These chewy pumpkin snickerdoodles are soft, chewy, and full of pumpkin spice flavor. They have everything you love about a classic snickerdoodle—a soft, chewy center and cinnamon-sugar coating—with the addition of pumpkin puree and warm fall spices.
Looking for more pumpkin inspiration? I've rounded up my favorite 21 Best Pumpkin Recipes for Fall →, including pumpkin cookies, muffins, breads, pies, and more.
My husband's favorite cookies are my jumbo snickerdoodles, so I decided to make a fall version. These pumpkin snickerdoodles have the classic snickerdoodle flavor and texture we love, with pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, and extra cinnamon for a delicious fall cookie.
They're also a no-chill cookie, which means you can mix up the dough, roll the cookies in cinnamon sugar, and have warm pumpkin snickerdoodles in the oven in no time.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love These Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- What Makes These Pumpkin Snickerdoodles So Good?
- What Is a Snickerdoodle?
- What Other People Are Saying
- Tips and Tricks
- Ingredients
- How to Make Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- Why Do You Tap the Baking Sheet?
- Pumpkin Snickerdoodle FAQs
- More Pumpkin Recipes To Make
- Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Why You'll Love These Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- Soft and chewy. These cookies stay soft and chewy for days.
- No chill recipe. There's no need to refrigerate the dough before baking.
- Classic snickerdoodle flavor. Cream of tartar gives these cookies the slightly tangy flavor that makes a snickerdoodle a snickerdoodle.
- Full of pumpkin flavor. Pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice give these cookies a delicious fall twist.
- Cinnamon-sugar coating. Every cookie is rolled in cinnamon sugar before baking.
- Easy to make. The dough comes together with simple ingredients and doesn't require any complicated techniques.
- Perfect for fall. They're great for Halloween parties, Thanksgiving cookie trays, bake sales, or simply making a batch to enjoy at home.
What Makes These Pumpkin Snickerdoodles So Good?
These aren't just regular snickerdoodles with a little pumpkin spice added.
I add real pumpkin puree to the cookie dough along with pumpkin spice and extra cinnamon. The pumpkin adds moisture and gives the cookies their soft texture, while cream of tartar provides the classic snickerdoodle tang.
The cookies are rolled in cinnamon sugar before baking, giving them that familiar snickerdoodle flavor and slightly crackly exterior.
One of my favorite things about this recipe is that the cookies stay soft and chewy for days. They're delicious warm from the oven, but they're just as good after they've cooled completely.
What Is a Snickerdoodle?
A snickerdoodle is a soft sugar cookie that's traditionally made with cream of tartar and rolled in cinnamon sugar before baking.
Cream of tartar is what gives classic snickerdoodles their characteristic slightly tangy flavor and soft, chewy texture.
This pumpkin version keeps those classic elements while adding pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice, and extra cinnamon for a fall-inspired cookie.
What Other People Are Saying
Awesome cookies!!!!--- Kathy
OMG! These are excellent! Splendid little change up for Fall. 😉---Lynn
Tips and Tricks
- Don't overbake the cookies. The cookies will continue to bake on the hot baking sheet after you remove them from the oven. Slightly underbaking them helps keep the centers soft and chewy.
- Tap the baking sheet against the counter. Pumpkin puree adds moisture to the dough, which means these cookies don't naturally flatten as much as traditional snickerdoodles. Tapping the baking sheet helps create flatter cookies with crackly tops.
- Give the cookies room to spread. I usually bake only 6–9 cookies at a time on a baking sheet. This gives them plenty of room to spread.
- Use pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sugar and spices. Use plain 100% canned pumpkin puree for this recipe.
- Don't skip the cream of tartar. Cream of tartar is an important ingredient in traditional snickerdoodles. It gives these cookies their signature tang and helps create their soft texture.
- Measure the flour correctly. Too much flour can make cookies dry or overly thick. Spoon the flour into your measuring cup and level it off, or use a kitchen scale for the most accurate measurement.
- How to make your own pumpkin spice mix. Don't have pumpkin spice mix? No worries. Here's a simple recipe for making your own, and you can adjust the spices to fit your taste. Mix everything together and store in an airtight container for all of your fall baking needs!
- 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons teaspoons ginger
- 2 teaspoons. nutmeg
- 1 ½ teaspoons cloves
- 1 ½ teaspoons allspice
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: Make sure to properly measure your flour. Here is a guide to show how to measure flour.
- Baking soda: to help the cookies rise.
- Cream of tartar: a snickerdoodle isn't a snickerdoodle without cream of tartar. It adds a tanginess to the cookies and helps them rise.
- Salt: a tiny bit to add flavor.
- Pumpkin spice mix: if you don't have a bottle on hand, you can make your own by following my pumpkin spice mix recipe.
- Ground cinnamon: pumpkin spice mix already contains cinnamon, but you'll want a bit of extra too.
- Sugar: I use white sugar for this recipe, the same that I would for classic snickerdoodles.
- Butter: I always bake with salted butter, but you can use unsalted butter if you'd like.
- Egg: you can use a whole egg or omit the egg white and simply use the egg yolk for a richer cookie.
- Vanilla extract: for flavor. Have you ever made your own vanilla? It's easy and makes a great gift.
- Pumpkin puree: not pumpkin pie filling, but 100% pumpkin canned puree.
- Cinnamon and sugar: the cookie dough balls are rolled in a combination of cinnamon and sugar before baking.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Step 1: Cream butter and sugar together. Add egg, vanilla, and pumpkin puree.
Step 2: Combine flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice. Mix wet ingredients and dry ingredients until just combined. Do not over-mix.
Step 3: Roll cookie dough balls into cinnamon and sugar.
Step 4: Bake cookies for 6 minutes, tap baking sheets against the counter to flatten cookies, then bake for an additional 3-4 minutes. Tap sheets against the counter once more (if necessary), then let cookies cool for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack.
Why Do You Tap the Baking Sheet?
Pumpkin puree adds extra moisture to the cookie dough, so these cookies don't flatten as easily as traditional snickerdoodles. Tapping the baking sheet against the counter helps the cookies spread and creates the flat, crackly tops that you expect from a snickerdoodle. It's optional, but I recommend it if you want a more traditional snickerdoodle shape.
Pumpkin Snickerdoodle FAQs
Yes! These pumpkin snickerdoodles are soft and chewy and stay that way for several days. Be careful not to overbake them, since they continue to cook slightly on the hot baking sheet after coming out of the oven.
No. This is a no-chill pumpkin snickerdoodle recipe. Once the dough is mixed, you can scoop, roll, and bake the cookies right away.
Pumpkin contains a lot of moisture, which can make pumpkin cookies softer and thicker than traditional cookies. For these pumpkin snickerdoodles, tapping the baking sheet during and after baking helps the cookies flatten and gives them their characteristic crackly tops.
Yes. If you already have pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can use it in place of the individual pumpkin spices in the recipe.
Absolutely. Combine cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice to make your own pumpkin spice blend. You can adjust the proportions to suit your taste.
No. Use 100% canned pumpkin puree for this recipe. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sugar and spices and will change the flavor and texture of the cookies.
Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 3–5 days. They stay soft and chewy, making them a great make-ahead cookie.
Yes! Snickerdoodles freeze beautifully. Allow the cookies to cool completely, then place them in a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months and thaw at room temperature before serving.
Cream of tartar is an important part of a traditional snickerdoodle. It provides the characteristic tangy flavor and helps create the classic snickerdoodle texture, so I recommend keeping it in the recipe.
More Pumpkin Recipes To Make
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Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup pumpkin puree
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin spice
For Rolling
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Cream butter and sugar together with an electric mixer or stand mixer with the paddle attachment.
- Add egg, vanilla, and pumpkin puree and mix until smooth.
- In a separate bowl combine flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until cookie dough forms. It will be a soft dough.
- Scoop dough using a medium cookie scoop (2 tablespoons) and roll each cookie dough ball in cinnamon and sugar.
- Bake on an ungreased (or parchment paper-lined) baking sheet for 6 minutes. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and tap against the counter a few times to flatten the cookies.Return the cookies to the oven and bake for an additional 3-4 minutes.Tap against the counter once more (if necessary).
- Allow cookies to sit on baking sheets for 2-3 minutes before transferring the cookies to a cooling rack.
Notes
- I only bake 6-9 cookies at a time on a cookie sheet to allow them to spread.
- Tapping the baking sheets against the counter is optional, but helps to flatten the cookies. The pumpkin puree changes the texture, slightly, making them flatten less than a classic snickerdoodle. Tapping the baking sheets during and after baking will yield flat snickerdoodles with the crackly tops.
Lynn says
OMG! These are excellent! Splendid little change up for Fall. 😉
Brandy says
Glad you liked them, Lynn!
Kathy Shields says
Awesome cookies!!!!