Pumpkin Snickerdoodles are chewy cookies with a crisp, browned outside and a soft center and plenty of warm flavors throughout, plus the classic cinnamon sugar topping!
Preheat oven to 350℉. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
Whisk melted butter and sugars together.
Add vanilla, egg, and pumpkin.
In a separate bowl, whisk all dry ingredients together. Add to wet ingredients and stir until just combined.
In a small bowl, stir together cinnamon and sugar for the topping. Set aside.
Using a 1 ½ Tablespoon cookie scoop or a regular spoon, scoop cookie dough and roll it into a ball—about 2 inches in diameter.
Drop into cinnamon sugar mixture and roll to coat.
Place on baking sheet about 2 inches apart and bake for 11-12 minutes. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 mins before transferring to a rack to finish cooling.
Notes
Storage: Cookies will stay fresh, in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Freeze: Baked cookies may be placed in a freezer bag and frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature.
Using melted butter - Melted butter helps to create a chewy cookie texture that is a characteristic of classic snickerdoodles. It aids in making the outside crispy and brown with a soft inside but not a cakey one.
Absence of cream of tartar - In traditional snickerdoodles, the cream of tartar adds a tang to the taste. Because this is added by the pumpkin, we omitted it from the recipe and used baking soda and baking powder instead.
Using only the egg yolk - because of the added moisture present in pumpkin, we can do without the egg white in this recipe. Using the whole egg would create a more cake-like cookie.