Pumpkin Spice Cookies

These Pumpkin Spice Cookies are an autumn lover’s dream come true. Flavored with cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, this cookie isn’t too sweet. Instead it’s a comfort snack sweetened with maple syrup and coconut sugar! Soft and chewy, it is a favorite dessert snack in our house! {Paleo}

Seriously, what is even happening with the weather right now? One minute it is 86 degrees and muggy, and the next minute it is 60 degrees and chilly. Just what, exactly, are we supposed to be wearing? I am so eternally grateful the girls are old enough to understand how quickly the weather changes this time of year. Because I distinctly remember a time when that wasn’t the case. And explaining why it was pants and winter coats one day and sandals and shorts the next was enough to DO ME IN.

But now we are fulling leaning into this time of year I affectionately call “summerfall,” and we’re doing it with these Pumpkin Spice Cookies. I won’t lie; figuring out just the right paleo pumpkin cookie recipe was quite a feat. Paleo baking is like speaking another language, and it took me several tries to get the right balance. I researched several other recipes when I couldn’t get mine to work just the way I wanted it to. So, big shoutouts to Jess at Paleo Grubs, Monique at Ambitious Kitchen, and Julia at The Roasted Root for the inspiration!

All the hard work paid off because Twinkle and K-Hubs LOVED this cookie. I love them, too, and pumpkin isn’t always my favorite flavor. Toodle has a pumpkin allergy, so she settled for some Cinnamon Swirl Muffins instead. This is how we do summerfall, friends. A little pumpkin, a lot of cinnamon, and some flip-flops.

So grab your mixing bowl and a baking sheet, and let’s get going! 

PUMPKIN SPICE COOKIES INGREDIENTS:

Below are the ingredients to make your own Pumpkin Spice Cookies. 

• Pureed pumpkin. Canned pumpkin is fine. Just aim for one that doesn’t have added flavors or ingredients. The more basic, the better.
• Coconut oil. Make sure to measure after melting to get the most accurate amount needed for this paleo recipe.
• Coconut sugar. This ingredient is easier and easier to find in stores. Sometimes it’s near the traditional baking ingredients, and other times it’s nearer to the specialty baking area. Select one without added ingredients.
• Egg. You’ll need one whopping egg in this recipe.
• Vanilla and maple syrup. Along with the coconut sugar, they sweeten this cookie up without overdoing things.
• Almond flour and coconut flour. You’ll need both in this recipe to get the right consistency. Too much coconut flour will create dry cookies, and too much almond flour will make the cookies overly soft. But together they work beautifully.
• Baking soda and sea salt. I use small amounts of each, and they do the job done well!
• Spices. Mix and match the spices to your liking. I typically aim for more cinnamon, and then I add in nutmeg, ginger, cloves, or allspice in smaller quantities.
• Chopped pecans. You can use other nuts and seeds. I select pecans because they balance out the flavor of the cookie and pair well with the spices.

HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN SPICE COOKIES:

Paleo baking is different from traditional baking. And it may take a few tries to determine exactly how “done” you want your cookies to be. So play around with baking times, make a few batches of cookies in different sizes, and enjoy the final product! These cookies ooze fall vibes!

1. Set oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, melted coconut oil, egg, vanilla, maple syrup, and coconut sugar. Using an electric mixer, blend the ingredients until smooth.
3. Then add the almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, and sea salt, and blend on a low to medium speed until the wet ingredients have absorbed the dry ingredients.
4. Next, add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and cloves and, continue blending on a low speed until mixed.
5. Stir in the chopped pecans and chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes.
6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
7. Scoop the dough out of the bowl and shape it first into a ball and then gently flatten it into a circle that fits in the palm of your hand. Place on the lined baking sheet with enough space between each cookie so they can be flattened again during the baking process without overlapping each other.
8. Bake for about 8 minutes. Using the rounded side of a teaspoon, flatten each cookie again so that it’s about 1/4 inch thick, rotate the baking sheet, and bake for another 2-3 minutes or until desired consistency is reached.
9. Remove from oven and let cool before handling. Cookies will be quite soft when they first come out of the oven and will remain so until the coconut oil has had a chance to solidify.

TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL COOKIE:

• Chill the dough for a few minutes before shaping it into cookies. This will make it easier to handle the dough and to shape them however you like. I do anywhere from 10-30 minutes. And that wide range is based mostly on what I happen to be doing in that moment.
• Bake the cookies for a few minutes before pressing them down into the desired shape. When I bake these cookies, I first shape them by hand into round cookie dough bites that are slightly flattened on top. After the cookies have baked a little, I quickly pull the baking sheet out of the oven, gently flatten each cookie a little more with the rounded side of a teaspoon, rotate the baking sheet one time, and put the cookies back in the oven to finish the baking time. Because the cookies don’t rise or spread, this extra step helps achieve the desired shape and consistency.
• Adjust the consistency of the cookie by how thick you make it and for how long you bake it. This cookie can be easily adjusted to a thick, chewy, buttery cookie (picked in this recipe) or thinner and dryer. For a thinner, dryer cookie, pat it down more with the spoon and bake longer, if necessary. Keep an eye on the cookies, however, to make sure they don’t burn.
• Let the cookies cool for a few minutes before diving in. Waiting before diving in gives the coconut oil time to cool and solidify, thereby holding the cookie together. 

If you like these Pumpkin Spice Cookies and are in the mood for more pumpkin recipes, then you definitely need to know about Paleo Pumpkin Pie Dip, Paleo Pumpkin Pie Smoothie, and Chocolate-Frosted Paleo Pumpkin Brownies!

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