Wondering how to make pumpkin cookies? This homemade pumpkin recipe will become your go-to when you need ideas for Halloween treats, Thanksgiving recipes or fall desserts — thick, fluffy and cakey sweets! They are great as homemade pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting (so don’t miss our homemade icing for pumpkin cookies) or yummy without icing! These pumpkin treats are a fun family fall activity or for Thanksgiving baking activities for kids.
How To Make Pumpkin Cookies (Old-Fashioned Homemade Way!)
These delicious pumpkin cookies are one of my favorite fall recipes. Once you make this pumpkin cookies recipe, you’ll never need those Pillsbury pumpkin cookies from the grocery store again! This is a dessert that’s not too sweet and, as an added bonus, they’re a pretty easy pumpkin recipe to make! If you’re looking for cookies with pumpkin, these are a must try recipe!
How To Make Old-Fashioned Soft Pumpkin Cookies (Cake-like and Chewy Cookie)
- Shortening
- Sugar
- Eggs
- Can pumpkin (or pumpkin pie filling or fresh pumpkin puree)
- Vanilla
- Flour
- Spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin pie spice
- Baking soda
- Baking powder
- Salt
(See full super soft pumpkins cookie recipe below. KEEP SCROLLING! You’ll be surprised how easy it is with pumpkin in a can and a few dry ingredients!)
YOU’LL ALSO NEED: Best Cream Cheese Frosting for Pumpkin Cookies
Whatever you do, double the recipe because you’ll definitely want some for yourself later if you’re making them for a party.
(And, they freeze well, too! Making them an absolute favorite to make for early fall and then pull out for Halloween parties or Thanksgiving recipes. Yes, they really are that much of a delicious recipe!)
If you like your pumpkin cookie soft and chewy, these will definitely become your new favorite, especially if you have some leftover Libby’s canned pumpkin and are asking “What can I make with pumpkin?” (or how do I make the Libby pumpkin cookies recipe but better)!
Think of them as pumpkin pie cookies for sweet treats in the autumn! If you generally love pumpkin bread, you’ll love these yummy cookie treats.
(If you’re looking for crispy pumpkin cookies, these probably are not what you want.)
How do you make pumpkin cookies?
Pumpkin cookies are made with a traditional cookie dough batter including flour, sugar, shortening, and eggs. Then, add in canned pumpkin and spices for a soft, chewy pumpkin cookie recipe. They can be iced with cream cheese icing or left plain.
GREAT WITH THIS RECIPE BAKING WITH KIDS: FREE Life Cycle Of Pumpkin Worksheet Printable
Grab our free lifecycle of a pumpkin printable pack, complete with pumpkin life cycle pictures and pumpkin life cycle coloring page! It’s a good growing pumpkins diagram pack to study life cycle of pumpkin for preschool and up!
CLICK HERE To Get Your Free Pumpkin Life Cycle Printable!
Before we get to the recipe for pumpkin cookies (and our book pairing with this recipe), let’s answer some common questions on how to make homemade pumpkin cookies:
Pumpkin Cookie Recipes: Pumpkin Cookies Icing
These are pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting. This icing for pumpkin cookies makes them just sweet enough, so kids and adults alike love them.
Although the frosting for pumpkin cookies is yummy, we also make a huge batch without the icing because they’re really good that way, too (and make for more healthy pumpkin cookies).
Don’t freeze the pumpkin cookies with cream cheese icing. Leave the icing off if you’re freezing and then ice after defrosting.
Some people make these as pumpkin cookies with brown sugar frosting or pumpkin cookies with maple frosting (or using maple syrup), but we really prefer this creamy homemade icing to let the pumpkin flavor of the cookies shine through!
You can also dust them lightly with powdered sugar instead of icing them.
ALSO CHECK OUT THESE FALL APPLE RECIPES & FALL PUMPKIN RECIPES:
Easy Apple Fries Recipe (Baked and Air Fryer!)
Snickers Salad with Apples
Easy Apple Salad with Pear and Cranberry
How To Dry Apple Slices For Healthy Snacks and Nature Crafts
EASY Recipe For Apple Butter
4 Yummy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Recipe Ideas
Is Pumpkin A Fruit? Learning About Pumpkins and Pumpkin Recipes
But, how do you store homemade pumpkin cookies?
How To Store Pumpkin Cookies
Store pumpkin cookies in a single layer in an airtight container for up to three days. If you are icing this recipe pumpkin cookies with cream cheese frosting, store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to three days.
Can You Freeze Pumpkin Cookies?
Soft, bakery-style pumpkin cookies (or chewy pumpkin cookies) freeze well. If you want to freeze cookies, place the uniced cookies in layers, with wax paper in between, in freezer bags. The plain pumpkin cookies can be frozen for up to six weeks or longer.
Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cookies
There are many different versions of cookie recipes with pumpkin. Pumpkin spice cookies are also really good if you add chocolate chips and make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. Just add 1/2-1 cups of chocolate chips into the batter and stir right before putting them on the cookie sheet. (You can also add oatmeal and make them pumpkin oatmeal cookies!)
(Chocolate chip pumpkin spice cookies are really good, too!)
ALSO CHECK OUT: Ideas for Pumpkin Recipes and Pumpkin Activities for Kids
Ok!
Here’s how to make pumpkin cookies from scratch — an old fashioned pumpkin cookie recipe from childhood!
How To Make Pumpkin Spice Cookies : Best Pumpkin Cookies for Holidays!
If you like your pumpkin cookies soft, this will quickly become one of your favorite pumpkin cookies recipes! Don’t be intimidated by homemade cookies or pumpkin cookies from scratch.
These pumpkin cookies recipe easy recipe to make (especially if you love fluffy pumpkin cookies / moist pumpkin cookies!).
I get really excited for the first batch after not having them since last year.
They are also pumpkin cookies iced with yummy homemade cream cheese frosting, but we like them just as well without icing.
So, make some pumpkin cookies with icing, but leave some without the cream cheese frosting. (The plain pumpkin cookies without frosting are actually my favorite way to eat them and the best way, in my opinion.)
These are good pumpkin cookies with raisins or nuts or semi-sweet chocolate chips, too.
(This is definitely one of those pumpkin drop cookies that you can play around with and try different ingredients!)
These are perfect recipes for the fall season or for the holiday time of year for sweet pumpkin treats!
Let’s get to the easy pumpkin cookies recipe — the old fashioned pumpkin cookies I remember from childhood and best pumpkin cookies ever!
Homemade Chewy Pumpkin Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Shortening
- 3 Cups Sugar
- 2 Eggs
- 30 ounce can pumpkin like Libby's Pumpkin
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla
- 5 Cups Flour sifted
- 2 Teaspoons Cinnamon
- 2 Teaspoons Nutmeg
- 2 Teaspoons Baking soda
- 2 Teaspoons Baking powder
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Mix together shortening and sugar. Add eggs and mix until combined.
- Add canned pumpkin and mix until combined.
- To the canned pumpkin mixture, mix in vanilla and sifted flour. Then, add cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix until just combined.
- Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a cookie scoop or spoon, spoon rounded spoonfuls onto a baking sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-12 minutes. Cool completely if before icing. (see icing recipe on site)
- Store iced cookies in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Ready for your recipe and read pairing for the pumpkin recipe cookies? Here’s what we picked to go with the how to make pumpkin cookie recipe!
Soft Iced Pumpkin Cookies Recipe (Best Pumpkin Cookie Recipe) paired with It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown Children’s Book
No matter how old we get, Peanuts still seems to be a favorite for all of us (the books and the movies).
You remember It’s The Great Pumpkin, right?
Everyone loves watching to see if Linus will be visited by The Great Pumpkin this year, but my favorite part is when they all go trick-or-treating and Charlie Brown keeps getting a rock.
(I know, warped, what can I say?)
At any rate, while the best pumpkin cookies recipe are baking, watch It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown full movie or pull out your favorite Halloween or Thanksgiving book and spend some family time reading while you wait.
(ALSO CHECK OUT: Best Preschool Halloween Books and Theme Food Crafts Ideas To Go With Them)
Then, you’ll have some hot and fresh cookies to eat after!
Enjoy!
Listed Book Age Range: 4 years and up
YOUR KIDS MIGHT ALSO HAVE FUN WITH:
Halloween Sleepover Activities
The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown Lesson Plans and Activities (perfect to go with our soft pumpkin cookies recipes!)
What are your favorite recipes for pumpkin cookies?
We hope you have fun learning how to make pumpkin cookies with your kids!
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