Pumpkin Crinkle Cookies with Pure Pumpkin and Warm Spices
By Victor Lang
Prep
15 min
Cook
12 min
Total
27 min
Servings
24
Level
Easy
Use plain canned pumpkin puree to make pumpkin crinkle cookies. Adding pumpkin puree to the cookies gives them a soft, cake-like center. Toppings such as cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves and white crinkle icing applied to the cookies as they bake and rise give the cookies their distinctive appearance.
I add sugar and oil to a bowl. I add pumpkin to that mixture before adding egg and vanilla and flour. The mixture is quite soft before forming. Once chilled for at least an hour, it is firm enough to roll into a ball and slice with a knife during baking.
To decorate the cookies, I roll the cold dough balls first in granulated sugar, then in plenty of powdered sugar to make sure they're completely covered. The granulated sugar takes on surface moisture, while the powdered sugar keeps its white color to show crack lines as the cookies bake. Using a 1.5-tablespoon cookie scoop ensures even baking of all the cookies.
Bake the cookies until the edges are set and the surfaces are cracked. The middle of the cookies is likely to be undercooked when they're removed from the oven. The cookies will finish cooking on the baking sheets for a few minutes after being removed from the oven and won't turn out dry and crumbly if cooked longer. I suggest serving these cookies with a cup of hot coffee.
Reasons to make this
- Plain pumpkin contains the flavor of pumpkin but no sugar or spice typically included in pumpkin pie filling.
- Cinnamon and cloves are added to the dough along with the pumpkin.
- Vegetable oil produces a cakey texture in cookies cooled on wire racks.
- Cream of tartar and baking soda help the dough rise and crack through the coating.
- One cup of pumpkin will yield 24 cookies in one batch of dough.
- The white topping is suitable for Thanksgiving and Christmas desserts.
Ingredients
- •1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- •1 teaspoon baking soda
- •½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- •½ teaspoon salt
- •1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- •½ teaspoon ground ginger
- •¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- •⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- •1 cup granulated sugar (plus 1/4 cup for rolling)
- •½ cup vegetable oil
- •1 cup pumpkin puree (use 100% pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling)
- •1 large egg
- •1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- •½ cup powdered sugar (for rolling)
Instructions
- 1
Whisk the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and spices in a medium bowl.
- 2
Beat 1 cup granulated sugar and the vegetable oil in a large bowl with an electric mixer, then beat in the pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth.
- 3
Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture on low speed, stopping as soon as combined.
- 4
Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour, until firm.
- 5
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, then put the remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar and the 1/2 cup powdered sugar into separate shallow bowls.
- 6
Scoop the chilled dough into 1.5-tablespoon-sized balls. Roll each ball in granulated sugar, then coat it generously in powdered sugar.
- 7
Place the dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are set and the tops are crackled. Cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
FAQ
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
110
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