Chewy Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies

Super chewy and gooey, these pumpkin snickerdoodle cookies combine the cozy fall flavors of brown butter, pumpkin spice, and cinnamon sugar.

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter, *see notes
⅔ cup Pumpkin Puree, room temperature
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup + 2 tablespoon dark brown sugar, packed
2 large egg yolks, room temperature
2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1⅔ cup + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, *see notes for measuring
1½ teaspoons pumpkin spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
½ teaspoon kosher salt
⅓ cup granulated sugar, for rolling
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, for rolling

Instructions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F/180 C. Line two baking trays with parchment paper and set them aside.
Brown the butter over medium heat in a large stainless steel pan. While it cooks it will foam, pop, and crackle. This is normal! Stand nearby, watch, and stir it occasionally so it doesn’t burn. When the bottom is covered in brown bits of butter and it smells nutty, remove the pan from the heat.
You should have just slightly under 1 cup of browned butter (184 grams). Pour it into a glass measuring cup and let it chill in the fridge, stirring it every 20 minutes, for about 45-60 minutes, until a thermometer inserted into the butter reads 70-75 F. The butter must be cool but still liquid! If your butter is warmer than this temperature range the cookies will spread flat in the oven.
Spread the pumpkin puree onto a plate. Press a stack of paper towels into it and soak up the extra liquid. Then scrape the pumpkin into a pile and re-spread it around the plate. Use a new stack of paper towels to keep absorbing the extra liquid, until the pumpkin feels pretty dry like soft play-dough, and now measures roughly ⅓ cup (68-75 grams).
When the butter is cool, whisk in the brown sugar and granulated sugar for 1 minute. It should look like wet sand.
Whisk in the egg yolks, vanilla, and dried pumpkin puree.
Fold in the flour, pumpkin spice, salt, cream of tartar, and baking soda until just combined. Set the bowl of dough in the fridge for 5 minutes to firm up. If the dough is still soft, you can chill it for longer!
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the cinnamon and the sugar. Scoop the dough into 3 tbsp-sized balls and roll each dough ball in the cinnamon sugar. Place it on the prepared baking sheet spaced 2-3 inches apart.
Bake the cookies one tray at a time for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and the middle is puffy and slightly under-baked. Let the tray cool completely on a wire rack then enjoy!
Store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. If you choose to freeze the cookie dough balls, let them come to room temperature before baking!

Notes:
– Measure your flour properly. This is my #1 baking tip! Do not ever scoop a measuring cup into your flour as this always leads to using too much flour. Instead, use the spoon-level method. This means fluffing the flour first, then spooning it into your measuring cup/spoon. For the best results, use a kitchen scale!
– The key to achieving a chewy cookie texture is cooled butter. I recommend letting it cool in the fridge, stirring it well every 20 minutes, for about 45-60 minutes. Stick a thermometer into the butter, it should read at least 75 F and be cold, but NOT solid.
– For smaller cookies: use a regular-sized (roughly 2 tablespoons) cookie scoop. Bake for around 9 minutes.
– Use Libby’s Pumpkin Puree. I found that Libby’s Pumpkin is very consistent amongst cans and has little moisture compared to other brands.
– Why are my cookies thicker and puffier than yours? Make sure you are pressing out the liquid! The pumpkin should feel pretty dry when it’s ready to use. Leaving too much moisture in the pumpkin will give you a puffier cookie!
– Why are my cookies spreading flat? If your butter is too warm, the cookies will spread. It’s crucial that you follow the instructions on cooling the butter completely!!

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