This from-scratch Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe is the most delicious and sweet fall treat that you’ll have on repeat all season long! This easy recipe bakes up over two dozen pumpkin cookies that everyone will love!
Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Scream Fall
Nothing screams fall like these Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies! They’re filled with delicious pumpkin spice flavor and sweet chocolate chips, making them the perfect treat to usher in cooler weather!
And even if the weather isn’t cooling down where you are yet, you can pair it with an ice-cold glass of milk and pretend. 😉
To make these the very best soft pumpkin chocolate chip cookies you’ll ever have, I took the ingredients from average to over-the-top with the addition of milk powder, bread flour, and instant vanilla pudding mix!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe Ingredients
- unsalted butter
- dark brown sugar
- granulated sugar
- large eggs
- 100% pumpkin
- vanilla extract
- bread flour
- instant vanilla pudding mix
- powdered milk
- pumpkin pie spice
- salt
- ground cinnamon
- baking soda
- chocolate chips (I prefer Guittard dark)
Grab a can of 100% pure pumpkin and raid the pantry; it’s time to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies! Along with pantry staple baking ingredients, this recipe also calls for instant vanilla pudding mix and powdered milk.
Though the amount of powdered milk seems small, it adds so much in terms of flavor! However, since it doesn’t impact the structure of the cookie, it can be left out if you’d like.
What Type of Pumpkin Works Best for this Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe?
100% canned pure pumpkin works best for making pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. In stores, this is generally found next to the pumpkin pie filling. However, pumpkin filling and pure pumpkin are different.
Pure pumpkin is pureed pumpkin without any additional spices or sweeteners. In contrast, pumpkin pie filling is made with spices and comes pre-sweetened.
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Substitutions and Variations
- Chocolate Chips – Feel free to use your favorite chocolate chips in this cookie recipe! Dark chocolate chips, milk chocolate chips, and even white chocolate chips would all work deliciously in this recipe.
- Additional Mix-Ins – Pecans, walnuts, and even raisins can be mixed in for texture and flavor variation.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice – If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice on hand, you can easily make homemade pumpkin pie spice using ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, and ground mace.
- Unsalted Butter – Using unsalted butter in this recipe allows for more flavor control over the cookies. However, if you prefer to use salted butter, omit the 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt.
More Pumpkin Cookies: Pumpkin Oreo Cookies | Pumpkin Oatmeal Cream Pies | Box Mix Pumpkin Cookies
How To Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Step 1: Cream the unsalted butter, dark brown sugar, and granulated sugar together in a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Scrape the sides of the bowl halfway through to be sure all of the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.
Step 2: Add one egg at a time, mixing after each addition just until the yolk is streaky throughout the dough.
Step 3: Mix in the 100% pumpkin and vanilla extract until just combined.
Step 4: Whisk the bread flour, box of instant vanilla pudding mix, powdered milk, pumpkin pie spice, salt, ground cinnamon, and baking soda together in a separate bowl. Next, slowly add the dry ingredients, one cup at a time to the wet ingredients.
Step 5: Add in chocolate chips and mix on low speed only until combined. Be very careful not to overmix the cookie dough!
Step 6: Portion the dough out onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper, leaving about 4 inches between each cookie. If desired, gently press additional chocolate chips into the tops and sides of the cookies.
The dough will be pretty sticky – this is normal!
Step 7: Transfer the baking sheet of cookies into the preheated oven and bake until the edges are just turning light brown. Then allow them to cool on the pan before transferring them to a wire rack to completely cool.
Tips for Making the Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- High-Quality Chocolate – Regardless of whether you prefer milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or even chocolate chunks, the key is to use high-quality chocolate. High-quality chocolate will bring these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies the best flavor and melty texture! For dark chocolate, I prefer to use Guittard brand.
- Correctly Measuring Ingredients – Using a kitchen scale to measure baking ingredients is the most accurate way to deliver the best cookies! Therefore, you’ll notice on the recipe card that the weight of some ingredients is included. I find it especially important to correctly measure flour one of two ways, as too much or too little flour can greatly impact the cookies.
- Creaming – Creaming the butter and sugar for 2 minutes is absolutely important to the final structure of the cookies. Therefore, do not shortcut this step!
- Incorporating Without Overmixing – Throughout the recipe, it’s likely that there will be some flour that settles to the bottom of the bowl. It’s important to incorporate this without overmixing the dough, as doing so would change the structure of the cookies. I recommend using a rubber spatula or even your hands to work the drier bits into the dough. You can even use these methods for mixing in the chocolate chips as well to ensure the dough doesn’t get over-mixed.
- Two Baking Sheets – Since this recipe yields 4 to 5 batches of cookies, I suggest using two cookie sheets to keep the baking process moving, as each batch will need to cool on the cookie sheet after baking. Using two baking sheets also prevents cookie dough from being dropped onto hot pans, which alters the final results of the cookies.
- Baking Time – The cookies are done baking when their edges have started to turn light brown. The centers of the cookies will still be very soft and look underdone from their slightly puffy appearance. However, they will finish setting up as they sit on the baking sheet. Don’t be tempted to continue baking, as this will dry out the cookies!
How to Store Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies
Store Chocolate chip pumpkin cookies in an airtight container or Ziploc bag with parchment paper separating the layers of cookies. The cookies can then be stored at room temperature for 3 to 4 days or in the fridge for 6 days.
You can also freeze these cookies! To do so, first, flash-freeze the baked cookies by placing them on a baking sheet and transferring them to the freezer. This allows the cookies to freeze individually before transferring them into a freezer-safe container or Ziploc freezer bag.
Whereas, if the baked cookies are placed in a container or bag before being flash frozen, they will likely freeze together in one big clump. Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies can be stored in the freezer for 2 to 3 months.
Soft Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies FAQs
In this pumpkin chocolate chip cookies recipe, the secret to making moist cookies is by using 100% pumpkin, the instant vanilla pudding mix, and not overbaking the cookies. While the canned pure pumpkin adds lots of moisture to the cookies, the instant pudding supports a soft, chewy cookie.
To bring these moist cookies to the finish line, it’s important not to overbake them! Therefore, only bake the cookies for 11 to 13 minutes. However, all ovens bake differently, so I’d suggest keeping a close eye on them as they bake.
The cookies should be removed from the oven just as their edges are turning light brown. Their centers will still appear very soft and have a slightly puffy and underdone look, but they will finish baking on the baking sheet as they cool.
If your cookies turned out flat, it could be that not enough flour was added to them or the cookie dough was dropped onto hot baking sheets.
Since these cookies are made with canned pumpkin, they’re loaded with moisture. Therefore, they can have a sticky appearance if they set at room temperature, especially if it’s humid out. But don’t worry, they’re still delicious even sticky!
Yes, a silicone baking mat can be used instead of parchment paper. However, I’d suggest keeping a closer eye on the cookies as they bake since cookies tend to bake quicker on silicone baking mats. I personally much prefer parchment.
When making these homemade pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, I use a #16 cookie scoop, but you can also use a 1/4 measuring cup to portion out the dough instead.
More Delicious Cookie Recipes
- Brown Butter Chocolate Chip
- Molten Lava Cake Cookies
- Double Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Butter Pecan Cookies
Let’s Connect!
If you’ve tried this recipe, please let me know how you liked it in the comments below and leave a review. I love hearing from you!
Don’t forget to tag me – @sugarandsoulco – on Instagram and Pinterest with your photos or join our Sugar & Soul Show-offs Community and share them there, where you can join our recipe challenges!
Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
Equipment
- Stand mixer recommended, not required
- Paddle attachment recommended, not required
- Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- Measuring Cups
- Measuring poons
- Kitchen Scale recommended, not required
Ingredients
- 1½ cups unsalted butter 340g, softened
- 1½ cups dark brown sugar 350g, packed
- 1 cup granulated sugar 225g
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ¾ cup 100% pumpkin 172g
- 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4½ cups bread flour 563g, spooned and leveled
- 1 (3.4oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix 96g, unprepared
- 2 tablespoons powdered milk 10g
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 cups chocolate chips I prefer dark
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer (I highly recommend a stand mixer for this recipe) fitted with a paddle attachment, cream together the 1½ cups unsalted butter, 1½ cups dark brown sugar, and 1 cup granulated sugar on medium speed for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl halfway through.1½ cups unsalted butter, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1½ cups dark brown sugar
- Add the 2 large eggs one at a time, mixing after each one just until the yolk is streaky throughout the dough. Add the ¾ cup 100% pumpkin and 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract and mix just until combined.2 large eggs, 1½ teaspoon vanilla extract, ¾ cup 100% pumpkin
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the 4½ cups bread flour, 1 (3.4oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix, 2 tablespoons powdered milk, 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, 1½ teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon baking soda. With the mixing beating at low (stir) speed, slowly add the flour mixture a cup at a time. If you have a flour shield for your mixer, I recommend using it as this recipe creates a lot of dough. Increase to medium speed and mix just until combined, then remove from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to mix up any loose flour from the bottom of the bowl into the dough.4½ cups bread flour, 1 (3.4oz.) box instant vanilla pudding mix, 2 tablespoons powdered milk, 1½ teaspoons salt, 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Add 1½ cups of the 2 cups chocolate chips and mix at low speed just until combined, be careful not to overmix. You can finish mixing with a rubber spatula or with your hands until the dough is fully combined and the chips are evenly incorporated.2 cups chocolate chips
- Use a large #16 cookie scoop to portion out the dough on the prepared baking sheets, leaving 4 inches between each (6 cookies will fit on a 12×17-inch cookie sheet). Press the remaining chocolate chips into the tops and sides of the balls of dough.
- Bake the cookies one cookie sheet at a time for 11 to 13 minutes or until the edges are just turning light brown. The centers should still be very soft and look slightly puffy and underdone. Remove from the oven and allow them to cool for 5 minutes on the pan before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. While they are still warm, you can add more chocolate chips to fill in any gaps for appearances.
Video
Notes
- This recipe will require 4 to 5 batches, I recommend using two cookie sheets so that you can keep things moving since the cookies need to cool on the cookie sheet.
- The powdered milk can be left out as it won’t impact the texture. However, it adds so much in terms of flavor, even though it seems like a small amount.
- Creaming the butter and sugar for 2 minutes is important to the final structure of the cookie, do not shortcut this.
- There will likely be some flour that settles in the bottom of the bowl; make sure you get this all mixed in. Do not just start cooking off the dough from the top, or you’ll end up with a couple of dry cookies near the end. So use a rubber spatula or your hands to work the drier bits into the dough. Do not just keep mixing in the mixer; this will overwork the dough and won’t be as effective. This was my experience with a stand Artisan 4.5 qt mixer; it may come together just fine with a larger size.
- A ¼ cup measuring cup can also be used to portion out the dough.
Nutrition
Did You Make This Recipe?
Don’t forget to share it with me on Instagram @sugarandsoulco and follow on Tiktok @sugarandsoulco and Pinterest @sugarandsoulco for more!
Comments & Reviews
Deb B. says
This is an awesome recipe and will continue to be a “go to” when making cookies.
Adrienne says
These are just so yummy! They have a perfect texture and aren’t too cakey like some pumpkin cookies can be. I opted to do a mix of chopped dark chocolate and chips to really get good distribution throughout the batter. Delicious!
Megan says
This pumpkin cookie recipe is so good.
Marilyn says
how do these compare to the Cake Mix pumpkin Chocolate chip cookies?
Rebecca Hubbell says
These cookies will be firmer and chewier (but still soft) than the cake mix recipe which is a bit heavier/denser and much softer cake-like texture.
You can find my recipe for pumpkin cake mix cookies here: https://www.sugarandsoul.co/4-ingredient-pumpkin-chocolate-chip-cookies/