Two years ago, I posted a recipe for pumpkin cookies with chocolate pieces, they were really good, but the texture was more of a cakey cookie which is pretty common for pumpkin cookies due to the moisture that pumpkin has.

After a couple of tests, I finally came up with this recipe that will be your favorite chocolate chip cookie not just for Fall season but for the whole year.

In this recipe, you will find interesting things like:

*I just use light brown sugar (no granulated sugar). Light brown sugar will give a darker and a touch of caramel flavor.

*I don’t use eggs, not even an egg white. Why? Because, we do not want to add more moisture. Pumpkin has enough.

*You have to blot the pumpkin puree. I use 3 layers of paper towels, spread it out and scoop it out. Do this procedure twice. You just need 1/4 cup of pumpkin puree AFTER blotting.

*Baking soda: yes, baking powder: no. Baking soda will make them crunchier and chewier.

*I use chocolate chips and chocolate chunks. It gives a nice look to the cookies.

*Flatten the cookies with the palm of your hand. Do it gently but press them down good, otherwise they won’t spread nicely when baking.

Remember, this recipe is for CHEWY AND COOKIES WITH A GOOD CRUNCH. They are not cakey at all.

If you want to see how I made this recipe, visit me on Instagram @pastry_tales

Let’s start with these delicious cookies…

Yield about 15-18 regular size cookies.

Ingredients

1/2 cup of unsalted browned butter, slightly cooled

1 cup light brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling), after blotted.

1 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour. Measure your flour right, spooned and leveled.

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

*To make your own pumpkin pie spice, mix 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger and ¼ teaspoon ground cloves. 

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 cup chocolate chips or the amount you prefer.

1/2 cup chocolate chunks or the amount you prefer.

*Note: If you want, you can add chopped nuts too like walnuts or pecans.

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

1.- First, we are going to take some moisture off the pumpkin puree. Don’t skip this step because if you don’t take some of the moisture off, your cookies will be soggy and won’t have a nice crumb. Spread the pumpkin puree on layers of paper towels and press down squeezing the moisture out of (you have to do this 2 times), you can use a spoon. After this process you have to end up with 1/4 cup pumpkin puree (not less/more). Set aside.

2.-In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, place the butter and cook for about 3-4 minutes. First, the butter will foam a bit, then subside. This is the moment when the butter will start to brown, so you have to watch carefully and stir constantly. Smell the butter, you’ll get a nutty aroma. Remove from the heat and pour the butter into a glass bowl and scrape all of those brown bits from the bottom. Let it cool for 5 minutes. This is called browned butter.

3.- In a bowl and using an electric mixer, mix browned butter, vanilla extract and pumpkin puree. Mix in medium-high speed for about 5 minutes. At the beginning it will look like crumbs but keep mixing until you get a smooth orange mixture. Add in all the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon. Mix until everything is well combined, your mixture will look a bit dry but that is totally fine. Add in your chocolate chips and chunks, mix and that’s it.

4.- Scoop small cookie balls and place them on top of your prepared baking sheets.  I used a small ice cream scoop, but you can use a regular spoon and roll them with the palm of your hands. If you want, grab 2 or 3 chocolate chips/chunks and place them on top of each cookie ball. Flatten the cookies with the palm of your hand.

5.- Bake for 12-13 minutes until the tops and edges are slightly golden. Take the baking sheets out from the oven and let the cookies cool off on the sheets for about 10 minutes, then transfer them carefully to cooling racks.

That’s all! I hope you enjoy these cookies as much as I do.

Enjoy!

Store cookies tightly covered at room temperature for up to 4 days.