Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies are easy to make with crisp edges, with a soft, chewy center! With a few tips, you can create bakery-quality cookies!
author’s note
The Only Pumpkin Cookie Recipe You’ll Ever Need!
Don’t get me wrong, I love a traditional puffy pumpkin cookie, but in my opinion, those recipes produce more of a thin, round cake than a crisp, chewy cookie.
The goal for these cookies was to create an actual cookie with a crisp bottom and edges and a soft, chewy interior. No cakey consistency here!
These cookies are perfection: thin and crispy with the ideal soft and chewy center. So, if you’ve been searching for a pumpkin cookie that isn’t cakey, this is your recipe!
Ingredients
| Ingredient | Tip / Swap |
|---|---|
| Unsalted butter | Use room-temperature butter for the best creaming. |
| Brown sugar | Light brown sugar gives chewiness. Dark brown adds a deeper molasses note. |
| Pumpkin puree | Use 100% canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling). If it seems overly wet, pat it with paper towels first. |
| Egg yolk | Creates richness without adding too much moisture. Save the white for meringues. |
| Quick oats | Essential for the chewy bite. Avoid swapping with old-fashioned oats. |
| Spices | Cinnamon and nutmeg bring warmth. Add pumpkin pie spice if you want more punch. |
| Chocolate chips | A mix of semi-sweet and dark chips adds depth. White chocolate also pairs nicely. |
How To Make Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Prep: Preheat the oven and line a baking sheet.
- Cream: Beat room-temperature butter and sugars until creamy.
- Mix: Add pumpkin, egg yolk, and vanilla; mix well.
- Combine: Stir in spices, baking agents, oats, and flour; fold in chocolate chips.
- Chill: Refrigerate dough for about an hour. Don’t rush this!
- Shape: Roll into large balls and place on the baking sheet. Bake and enjoy!
Featured Comment
“I followed the directions and ended up with some of the best cookies I have ever made/eaten. I used a baking sheet, topped with a silicone mat then wax paper and the bottoms came out perfect. Thank you for the recipe.”
– Kevin
Quick Tip
Chill the dough twice: first after mixing, and again after rolling into balls. This prevents the dough from being too soft initially and too warm after rolling. Cold dough balls in a hot oven create the perfect cookie texture.
Storage
Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Storage
While most cookies taste best fresh from the oven, these taste even better at room temperature and have a richer pumpkin flavor the next day. Leave them not covered on a plate to keep them dry.
After baking, let them cool on a wire rack to stop the bottoms from getting soggy.
Use Leftover Pumpkin In One Of These:
Desserts
Pumpkin Pecan Pie
Desserts
Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Desserts
Pumpkin Cupcake Recipe
Desserts
Pumpkin Coffee Cake Recipe
Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Video
Equipment
- Large sheet pan (15" x 21")
- Parchment paper or a silicon baking mat
Ingredients
- 12 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature, see note 1
- 1 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons canned pumpkin not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 large egg yolk discard or save the whites for another recipe
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice see note 2
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups quick oats see note 3
- 1-1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Add room-temperature butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar to a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. Beat until creamy, scraping the sides as needed. Add pumpkin, egg yolk, and vanilla, and mix to incorporate.
- Add cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and quick oats to the mixture. Beat until combined. Add flour and mix until no streaks remain, then fold in both chocolate chips and mix.
- Cover and place the bowl of dough in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Roll chilled dough into large, 3-tablespoon balls or 58 grams (see note 4). Roll to be taller instead of wider and place on a parchment-lined tray. Batter should make 18–20 cookies. Chill dough balls in the fridge for 15–20 minutes. While dough balls are chilling, preheat oven to 350℉. Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat.
- Add only 6 dough balls to a sheet pan at a time, spacing them out well. Bake 12–15 minutes or until lightly browned at the edges and slightly gooey in the center. These cookies are best slightly underbaked! Right out of the oven, bang the sheet pan on the counter a few times to flatten the cookies slightly.
- Optionally, right after banging the pan, quickly press cookie edges inward with the back of a spoon, then press a few extra chocolate chips on top.
- Let cookies rest on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Repeat this process to bake all cookies. These cookies taste best at room temperature and even better the next day—the pumpkin flavor has intensified by then!
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Tips
- Chill twice: After mixing and again after rolling into balls. Cold dough bakes best.
- Pan bang: Drop the tray on the counter right after baking to flatten and keep cookies chewy.
- Shape edges: Use a spoon to push edges in right out of the oven.
- Go big: Larger dough balls give you a chewy middle with crisp edges.
- Next-day: Let them sit overnight uncovered so the pumpkin flavor gets stronger.
Favorite Cookie Baking Tools
- Silicone baking mats: For even baking + no burnt bottoms.
- Cookie scoop: Ensures consistent size for chewy texture.
- Food scale: Accurate measuring = perfect results.
Thanks for the amazing, entire family-pleasing recipe! Just a quick note-old fashioned oats worked well for anyone else that’s fearing the difference from your ingredients list/note! (I was too lazy in MN when it was -10 to go to the store!:)
I am so thrilled to hear this! Thanks so much Stacie! 🙂
Thank you so much for posting a non cakey pumpkin cc cookie! I made them this evening and they were devine.
So thrilled you enjoyed these! Thanks Anna! 🙂
These cookies are amazing!! I just rolled regular dough balls and froze on baking sheets. Then loaded frozen dough balls into zip-lock bags until ready to bake.
They were eaten with rave reviews and I had to give everyone the recipe!
I am so happy to hear this! Thanks! 🙂
I made the Pumpkin oatmeal chocolate chip cookies yesterday and WOW!! We loved them. I’ll admit chilling the dough and the extra steps necessary was not something I generally would want to do when making cookies, but it was well worth it in the end. One of my friends asked for the recipe after trying them. This will definitely replace any other pumpkin cookie recipes I have.
So happy you enjoyed these cookies; thank you! 🙂
These are SO good! My new favorite pumpkin cookies! I was really worried bc my dough was very sticky. I probably should have chilled it before scooping it, but I didn’t have time for that. I scooped it and formed the balls right away and then let them chill over night. I absolutely loved them! I noticed you have several pumpkin cookie recipes and I was wondering which is your favorite bc I definitely want to try more, although I’ll be shocked if these can be topped!
Yay!! So, so happy to hear that 🙂 I’m glad these were a hit! Hmm that’s a hard question; I’d probably say these pumpkin snickerdoodles are my favorite!
These are terrific, and just what I was in the mood for!
So happy to hear that!! Thanks for the comment and review Kristi 🙂
How much sugar is in these cookies?
It’s all in the recipe card; 1 and 1/2 cups 🙂
A great new addition to my cookie favorites. I made a gluten free /low sugar version of these cookies that turned out delicious! For the flour I substituted 3/4 c Bob’s Red Mill GF Baking flour and 3/4 c Almond Flour. I also used GF Quick oats. I cut the sugar in half (1/4 white sugar and 1/2 cup brown sugar) and the cookies were still plenty sweet. When baking them I simply made a big dough ball and cooked them about 12 -14 minutes on parchment paper lined baking sheet. The cookies came out nice and moist! I topped them with a few chips as the recipe called for after they came out of the oven which gave them a nice finish!
I followed the directions with exactness and these still turned out as flat as a pancake. My baking soda and powder were brand new. I chilled twice as indicated. They seem uncooked even after waiting. Taste good but too flat. Won’t be making again.
I LOVE ANYTHING pumpkin!!!! I made some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies recently, and they came out soft but were dry and hard as they cooled. I ended up tossing them out. The oatmeal had been frozen in the container so that may have affected the results?