Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies have light, airy centers, cinnamon and nutmeg, and a powdered sugar coating that cracks as they bake. Baking with pumpkin and spices is one of my favorite ways to welcome fall cookie season.
I was surprised by how light and airy these cookies were inside. The outside has a little crust from the powdered sugar.
For more pumpkin cookies, try my pumpkin sugar cookies or pumpkin spice snickerdoodles.
A Quick Look: Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies
Recipe Name: Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies
Ready In: About four to five hours, including three to four hours of chilling
Yield: 28 cookies
Texture: Light, airy centers with a lightly crusty powdered sugar coating
Flavor Profile: Pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla
Difficulty: Easy
Why You'll Love These Cookies
- 🍪 Soft centers: The inside is light and airy, with a little crust from the powdered sugar on the outside.
- 🎃 Pumpkin and spice: Cinnamon and nutmeg bring out the fall flavors in these pumpkin cookies.
- ✨ A crinkle finish: Roll the dough balls in powdered sugar before baking for a cracked coating without making icing.
Ingredients for Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies
- Pure pumpkin puree: Use plain pumpkin puree for this recipe. Pumpkin pie filling has added sugar and spices, so it is not a direct substitute.
- Unsalted butter: Bring the butter to room temperature before mixing it with the sugar.
- Cinnamon and nutmeg: These are the two spices I use with the pumpkin. See my cinnamon comparison below if you like trying different types.
- Confectioners' sugar: This is the powdered sugar used to coat the dough balls before baking. Roll each ball until it is covered to give the cookies their crinkle finish.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Choosing Your Cinnamon
I have four different containers of cinnamon currently in my pantry: Ceylon (Spice House), Ground (McCormick), Korintje (Pampered Chef), and Vietnamese (Penzeys).
So, this is my take on how and what I would use each type of cinnamon. McCormick's ground I keep in my pantry from the old days before I realized there were other types of cinnamon. It is still a good staple for anyone, but try different brands to kick up your cinnamon taste.
The Korintje cinnamon reminds me of the cinnamon sugar I used to put on my buttered toast as a kid; it is a little sweeter. I have used this cinnamon in one or two cookies.
That leaves the Ceylon and the Vietnamese cinnamons as my go-to types for baking cookies. How do I decide which to use? If I have a cookie with cinnamon in the name, I want a bold cinnamon to stand up and be noticed, so I grab the Vietnamese by Penzeys.
But that does not mean I do not enjoy the Ceylon, which is just slightly milder in intensity. This is more of my blend-in and plays nice with the other spices cinnamon.
Try one against the one you currently use and see if you can tell a difference. If you bake a lot, it will only take a short time to go through the bottle, so it will not be a waste of money.
How to Make Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies
Plan for the chilling time before you start. The dough needs to firm up enough to scoop and roll in powdered sugar.
Prep
Step 1: Weigh or measure the granulated sugar into a bowl and set it aside. In a separate bowl, weigh or measure the flour, then add the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk to blend.
Mix the Dough
Step 2: Cube the room-temperature butter into a mixer bowl. Mix on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes.
Step 3: Add the granulated sugar and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. There is more sugar than butter, so the mixture will not look completely smooth.
Step 4: Add the egg, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract. Mix for 1 to 2 minutes. The mixture may look broken at this point, but it comes together when you add the flour.
Step 5: With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture about a third at a time, mixing just until incorporated before adding the next portion.
Chill
The pumpkin puree, butter, and egg make this a soft dough. Chilling gives it time to firm up so you can scoop it, shape it into balls, and roll it in powdered sugar.
Step 6: Scrape down the sides of the bowl, lightly cover it, and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. You can use the freezer for 1 hour to speed up the chilling. The dough should be firm enough to scoop and roll, though it may still feel a little tacky. If it is too loose, return it to the freezer for another 15 minutes.
Scoop and Bake
Step 7: Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C) and line 2 cookie sheet pans with parchment paper. Set a small bowl of powdered sugar beside the chilled dough and prepared sheet pan.
Step 8: Use a cookie scoop or spoon to portion the dough, then form balls about 1½ inches across. Keep them about the same size so they bake evenly. Roll each ball in the powdered sugar until covered and place 12 on a prepared sheet pan.
Step 9: Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. The powdered sugar coating will crack as the cookies bake. Move the cookies to a cooling rack after taking them out of the oven.
🫙🍪 Storage
Let the cookies cool completely before storing. I keep mine in a container on the counter with the lid cracked to allow airflow. They are at their best for the first three or four days. After that, the powdered sugar coating starts to dissolve into the cookies.
FAQs
The dough may feel a little tacky, but it should hold its shape when rolled. If it is too soft, chill it longer before continuing.
Use plain pumpkin puree for this recipe. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sugar and spices, which would change the balance of the cookie dough.
The powdered sugar absorbs moisture from these soft pumpkin cookies and gradually dissolves, making the white coating less noticeable. Let the cookies cool completely before storing so you don't trap extra moisture in the container.
Still Have Questions?
Need help with ingredient swaps or wondering if these cookies freeze well? I've added a few extra baking helpers below for common home baker questions.
Other Pumpkin Delights
If you tried this Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies recipe or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a ⭐ star rating and share your thoughts in the comments. Thanks!
Recipe
Soft Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113.5 g) Butter unsalted room temperature
- 1 ½ cups (300 g) Granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 cup (245 g) Pure pumpkin puree
- 1 Egg
- 2 ½ cup (312.5 g) All-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup (62.5 g) Confectioner sugar Enough to roll cookie balls in
Instructions
- Weigh or measure the granulated sugar into a bowl and set it aside. In a separate bowl, weigh or measure the flour, then add the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Whisk to blend.
- Cube the room-temperature butter into a mixer bowl. Mix on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the granulated sugar and mix on medium speed for 3 minutes. There is more sugar than butter, so the mixture will not look completely smooth.Add the egg, pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract. Mix for 1 to 2 minutes. The mixture may look broken at this point, but it comes together when you add the flour.With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture about a third at a time, mixing just until incorporated before adding the next portion.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl, lightly cover it, and refrigerate for 3 to 4 hours. You can use the freezer for 1 hour to speed up the chilling. The dough should be firm enough to scoop and roll, though it may still feel a little tacky. If it is too loose, return it to the freezer for another 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C) and line 2 cookie sheet pans with parchment paper. Set a small bowl of powdered sugar beside the chilled dough and prepared sheet pan.Use a cookie scoop or spoon to portion the dough, then form balls about 1½ inches across. Keep them about the same size so they bake evenly. Roll each ball in the powdered sugar until covered and place 12 on a prepared sheet pan.
- Bake for 13 to 15 minutes. The powdered sugar coating will crack as the cookies bake. Move the cookies to a cooling rack after taking them out of the oven.
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NUTRITION DISCLAIMER
I am not a certified Dietitian or Nutritionist. The nutrition amounts given below are provided through a program and are only a guideline.
Sonia Lott says
Can I freeze the dough balls and bake at a later time?
Barbara says
Hi Sonia, I have not done this, but others have, so yes, to freeze them and bake them later. Don't forget to thaw them some so you can roll them in the powdered sugar before baking them.
Cheers,
Barbara