NOT Cakey Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Are you looking for pumpkin chocolate chip cookies that are NOT cakey, and instead have the crisp-on-the-outside, chewy-in-the-center texture of your favorite chocolate chip cookies? Well, look no further—this pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe is IT!

Unlike most pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipes (which make super fluffy and cakey pumpkin cookies), this recipe makes pumpkin chocolate chip cookies that are more similar in texture to classic chocolate chip cookies. In fact, with their pools of melted chocolate and flaky sea salt, these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies LOOK like traditional chocolate chip cookies. But don’t be fooled—they’re loaded with lots of pumpkin, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon flavor!

Why You Should Make This Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Here are all the reasons to make this pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe:

These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are NOT cakey. Instead, they are crispy on the edges, and chewy and fudgy in the center!

I developed this recipe because I was frustrated by all the previous pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipes I tried. Although many of them made delicious cookies, they were soft and cakey, with textures more similar to that of muffin tops than actual chocolate chip cookies. I wanted a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie that had the texture of my ideal chocolate chip cookie: crispy on the outer edges, but chewy and fudgy in the centers.

I’m happy to write that this recipe makes exactly what I was hoping for. Although the cookies are flavored with lots of pumpkin and pumpkin spice, they have the texture of my favorite chocolate chip cookie!

These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies come together quickly.

The best part? These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies come together REALLY quickly. You don’t even need a stand mixer to make them! All you need to do is mix together the dry ingredients in one bowl, then mix the melted butter, sugars, egg yolk, pumpkin, and vanilla together. Add the dry ingredient and the chocolate, mix everything by hand, and that’s it! There’s no need to chill the dough either—you can bake them straightaway. Cool, right?

These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies store well.

Thanks to the pumpkin in the recipe, these cookies stay soft and flavorful for days. But the best part? The pumpkin chocolate chip cookie dough stores well in both the fridge and the freezer, meaning you can make fresh cookies anytime you want. Learn more in the post below!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients and Substitutions

Now that I’ve convinced you to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, here’s everything you need for the recipe:

Shopping List for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe

Be sure to scroll down to the recipe card for the exact ingredient amounts and quantities:

• all-purpose flour
• pumpkin spice
• ground cinnamon
• baking powder
• baking soda
• kosher salt
• unsalted butter
• light OR dark brown sugar
• granulated sugar
• large eggs
• canned pumpkin puree
• pure vanilla extract
• dark chocolate (between 60% to 70% cacao), from whole fèves or a high-quality chocolate bar

And let’s talk about some key ingredients and any potential substitutions:

All-Purpose Flour

You need 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Does a 1-1 gluten-free all-purpose flour work in these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies?

I’m sorry, but I don’t know. I rarely bake with those types of flour replacements because they’re expensive and my household is fortunate not to have any gluten restrictions. However, if you replace the flour in this recipe with any gluten-free alternatives, please leave a comment so I can update this post accordingly!

Pumpkin Spice

You need 1 ½ teaspoons pumpkin spice to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

What is pumpkin spice?

“Pumpkin spice” is the combination of spices frequently added to pumpkin desserts and baked goods to give it more flavor. Because on its own, pumpkin doesn’t really have a ton of flavor! It needs those spices to liven it up.

But real talk: There’s no dictionary-definition standard recipe for pumpkin spice. Instead, pumpkin spice is often a combination of spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, allspice, and sometimes black or white pepper. Depending on the recipe, the ratios of each spice will vary. However, most pumpkin spice recipes tend to be “cinnamon-forward.”

In the United States, many spice and herb companies will sell their own blends of pumpkin spice. Each will taste slightly different. For my recipes, I usually use McCormick Pumpkin Pie Spice or Simply Organic Pumpkin Spice.

I can’t get pumpkin spice where I live. What should I do instead?

If you can’t get pumpkin spice where you live, don’t worry! You can make your own at home by combining more commonly available spices together. My favorite recipe for pumpkin spice is in the next section below.

How To Make Pumpkin Spice

To make pumpkin spice, combine:

• 5 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon cloves

That’s it! Note that the recipe above will make around 2 Tablespoons of pumpkin spice; however, you only need 1 ½ teaspoons for this pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe. You can save the rest of the pumpkin spice for another pumpkin recipe!

Kosher Salt

You need 1 teaspoon kosher salt to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Why You Should Use Kosher Salt When Baking

I like to use kosher salt (as opposed to table salt) when baking. Its larger crystals make it difficult to confuse with granulated sugar. However, not all kosher salts are created equal. Some kosher salts have smaller granules than others, which will result in saltier tasting baked goods.

For consistency, I recommend sticking to one brand, and one brand only:Diamond Crystal kosher salt. It’s the only brand of salt I use when I develop recipes for Hummingbird High. Why? Diamond Crystal kosher salt is one of the few 100% pure salts in the grocery store. Other brands have additives that can add unexpected flavors to your desserts.

I can’t find Diamond Crystal kosher salt. Is Morton’s Coarse kosher salt okay?

Yes, with reservations. Morton’s Coarse kosher salt granules are much smaller, denser, and crunchier than Diamond Crystal. According to this Food52 article, the two are different shapes and sizes because of how they’re made. Morton’s is made by flattening salt granules into large thin flakes by pressing them through high-pressure rollers, whereas Diamond Crystal is formed by a patented method in which “upside-down pyramids [are] stacked one over the next to form a crystal.” You can even see a visualization of the different sizes in this Cook’s Illustrated article.

Okay, but what does that mean, exactly? 1 teaspoon of Morton’s will taste saltier than 1 teaspoon of Diamond Crystal. Wild, right? So if you follow my recipes exactly as they are written but use Morton’s instead of Diamond Crystal, the results will come out saltier. In fact, sometimes they will come out TOO salty. So if you’re using Morton’s instead of Diamond Crystal, reduce the salt in the recipe by half.

Want to learn more about Diamond Crystal versus Morton’s Coarse kosher salt? Definitely check out the Food52 and Cook’s Illustrated articles I linked to above, as well as this Taste article.

I can’t find Diamond Crystal OR Morton’s Coarse kosher salt. Can I just use table salt?

Yes, with reservations. If you use table salt, you’ll need to reduce the recipe’s salt quantity by half.

If you read my little essay about Diamond Crystal and Morton’s, you learned that Diamond Crystal kosher salt granules are larger than Morton’s kosher salt granules. The same principle applies to table salt versus kosher salt. Table salt granules are much smaller than kosher salt granules. As a result, 1 teaspoon of table salt tastes much saltier than 1 teaspoon of kosher salt… simply because it can hold more granules! Wild, right?

So if you follow my recipes exactly as they are written but use table salt instead of kosher salt, the results will come out saltier. If you’re using table salt instead of kosher salt, I recommend reducing the salt in the recipe by half. 

Brown Sugar

You need 1 cup light OR dark brown sugar to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Light versus Dark Brown Sugar

Brown sugar is granulated white sugar with a touch of molasses to give it its signature color and flavor. Because brown sugar contains molasses, it adds more moisture baked goods than granulated sugar otherwise would.

Brown sugar is available in two varieties: light or dark. Dark brown sugar is my personal preference; because it contains more molasses, I find it to be more flavorful.

Canned Pumpkin Puree

You need ¼ cup canned pumpkin puree to make these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

What is canned pumpkin puree?

In the United States, most grocery stores sell canned pumpkin. Canned pumpkin consists of pumpkin (or sometimes, according to this Kitchn article about pumpkin puree, squash!) that is de-seeded, peeled, roasted, and pureed. Many American recipes instruct you to use this pumpkin puree in both sweet and savory recipes. My favorite brand of canned pumpkin puree is Libby’s 100% Pure Pumpkin.

I can’t get canned pumpkin puree where I live. What can I use instead?

According to my international readers, canned pumpkin puree can be difficult to get outside of the United States. But no worries! You can make your own pumpkin puree at home. Simply process a pumpkin or the yellow or orange squash of your choice (my favorite is butternut squash) by peeling its skin, slicing it in half, and carving out the pumpkin/squash seeds. Cut the pumpkin/squash into 1-inch chunks and place the chunks on an aluminum foil-lined sheet pan. Toss with 1 Tablespoon neutral oil. Bake at 400°F for 20 to 25 minutes, or until fork-tender. Then, use a food processor to puree the pumpkin/squash. Use the puree immediately, or refrigerate in a ziptop bag or an airtight container for up to 3 days. After that, freeze for up to 3 months.

If you plan on using homemade pumpkin puree to make this recipe, bring the pumpkin puree to room temperature. Using pumpkin puree that’s too cold will result in a lumpy cake batter that’s hard to whisk together. Alternatively, using a pumpkin puree that’s too hot could potentially scramble the eggs in the batter.

Dark Chocolate

You need 6 ounces (170 grams) dark chocolate to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Dark Chocolate versus Bittersweet and Semisweet Chocolate

In the United States, there’s no official benchmark for the “bittersweet” and “semisweet” chocolate designations. It’s up to manufacturers to determine how much cocoa to use, and percentages will vary greatly from brand to brand. Technically, both bittersweet and semisweet chocolate are considered dark chocolate… but you never know. Because of this, I advise you to ignore these bars and stick with a dark chocolate that lists its cocoa percentage.

Wait, what are chocolate fèves? Are they the same thing as chocolate baking discs and wafers?

Chocolate fèves are a fancy pastry school term for a flat, bean-shaped disc of chocolate. When baked in a cookie recipe, the fèves don’t hold their shape (similar to how chocolate chips typically do) and instead melt into puddles. These puddles give your cookies thin layers of chocolate throughout every bite. The most prominent maker of chocolate fèves is one of my favorite chocolate makers, Valrhona Chocolate. 

Unfortunately, as much as I love Valrhona chocolate, their chocolate fèves can be hard to find at your average grocery store. I typically buy Valrhona products online at Amazon, King Arthur Baking Company, or Valrhona’s online store. But if you don’t want to buy online, rest assured that other chocolate makers make similar products. Notably, Guittard Chocolate Company makes chocolate wafers. These wafers are similar to fèves, but more circular in shape. I’ve seen Guittard chocolate wafers at select Safeway, Target, and Whole Foods stores.

Do I really need to use fèves?

If there’s one thing I want you to take away from my blog, it’s this: don’t skimp on chocolate! Most grocery store brands—even the ones that offer products specifically made for baking—contain all sorts of additives like paraffin wax and palm oil. These ingredients compromise the flavor and texture of your results. I’ve stopped using chocolate chips in 90 percent of my recipes, and my baked goods have tasted so much better as a result. 

What dark chocolate did you use to make these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies?

For these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, I used Valrhona Caraïbe fèves, which 66% cacao. In general, for this recipe, I recommend using a dark chocolate that is between 62% and 73% cacao (though I simplified that to 60% and 70% in the ingredients list).

What other chocolate do you recommend besides fèves?

If you can’t find fèves, I also recommend Guittard Chocolate Wafers (which are more readily available in most major supermarkets). If you’re on a budget, I recommend chopping up a Trader Joe’s Pound Plus bar or Ghirradelli baking chocolate bars instead of chocolate chips. Chop up the chocolate into fairly large ½- to 1-inch chunks. Doing so helps give you big chocolate puddles throughout the cookie!

How To Make Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here are the basic steps to make pumpkin chocolate chip cookies from scratch:

1. Prep the ingredients for the pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe. (Prep Time: 5 to 10 minutes)
   The prep process for these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies is easy! All you need to do is measure out the ingredients beforehand. That’s it! If you’re using whole fèves like I recommended, there’s no need to chop them up beforehand. As a result, your prep time will only be about 5 minutes. However, if you’re chopping up chocolate for the recipe, your prep time will be 10 minutes.
   
   
2. Then, make the pumpkin chocolate chip cookie dough. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
   The dough comes together really quickly. First, mix the dry ingredients in a small bowl. Then, mix the melted butter, sugars, egg yolk, pumpkin, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Mix in the dry ingredients to this mixture, then the chocolate. That’s it!
   
   
3. Next, assemble the pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. (Work Time: 5 minutes)
   The fastest and easiest way to make picture-perfect cookies is to invest in a cookie dough scoop. These handy tools scoop the dough into dough balls that bake into perfect cookie circles every time. In general, I use a 3-Tablespoon or 4-Tablespoon sized cookie dough scoops to make my cookie recipes. Doing so makes perfect 3- to 3.5-inch wide cookies.
   
   
4. Finally, bake the pumpkin chocolate cookies. (Bake Time: 10 minutes)
   The pumpkin chocolate chip cookies need 10 minutes in the oven. When done, the edges should be set. However, the centers will still look a little soft. That’s normal! In fact, that’s the secret to a perfect cookie with a chewy center.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Troubleshooting and FAQ

FAQ: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe Troubleshooting

Help! My pumpkin chocolate chip cookie dough was really soft and hard to scoop. What did I do wrong?

This pumpkin chocolate chip cookie recipe uses melted butter to make the cookie dough. If your melted butter was still too hot when you mixed it with the other ingredients, your dough will come out overly soft and hard to scoop.

But no worries! This issue is also easy to fix. Simply stick the bowl of dough, uncovered, in the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes to firm up the dough. That’s it.

And to prevent this issue from happening in the future, I recommend prepping the butter as your first step in the recipe. That is, measuring it out, then melting it (I like to do so in a microwave or in a small saucepan over medium-low heat). Once it’s melted, set it aside on a wire rack while you prep the other ingredients. Doing so will allow it to cool slightly, just in time for when you need to add it to the rest of the dough.

I also recommend being super careful when melting your butter. If you’re using a microwave, melt the butter in short 10- to 15-second bursts to prevent it from getting overly hot. The butter shouldn’t sizzle, crackle, or pop in anyway.

Help! My pumpkin chocolate chip cookies came out too puffy. They didn’t sink after baking and don’t look flat like yours. What did I do wrong?

Okay, there are several things that could be responsible for overly puffy cookies:

You didn’t measure the ingredients properly.

I mentioned this earlier, but it bears repeating: if you used cup measures as opposed to weight measures, there’s a larger chance your cookies will come out puffy. 

There’s a LOT of variation in how people use measuring cups. Somebody who scoops ingredients into a measuring cup and packs it down as they go will have a cup that has way more ingredients than somebody who simply scoops the flour into a cup and levels it off as its filled. This is why bakers love measuring by weight with a digital scale instead—it’s much more reliable and completely eliminates any inconsistencies!

While these variations aren’t a big deal for many recipes, they can be a big deal for cookies. Specifically: if you pack a heavy cup of flour, your cookies will come out too puffy. They won’t fall and sink in the same way as mine did.

So to fill a measuring cup properly, you need to first set the measuring cup on a flat, level surface like your kitchen counter. Spoon the ingredient into the measuring cup until it forms a small mound within the cup. Use a butter knife or bench scraper to level off the mound so that the ingredient is flush with the top edges of the measuring cup.

Finally, if you’re measuring a dry ingredient that has a tendency to clump or get packed down (like flour, confectioners’ sugar, or cocoa powder), give it a quick whisk in its container first. Then, scoop the ingredient into the measuring cup as I described.

You deliberately (or accidentally!) reduced the sugar in the recipe.

Many people often deliberately reduce the sugar in baking recipes for health reasons, or for fear of the recipe being “too sweet.” But the fact is that sugar is in baking recipes for reasons beyond flavor and sweetness! In baking, sugar helps baked good spread evenly and consistently. It also adds moisture and color to the baked goods. If you went this route, it’s likely that your cookies will stay puffy and taste drier than mine.

But how do you accidentally reduce the sugar in the recipe? Similar to how you accidentally use too much flour in a recipe—by failing to use measuring cups and spoons properly. Read my instructions in the question above on how to scoop and fill a measuring cup the right way.

You used chocolate chips instead of fèves or chopped chocolate.

Chocolate chips are made with stabilizers like more cocoa solids and paraffin wax (yes, the kind of wax candles are made out of) to ensure that they keep their shape when baked. They tend to stay 3-dimensional, leading to a puffy cookie that doesn’t fall flat.

You are baking chilled cookie dough but didn’t thaw the dough slightly beforehand.

In the FAQ section below, I give you options to freeze your cookie dough for baking later. However, note that you’ll need to thaw the cookie dough slightly when baking from frozen.

What does that mean? Simply set the cookie dough out on a lined sheet pan (the same one you’re planning on baking the cookies on!) as the oven preheats. It usually takes about 10 to 15 minutes for most ovens to preheat. The 10 to 15 minutes out at room temperature will allow the cookie dough to thaw slightly and bake up nicely in the oven. If you skip this thaw, your cookies will come out puffy!

Help! I made these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies but they don’t look like your cookies. My chocolate stayed mostly in tact. They didn’t melt and pool throughout the cookie like yours did. What did I do wrong?

First things first: did you use chocolate chips? If you did, they’re the likely culprit.

I mentioned earlier that chocolate chips are made with stabilizers like more cocoa solids and paraffin wax to ensure that they keep their shape when baked. They won’t melt and pool into puddles like chopped chocolate bars. That’s why I always recommend using chopped chocolate if you’re looking for a picture-perfect, Instagram-ready cookie!

However, if you did use chopped chocolate, it’s likely that you chopped your chocolate up too finely. You want to keep the pieces fairly big—think: ½ inch to 1 inch pieces. Bigger pieces will get more melty and molten!

FAQ: Storing Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

How To Store Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

After baking, the pumpkin chocolate chip cookies can be stored in an airtight container or zip-top bag at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Can you freeze pumpkin chocolate chip cookies?

You can freeze pumpkin chocolate chip cookies in the following ways:

1. Freeze the UNBAKED pumpkin chocolate chip cookie dough.
   Follow the recipe instructions to make the cookie dough and scoop them out into cookie dough balls. Place the cookie dough balls in a small sheet pan. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 1 hour, or until the cookie dough balls are frozen solid. Transfer the cookie dough balls to a zip-top bag and freeze for up to 1 year.
   
   To bake the frozen cookie dough balls, line sheet pans with parchment paper and position the cookie dough balls at least 3 inches apart on the sheet pans. Then, follow the recipe instructions to preheat the oven. Bake for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the edges have set but the centers are still gooey.
   
   
2. Freeze the BAKED pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.
   Individually wrap any leftover chocolate chip cookies in two layers of plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil. The aluminum foil will prevent the cookies from absorbing any other flavors or odors in the freezer. When ready to serve, transfer to the refrigerator to chill overnight. Rewarm in the microwave or in the oven at 350°F for 5 minutes before serving.

More Pumpkin Recipes

• Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
• Libby’s Pumpkin Pie Recipe, Elevated
• Overnight Pumpkin French Toast
• Pumpkin Pie Spice Pull Apart Knots
• Pumpkin Spice Pull Apart Bread
• Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

More Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipes

• Brown Butter Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Chocolate Chip Cookies With Powdered Sugar
• Earl Grey Chocolate Chip Cookies
• My Best Chocolate Chip Cookie Cake Recipe
• My Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe
• Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies
• S’mores Chocolate Chip Cookies
• The Easiest Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever
• The Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe, Elevated
• Vegan Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies