Chewy Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

These pumpkin snickerdoodles are one of my favorite fall recipes, and the best part is how versatile they are — you can make them the traditional way, rolled into classic cookie-size balls, or go the itty bitty route and turn them into mini bites perfect for gifting. Either way, you get that same soft, spiced pumpkin cookie coated in cinnamon sugar, just in two different sizes depending on the occasion.

These pumpkin snickerdoodles work beautifully as traditional-size cookies, or you can make them tiny and tuck them into cute jars for a gift. I love that you can mix the dough with an electric mixer or just a whisk and a spoon — either way, they turn out perfectly every time, and they smell amazing while they bake.

What you will need to make pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies

• Pumpkin puree
• Butter
• All-purpose flour
• Granulated sugar
• Brown sugar
• Cinnamon
• Vanilla extract
• Baking soda
• Cream of tartar
• Salt
• Pumpkin pie spice or allspice (cloves, ground ginger, nutmeg, ground cinnamon)
• Cinnamon sugar mixture, for rolling dough balls before baking

Tools you will need:

• Stand mixer, hand mixer, or a whisk.
• Medium bowl
• Small bowl
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Parchment paper
• Cookie sheets or baking sheets 
• Ice cream scoop with a release
• Glass to flatten cookie dough balls 

Things to plan for when making these cookies

Prep time is just a few minutes, but plan to let the melted butter cool a bit before mixing it with the other ingredients — it doesn’t need to reach room temperature, just cool enough for best results. Because this recipe uses melted butter, you’ll also want to refrigerate the dough before baking. Even after the dough is chilled and pressed down with a glass, give the cookies plenty of room on the cookie sheet, since they’ll still spread. You can mix the dough with a whisk and wooden spoon, or use an electric mixer if you prefer.

Make ahead, refrigerate dough balls, and bake as needed.

Who doesn’t love the aroma of freshly baked cookies right out of the oven? The scent of baked cookies, especially pumpkin cookies of any kind, is so warm and cozy.

When I make them for my kids to take home to the city, I send them a little package of cookie dough balls; all they need to do is place them on a baking sheet, flatten them with the bottom of a glass, and bake.

Make mini pumpkin snickerdoodles

To make mini pumpkin snickerdoodles, roll a small portion of dough into a rope about 1/2 inch in diameter. Using a bench scraper or knife, cut the rope into small, bite-size pieces. Roll each piece in the cinnamon sugar mixture until fully coated, then place on the cookie sheet, leaving room between each one. Bake as directed, checking a few minutes early since the smaller size will bake faster than traditional cookies.

Wrapping them up as a gift using small jars

The best part of making these itty bitty pumpkin snickerdoodles is giving them as a gift. Once they’ve cooled, I tuck them into cute jars, tie them up with orange and white gingham ribbon, and finish it off with a fun little tag. It’s such a sweet, simple way to share a little homemade cheer.

A substitute for Cream of Tartar

If you don’t have cream of tartar, you can use 1 1/2 teaspoons of lemon juice or white vinegar in its place. Another option is baking powder — since it already contains cream of tartar, you can skip the cream of tartar and baking soda called for in the recipe and use 1 1/8 teaspoons of baking powder instead, though this may give a slightly different texture, so lemon juice or vinegar tends to be the closer substitute.

The jars, ribbon and tags for gifting.

‘I used these 6-ouncejars with black lids, and tied it up with orange and white gingham ribbon, brown baker’s twine and a kraft paper tag with a message from You’ve got mail–Dont’ you just love New York in the fall.