Vegan Pumpkin Cookies

These vegan pumpkin cookies all started with half a can of pumpkin left over from another recipe and nothing to do on a random Tuesday night. I figured I’d mess around and see what happened—but it turned out to be way more than just a casual experiment.

The smell hit me first – like fall decided to move into my kitchen. Then I tried one while it was still warm, and honestly, I may have made weird happy noises. My neighbor showed up the next morning asking what I’d been baking because the whole hallway smelled incredible.

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe

I’m gonna be real with you – most pumpkin cookies suck. They’re either too dry, too cakey, or taste like cardboard with pumpkin stickers on it. These cookies are none of those things. They’re soft, they’re chewy, and they actually taste like pumpkin instead of just orange-colored sugar cookies.

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📝 Ingredient List

For the Cookie Base:

• 1 cup pumpkin purée (canned or homemade, reduced to about ¾ cup)
• ¾ cup vegan butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

For Rolling:

• Extra granulated sugar for coating

You can swap vegan butter for coconut oil if that’s what you have. Just make sure it’s soft. And if you hate brown sugar for some reason, use all white sugar, but you’ll miss out on some flavor.

🔍 Why These Ingredients Work

Okay, so reducing the pumpkin sounds like extra work, but here’s the thing – pumpkin purée is basically water with pumpkin flavor. If you don’t get rid of some of that water, your cookies will be sad and cakey. I learned this the hard way after my first batch turned into pumpkin muffin tops.

The brown sugar isn’t just there for sweetness – it adds this deep, molasses flavor that makes the pumpkin taste more pumpkin-y. And that sugar you roll the dough in? That’s what makes those pretty cracks happen when they bake.

Essential Tools and Equipment

• Big bowl for mixing
• Electric mixer (or really strong arms and patience)
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Cookie scoop or big spoon
• Baking sheets
• Parchment paper
• Paper towels for the pumpkin thing
• Small pan if you’re simmering the pumpkin

👩🍳 How To Make Vegan Pumpkin Cookies

1. Deal With Your Pumpkin Take that pumpkin purée and either blot it with paper towels until you’ve soaked up a bunch of liquid, or dump it in a pan and simmer it while stirring until it’s thicker. You want about ¾ cup when you’re done. I know it’s annoying, but do it anyway.

2. Beat the Butter and Sugar Cream your vegan butter with both sugars for about 4 minutes. It should look fluffy and lighter in color. This is important – don’t skip this step or rush it.

3. Add Your Pumpkin Mix in that reduced pumpkin you just made. Add vanilla too if you’re using it. The mixture might look weird, but that’s normal.

4. Add the Flour Stuff In another bowl, whisk together flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Dump this into your pumpkin mixture and stir just until you don’t see dry flour anymore. Stop stirring.

5. Let It Chill (Maybe) If your dough is super sticky, let it sit for 30 minutes. Don’t add more flour – just be patient.

6. Shape Them Heat your oven to 350°F. Scoop about 3 tablespoons of dough, roll it into a ball, then roll it in sugar. The sugar coating is what makes them crack prettily.

7. Bake Put them on parchment paper with space between each cookie. Bake for 12-15 minutes until the edges look set but the middles still look a little underdone.

8. Cool Down Let them sit on the pan for 5 minutes before you move them. They’ll flatten out and crack as they cool, which is exactly what we want.

Tips from Well-Known Chefs

What Martha Stewart says: “Always reduce moisture in pumpkin when baking. It concentrates flavor and prevents soggy results.”

Ina Garten’s thing: “Room temperature ingredients cream better. Take your butter out early.”

❗ You Must Know

Don’t skip the pumpkin reducing thing. I know it seems like a pain, but I’ve tried skipping it and ended up with cookies that were more like sad pumpkin pancakes. The water content really does matter.

What I always do: Make double the recipe and freeze half the dough balls. When I want cookies, I just bake them straight from the freezer – takes maybe 2 extra minutes.

💡 Pro Tips & Cooking Hacks

When you measure flour, don’t scoop it straight from the bag – you’ll pack it down and get too much. Spoon it into your measuring cup instead. And seriously, don’t add extra flour even if the dough seems soft. It’ll get firmer as it sits.

I always use parchment paper because these can stick a little. And take them out when they still look slightly underdone – they’ll keep cooking on the hot pan. This is what makes them chewy instead of crunchy.

🎨 Flavor Variations / Suggestions

Add chocolate chips: Fold in about ¾ cup of vegan chocolate chips because chocolate and pumpkin are best friends Go nuts: Add chopped pecans or walnuts if you’re into that Make them fancy: Drizzle cooled cookies with maple syrup mixed with powdered sugar Cranberry situation: Dried cranberries and a little orange zest make these feel more festive Extra spicy: Add more cinnamon and ginger if you like things with a kick

⏲️ Make-Ahead Options

You can make the dough up to 3 days ahead and just keep it covered in the fridge. The dough balls freeze really well for up to 2 months – just bake them straight from frozen and add a minute or two.

I keep a container of these dough balls in my freezer all the time. When I want fresh cookies, I just pop a few in the oven while I’m making coffee. It’s like having a cookie shop in my kitchen.

Recipe Notes & Baker’s Tips

The whole trick is getting the water out of the pumpkin. If you skip this step, your cookies will be soft and cake-like instead of chewy. I know because I’ve done it and been disappointed.

When you pull them out of the oven, they’ll look a little underdone in the middle. That’s what you want. They’ll finish cooking on the hot pan, and this is what makes them chewy instead of hard little hockey pucks.

🍽️ Serving Suggestions

These are great with coffee – they’re sturdy enough to dunk but won’t fall apart in your cup. I also like crumbling them on top of vanilla ice cream, or just eating them while standing in the kitchen at midnight.

If you’re bringing them somewhere, they look fancy enough that people will think you bought them from a bakery. I always keep some in the freezer for when I need to bring something to a party and forgot until the last minute.

I hope these become one of your fall regulars. There’s something really satisfying about watching them crack and flatten as they cool – it means you did it right. Let me know how they turn out! 🍪

🧊 How to Store Your Vegan Pumpkin Cookies

On the counter: Keep them in a container with a lid for about 5 days In the fridge: They’ll stay good for up to 2 weeks in there In the freezer: Baked cookies freeze for up to 2 months, dough balls even longer To reheat: Warm them in a 300°F oven for a couple minutes if you want them to taste fresh-baked again

⚠️ Allergy Information

Contains: Gluten (from flour) Dairy-Free: Yes, completely vegan Egg-Free: Yes, no eggs used Nut-Free: Yes, unless you add nuts as a variation

Gluten-Free Option: Substitute with a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend Sugar-Free Option: Use coconut sugar or a sugar substitute designed for baking

❓Questions I Get Asked A Lot

Why do I need to reduce the pumpkin purée?

Because pumpkin is basically flavored water, and water makes cookies weird and cakey. Getting rid of some moisture concentrates the flavor and gives you the chewy texture you want.

Can I use fresh pumpkin instead of canned?

Sure, but you’ll need to cook it, mash it, and then reduce it way more than canned pumpkin. Fresh pumpkin has tons more water.

My dough is sticky – should I add more flour?

No way. Just let it sit for 30 minutes and it’ll firm up. Adding flour will make your cookies dry and nobody wants that.

How do I know when the cookies are done?

They should look slightly underdone when you take them out. The edges will be set but the centers will still look soft. They’ll finish cooking on the hot pan.

Can I make these ahead of time?

Yep. Dough keeps in the fridge for 3 days, or freeze the dough balls for months. Baked cookies are good for about 5 days on the counter.

💬 Made these cookies? Tell me how it went! I love hearing about people’s baking adventures, especially if you tried something different with them. Did you add chocolate chips? Go crazy with the spices? Let me know in the comments – I get excited about this stuff!