cookies embody the best of the season.

By
Garrett McCord
Garrett McCord
Garrett McCord
Garrett has been writing about food and sharing recipes for 15 years. He is the author of Melt: The Art of Macaroni and Cheese.
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Updated November 11, 2024
Garrett McCord
pumpkin cookies
Elise Bauer

“What the heck?” cried out my roommate looking at the dinner table now covered in produce.

“What?”

“Just how many squashes did you buy!?”

“Only, like, seven. Enough to last us for most of fall,” I replied. And really, are seven of them too many? I think not.

Once autumn rolls around my kitchen becomes overloaded with butternuts, kabochas, ambercups, and turban squashes. Indeed I actually have extra baskets laid out on the dining table overflowing with knobby, colorful gourds ready to be cooked.

Roasted, pureed, curried, it’s all good due to the playful versatility of pumpkins. Still, using them in baking is my preference; their rich flavors are tailor-made for sweets.

Pumpkin cookies cooling on a rack.
Elise Bauer

A Cakey, Old-Fashioned Pumpkin Cookie Recipe

Now, the commonplace pumpkin cookie is often too bready for me and usually covered in some sort of too-sweet glaze. That is a cookie that I generally shy away from.

This cookie, however, is a bit different thanks to a nice dose of oatmeal. This keeps them very soft and chewy.

The use of cardamom, currants, and pumpkin seeds also gives these cookies a curiously different and delightful taste from other pumpkin cookies. This combination is a great way to use up any pureed squash and turn out a treat that everyone will love.

Great Add-Ins for Pumpkin Cookies

Swap out the pumpkin seeds and currants in this recipe for anything you like. Chocolate chips and dried cranberries, maybe?!

And hey, if you want to top them with frosting or icing, that works too. I bet they'd be great with some cream cheese frosting or dark chocolate frosting smeared overtop. You could even make mini-cookies and sandwich them together with frosting in between.

Pumpkin spice cookies stacked on a counter with a glass of milk in the background
Elise Bauer

Storing & Freezing Pumpkin Cookies

These cookies are soft and moist. Be sure to let them cool completely before storing, and then store them in layers separated by wax paper, or they will stick together in one large cookie mound. Store pumpkin cookies in an airtight container on the counter.

Freeze the unbaked balls of cookie dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet until hard, then transfer them to a freezer container or bag. No need to thaw before baking; just arrange them on a cookie sheet and add a minute or two to the baking time.

The baked cookies also freeze well! Stack them between pieces of parchment, transfer to a freezer container or bag, and freeze for up to a month.

More Great Desserts With Pumpkin

Pumpkin Cookies

Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 15 mins
Total Time 30 mins
Servings 48 servings

These cookies are soft and moist. Be sure to let them cool completely and to store them in single layers separated by wax paper, or they will stick together in one large cookie mound.

If you prefer less-sweet cookies, use 3/4 cup of sugar.

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Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, room temperature

  • 1 cup packed brown sugar

  • 1 cup granulated sugar

  • 1 large egg

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 1 cup pumpkin purée, canned or homemade

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 1 1/3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamom

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1 cup pumpkin seeds

  • 1 cup dried currants

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2. Mix the wet ingredients:

    Beat the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg, vanilla extract, and pumpkin purée and beat for another 3 minutes.

  3. Combine the dry ingredients:

    In a separate bowl, combine the flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cardamom and cinnamon and whisk together.

  4. Make the cookie dough:

    Slowly add it to the butter mixture until just combined, being sure to scrape down the sides and bottom once or twice to ensure even mixing. Fold in the pumpkin seeds and currants.

  5. Bake the cookies:

    Drop spoonfuls of dough on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, until dry on top and slightly browned around the edges.

  6. Cool and serve:

    Allow to cool on the tray for a minute or two to set, then move to a wire rack to finish cooling. Cookies will keep in an airtight container for at least a week.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
110 Calories
4g Fat
17g Carbs
1g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 48
Amount per serving
Calories 110
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 4g 6%
Saturated Fat 3g 13%
Cholesterol 14mg 5%
Sodium 82mg 4%
Total Carbohydrate 17g 6%
Dietary Fiber 1g 4%
Total Sugars 10g
Protein 1g
Vitamin C 0mg 2%
Calcium 12mg 1%
Iron 1mg 3%
Potassium 72mg 2%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.