Tender Brown Butter Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
These tender brown butter pumpkin snickerdoodles are soft, warmly spiced fall cookies with a crispy cinnamon sugar crust and a moist, pumpkin-spiced center. Perfect for cozy autumn baking and sharing.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 42 minutes
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, browned and cooled
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup packed brown sugar
- ½ cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ¾ cups (330g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Cinnamon sugar coating: ¼ cup granulated sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Brown the butter: Place unsalted butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir frequently as it melts and foams. When the foam subsides and the butter turns golden amber with brown bits, remove from heat. Pour into a heatproof bowl and let cool for 10 minutes until warm but not hot.
- Mix wet ingredients: In a large bowl, combine browned butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar. Whisk or mix on medium speed until smooth and slightly fluffy. Add pumpkin puree, egg, and vanilla extract, mixing well after each addition.
- Combine dry ingredients: In a separate bowl, sift or whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Bring dough together: Gradually add dry ingredients to wet, mixing on low speed just until combined. Dough should be soft, slightly sticky, and manageable. Avoid overmixing.
- Chill dough (optional): Cover dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm up and control spreading. Skip if short on time but expect thinner cookies.
- Prepare cinnamon sugar coating: Mix granulated sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.
- Shape and coat cookies: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Scoop 1 ½ tablespoons (about 22g) dough per cookie, roll into balls, then roll generously in cinnamon sugar. Place on lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
- Bake: Bake for 10-12 minutes until edges are set but centers are still soft. Cookies may look slightly underbaked. Let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes.
- Cool: Transfer cookies to a cooling rack and cool completely for about 15 minutes to set centers and crisp edges.
Notes
Use good-quality unsalted butter like Kerrygold for best flavor. Avoid canned pumpkin pie filling; use pure pumpkin puree. For dairy-free, use vegan butter that browns well. Chilling dough helps control spreading. Watch butter carefully when browning to avoid burning. Cookies should be pulled from oven when edges are set but centers still soft to keep them tender.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 140
- Fat: 7
- Carbohydrates: 19
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 2
Keywords: pumpkin snickerdoodles, brown butter cookies, fall cookies, pumpkin cookies, cinnamon sugar cookies, easy homemade cookies, autumn baking