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pumpkin oatmeal cookies recipe

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies Recipe

These pumpkin oatmeal cookies are soft, chewy, warmly spiced, and perfect for cozy fall baking (or anytime you crave a simple homemade cookie). With buttery oats, rich pumpkin, and a sweet drizzle on top, they’re the kind of cookies everyone reaches for first.
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Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 25 Cookies
Calories 113 kcal

Equipment

  • Mixing bowls
  • Hand mixer or stand mixer
  • Spatula
  • Cookie scoop
  • Baking sheet + parchment paper
  • Cooling rack

Ingredients
  

For the Cookies

  • Butter – 115g (½ cup), softened
  • Brown Sugar – 100g (½ cup)
  • Granulated Sugar – 50g
  • Egg Yolk – 1
  • Vanilla Essence – 1 tsp
  • Pumpkin Puree – 100g (canned, blotted to remove extra moisture)
  • All-Purpose Flour – 130g
  • Pumpkin Spice – 1 tsp
  • Baking Soda – ½ tsp
  • Salt – ¼ tsp
  • Old-Fashioned Oats – 1 cup

For the Glaze

  • 1 cup powdered sugar (120g)
  • 2–3 tbsp milk (as needed)
  • ¼ tsp vanilla
  • Pinch of cinnamon (optional)

Instructions
 

1. Preheat the oven

  • Preheat your oven to 165°C (329°F). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

2. Prepare the pumpkin

  • If you haven’t already, make sure your 100 g pumpkin puree is not watery. Excess moisture will make the dough too loose and produce cakier cookies. To remove moisture:
    Put the pumpkin puree in a fine mesh sieve or a couple of layers of paper towel placed in a small bowl.
    Press gently with the back of a spoon or fold the towel over and press with your hands to squeeze out excess water.
    Let it sit for 3–5 minutes while you measure the other ingredients; you want it thick, not syrupy. You should end up with close to 100 g of thick pumpkin puree.

3. Cream the butter and sugars

  • Put 115 g softened butter (room temperature, not melted) into a medium mixing bowl.
    Add 100 g brown sugar and 50 g granulated sugar.
    Beat (with a hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle) for 2–3 minutes until the mixture is pale and fluffy. This step traps tiny air bubbles and gives a lighter texture to the finished cookie. Scrape the bowl down once or twice so everything is evenly mixed.

4. Add the wet ingredients

  • Add 1 egg yolk and 1 tsp vanilla essence to the creamed butter and sugars. Beat until combined.
    Add the 100 g prepared pumpkin puree and mix until the batter is smooth and uniform. The batter will be fairly soft but not runny if the pumpkin was properly drained.

5. Whisk the dry ingredients

  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients:
    130 g all-purpose flour
    1 tsp pumpkin spice
    ½ tsp baking soda
    ¼ tsp salt
    Make sure there are no lumps of spice or baking soda — a quick whisk distributes everything evenly.

6. Combine wet and dry ingredients

  • Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture in two additions. Mix on low speed (or fold by hand) just until the flour is fully incorporated. Don’t overmix — overworking the dough develops gluten and can make the cookies tough.
    The dough should look thick and slightly sticky.

7. Fold in the oats

  • Add 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats to the dough.
    Use a spatula to fold them in gently until evenly distributed. The oats give the cookies structure and chew; folding by hand keeps the texture nice and rustic.

8. Scoop and flatten

  • Use a medium cookie scoop (about 1.5 tablespoons or roughly 30 g of dough) to portion the cookies. You can also weigh them if you prefer consistency.
    Place scoops about 5 cm (2 in) apart on the prepared baking sheet — these cookies don’t spread wildly, but they do need space to bake evenly.
    Lightly flatten each scoop with the back of a spoon or your fingertips so the top is just slightly pressed down. Cookies in this recipe bake best with a low, even profile so the center stays chewy and the edges crisp.

9. Bake

  • Bake in the preheated oven at 165°C / 329°F for 10–12 minutes.
    You’re looking for the edges to be set and slightly golden while the center still looks a touch soft. They will finish setting as they cool.
    Rotate the pans once halfway through baking if your oven has hot spots.

10. Cool

  • Remove the tray from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. This lets them firm up a little so they transfer cleanly.
    Move cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before glazing. If you glaze while they’re warm, the glaze will melt and run off.

11. Make the glaze (simple vanilla-cinnamon glaze)

  • While the cookies cool, mix up a quick glaze:
    120 g (about 1 cup) powdered sugar, sifted
    1–2 tbsp milk (start with 1 tbsp)
    ¼ tsp vanilla extract
    Pinch of cinnamon (optional)
    Whisk together until smooth. If the glaze is too thick, add a drop more milk; if too thin, add a little more powdered sugar. You want a pourable but not watery glaze.

12. Drizzle the glaze

  • Once the cookies are completely cool, spoon the glaze into a small zip-top bag and snip a tiny corner, or use a small piping bag or fork.
    Drizzle the glaze over the cookies in a back and forth motion or do a thin layer over each cookie. If you want a thicker decorative line, let the first glaze set (about 10–15 minutes) and add another layer.
    Let the glaze set for at least 20–30 minutes before storing.

Video

Keyword oatmeal cookies, pumpkin cookies, pumpkin oatmeal cookies