Sourdough Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
When I set out to make these, I wanted a pumpkin cookie that was actually chewy, not cakey, and packed with warm spices. These Sourdough Pumpkin Snickerdoodles check every box, with real pumpkin, brown butter, and plenty of cinnamon sugar. You’ll want to make sure these are next on your fall baking list!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Thick + chewy texture: The texture is the real star here. These cookies bake up soft and chewy in the center with just enough structure to hold their shape, giving you that perfect chew.
- Brown butter flavor: Brown butter adds a rich flavor to these cookies that pairs perfectly with the pumpkin and spice.
- A great way to use up discard: Have discard hanging out in the frig? This recipe puts it to good use. You can also let this cookie dough rest overnight in the frig for extra fermentation benefits!
- Perfect for fall: Pumpkin, cozy spices, and cinnamon sugar make these the ultimate fall cookie.
Tools You’ll Need:
- Medium sized pot- for browning the butter.
- Large mixing bowl or stand mixer bowl- for mixing your cookie dough.
- Electric mixer (stand or hand-held)– for combining dough.
- Spatula– for scraping down bowl.
- Parchment paper or silicone mats– to line cookie sheet to avoid burning.
- Baking sheets– to bake cookies.
- 2-ounce (approximately 4 tablespoons) cookie scoop– for shaping large cookies linked here. You can also use a kitchen scale to weigh them out if you prefer.
- Large circular cookie cutter (optional)– for perfectly shaped cookies. I use this set linked here. You can also use a small bowl for this.
- Small bowl- for cinnamon sugar coating.
- Wire cooling rack- for allowing cookies to rest properly.
Gather Your Ingredients:
- Unsalted Butter – Cooked down to make the brown butter that is so delicious in these cookies.
- Egg yolk– Adds richness and moisture to the cookie.
- Pumpkin Puree– Brings natural flavor to the cookies. Only use puree, do not use pumpkin pie filling. I like to use the brand Libby’s, it seems to carry less water.
- Sourdough Discard– Adds tangy flavor and moisture and is the magic that ferments your dough. Can be used fed, past peak, or straight from the fridge.
- Brown Sugar- adds sweetness and gives the cookies chew.
- White Granulated Sugar- Sweetens cookies and encourages the cookie to spread nicely. You’ll also need this for coating the cookies.
- Vanilla Extract – Adds depth and warmth to cookies.
- All-purpose flour – Provides structure and lift to the cookies.
- Baking Soda – Creates the perfect lift without over puffing the cookies.
- Cream of Tartar- Gives the cookies that classic snickerdoodle flavor.
- Sea Salt – Enhances overall flavor.
- Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg, and Cardamom-Â Rounds out the pumpkin flavor and brings that classic pumpkin spice warmth. You can substitute these spices for a pumpkin spice blend if you prefer, but I like to mix my own to guarantee the flavor is the same each time. See the recipe card for the pumpkin pie spice swap.
Instructions
Step 1: Brown the Butter
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the butter foams and turns a rich amber color with brown specks at the bottom, emitting a nutty aroma. Remove from heat immediately. This process typically takes about 5-7 minutes.
Once butter is browned, remove the saucepan from heat and transfer the butter to a the mixer bowl to cool to become thicker again. It should be cooled but still liquid.
Step 2: Prepare the Dough
In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled browned butter, brown sugar, and granulated white sugar. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream together for approximately 2 minutes until the mixture is well combined. It’ll be a bit crumbly, that’s okay!
Measure out the pumpkin purée, then place it on a plate lined with paper towels. Use another paper towel to blot the pumpkin to remove as much liquid as possible. After blotting, you should have a thick pumpkin mixture. Don’t skip this step! It’s what helps keep these cookies chewy instead of cakey.
You can also do this using a lint-free kitchen towel and squeezing out the extra water.
 Add the egg yolk, vanilla, sourdough discard, and reduced pumpkin puree to the sugar butter mixture.
Mix all of the wet ingredients on LOW until just combined.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt. You can substitute the spices for pumpkin pie spice blend, please see the notes to do this.
Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients on low just until no dry streaks remain. Avoid overmixing the cookie dough or the cookies will get tough.
Using a 2-ounce cookie scoop (approximately 4 tablespoons or 75g balls), portion out your cookie dough and roll into balls. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet, and cover with plastic wrap. Transfer to the refrigerator to chill.
Chilling of this dough is key to a a perfect cookie; make sure you chill the cookies at least 2 hours before you bake them for the best results.
Overnight Fermentation Option: For optimal fermentation, consider chilling the dough overnight. If chilling overnight, allow the dough balls to rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes before proceeding with baking as listed below.
Step 3: Roll and Bake the Cookies
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Allow the cookies to rest at room temperature while your oven preheats.
Stir together the granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom in a small bowl. You can also use pumpkin pie spice, see notes on how to substitute.
Roll the cookie dough balls well in the cinnamon sugar mixture. You want to make sure they get really well coated!
Arrange the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet with plenty of room between them for spreading. I like to arrange six to a sheet in 2 rows of 3 cookies.
Smash down the tops of the dough balls slightly with your palms, and sprinkle the tops with more cinnamon sugar mixture.
Bake the cookies for 16–18 minutes, or until the edges are set and the centers still look slightly soft. Don’t wait for the centers to look completely done, they’ll continue baking on the hot pan.
As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, smack the pans on the counter to encourage them to spread and crinkle. I love how this causes them to flatten and shape them.
For a perfectly round cookie, place a large cookie cutter or small bowl over the top of the cookie and amd move it in a circular motion to nudge all of the edges perfectly into shape.
Sprinkle the tops with more cinnamon sugar for extra flavor.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. As they cool, the centers will finish setting while staying soft and chewy.
Yields 14 2 oz cookies
How to Store:
Room temperature- Keep in an airtight container for 6-7 days. Place a slice of bread in the container to keep them soft.
Freezing- store baked cooled cookies in a Ziplock with all of the air removed first. Freeze for up to one month.
To freeze the cookie dough, portion and roll the dough into balls before freezing. Freeze on a baking sheet until firm, then transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container. Allow the dough to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then roll in the spiced sugar before baking.
FAQ’S
Yes! Replace the sourdough discard with 1/4 cup whole milk instead. You’ll add it in at the same step as you would the discard, and mix it into the wet ingredients.
This removes the extra water from the pumpkin and helps the cookies avoid becoming cakey.
No, you can use melted butter but the texture may not be as chewy.
If you loved this recipe, drop a comment and leave a star review and don’t forget to checkout more of my sourdough pumpkin recipes!
Sourdough Pumpkin Recipes:
- Sourdough Pumpkin Donuts (with brown sugar maple glaze)
- Sourdough Pumpkin Cinnamon Swirl Bread
- Sourdough Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins (with oat crumble!)
- Sourdough Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Sourdough Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Equipment
- Medium sized pot – for browning the butter.
- Large mixing bowl or stand mixer bowl – for mixing your cookie dough.
- Electric mixer (stand or hand-held) – for combining dough.
- Spatula – for scraping down bowl.
- Parchment paper or silicone mats – to line cookie sheet to avoid burning.
- Baking sheets – to bake cookies.
- 2-ounce (approximately 4 tablespoons) cookie scoop – for shaping large cookies linked here. You can also use a kitchen scale to weigh them out if you prefer.
- Large circular cookie cutter (optional) – for perfectly shaped cookies. I use this set linked here. You can also use a small bowl for this.
- Small Bowl – for cinnamon sugar coating.
- Wire cooling rack – for allowing cookies to rest properly.
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients:
- 1 (226g) cup unsalted butter
- 1 (200g) cup granulated white sugar
- 1 (200g) cup brown sugar
- ¾ (180g) cup pumpkin purée blotted very dry to 120g
- 1 egg yolk
- â…“ (80g) cup sourdough discard
Dry Ingredients:
- 3 (350g) cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger (replace the ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom with 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice if desired)
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- â…› tsp ground cardamom
- ¾ tsp fine sea salt
- 1½ tsp vanilla extract
Spiced Sugar Coating:
- ½ (100g) cup granulated white sugar
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger (replace the ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom with 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice if desired)
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- â…› tsp ground cardamom
Instructions
Step 1: Brown the Butter
- In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the butter foams and turns a rich amber color with brown specks at the bottom, emitting a nutty aroma. Remove from heat immediately. This process typically takes about 5-7 minutes.1 (226g) cup unsalted butter
- Once butter is browned, remove the saucepan from heat and transfer the butter to a the mixer bowl to cool to become thicker again. It should be cooled but still liquid.
Step 2: Prepare the Dough
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled browned butter, brown sugar, and granulated white sugar. Using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream together for approximately 2 minutes until the mixture is well combined. It’ll be a bit crumbly, that’s okay!1 (200g) cup granulated white sugar, 1 (200g) cup brown sugar
- Measure out the pumpkin purée, then place it on a plate lined with paper towels. Use another paper towel to blot the pumpkin to remove as much liquid as possible. After blotting, you should have a thick pumpkin mixture. Don’t skip this step! It’s what helps keep these cookies chewy instead of cakey.¾ (180g) cup pumpkin purée
- You can also do this using a lint-free kitchen towel and squeezing out the extra water.
- Add the egg yolk, vanilla, sourdough discard, and reduced pumpkin puree to the sugar butter mixture.1 egg yolk , ⅓ (80g) cup sourdough discard, 1½ tsp vanilla extract
- Mix all of the wet ingredients on LOW until just combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, and salt. You can substitute the spices for pumpkin pie spice blend, please see the notes to do this.3 (350g) cups all-purpose flour, 2 tsp cream of tartar, 1 tsp baking soda, 1½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg, ⅛ tsp ground cardamom, ¾ tsp fine sea salt
- Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients on low just until no dry streaks remain. Avoid overmixing the cookie dough or the cookies will get tough.
- Using a 2-ounce cookie scoop (approximately 4 tablespoons or 75g balls), portion out your cookie dough and roll into balls. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet, and cover with plastic wrap. Transfer to the refrigerator to chill.
- Chilling of this dough is key to a a perfect cookie; make sure you chill the cookies at least 2 hours before you bake them for the best results.
- Overnight Fermentation Option: For optimal fermentation, consider chilling the dough overnight. If chilling overnight, allow the dough balls to rest at room temperature for about 20 minutes before proceeding with baking as listed below.
Step 3: Roll and Bake the Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Allow the cookies to rest at room temperature while your oven preheats.
- Stir together the granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cardamom in a small bowl. You can also use pumpkin pie spice, see notes on how to substitute.½ (100g) cup granulated white sugar, 1½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg, ⅛ tsp ground cardamom
- Roll the cookie dough balls well in the cinnamon sugar mixture. You want to make sure they get really well coated!
- Arrange the cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet with plenty of room between them for spreading. I like to arrange six to a sheet in 2 rows of 3 cookies.
- Smash down the tops of the dough balls slightly with your palms, and sprinkle the tops with more cinnamon sugar mixture.
- Bake the cookies for 16–18 minutes, or until the edges are set and the centers still look slightly soft. Don’t wait for the centers to look completely done, they’ll continue baking on the hot pan.
- As soon as you remove the cookies from the oven, smack the pans on the counter to encourage them to spread and crinkle. I love how this causes them to flatten and shape them.
- For a perfectly round cookie, place a large cookie cutter or small bowl over the top of the cookie and amd move it in a circular motion to nudge all of the edges perfectly into shape.
- Sprinkle the tops with more cinnamon sugar for extra flavor.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. As they cool, the centers will finish setting while staying soft and chewy.
- Yields 14 2 oz cookies