Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Name: Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Prep time: 7 min
Total time: 16 min
Ingredients: ½ cup vegan butter, melted ((or regular butter if not vegan)); ¾ cup light brown sugar; ¼ cup granulated sugar; 1 tsp vanilla extract; ⅓ cup pumpkin puree (SEE NOTES); 1½ cup all-purpose flour (SEE NOTES); 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (SEE NOTES); 1 tsp baking soda; ½ tsp salt; ¼ cup semisweet vegan chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate); ¼ cup vegan white chocolate chips (or chopped chocolate) ((optional))

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These vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are soft, chewy, warm-spiced, and made in just one bowl! Using simple ingredients and no mixer, these pumpkin spice cookies are ready in 16 minutes and perfect for Fall!

vegan chocolate chip pumpkin cookies on parchment with cinnamon sticks

Pumpkin season, in my opinion, is just not long enough. There are so many amazing pumpkin cakes, muffins, and other pumpkin recipes and so little time to fit them all in!

So I’m going to make a point of making a triple batch of these vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies so that I can freeze them and enjoy them after pumpkin season has come and gone!

Pumpkin cookies are often cakey if you use too much pumpkin puree. But not these! These vegan pumpkin cookies are soft and chewy with just the slightest crisp on the outside edges. They are full of gooey chocolate chips and pumpkin spice!

Why You'll Love These Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe is made in just one bowl, and you don’t even need a mixer!
These pumpkin white chocolate cookies take around 16 minutes to make from start to finish - they are almost too easy!
This recipe uses just ⅓ cup of pumpkin puree, which is what makes them soft and chewy, instead of cakey (even just half a cup of pumpkin puree will result in cakey cookies!). The pumpkin flavor is more subtle as a result, but the pumpkin pie spice helps with that too!
These dairy free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are egg free as well, and can easily be made gluten free.
These cookies stay ultra soft for days if made and stored correctly!

Ingredients Needed

ingredients for vegan pumpkin cookies in bowls with labels

Vegan Butter: the vegan butter should be measured before melting! If you don't follow a vegan diet, you can also use melted regular butter.
Flour: this recipe works best with all-purpose flour, but you can also use gluten free all-purpose 1-1 baking flour to make gluten free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.
Vanilla Extract: I always recommend using real vanilla extract in your baking (instead of artificial)
Pumpkin Puree: please note this is pumpkin puree (from a can or homemade), and not pumpkin pie filling! The right amount of pumpkin puree is what keeps these cookies from not being cakey. Using even ½ a cup of pumpkin puree instead of ⅓ cup of puree resulted in a cakier cookie when I tested this recipe.
Brown Sugar: you can replace with coconut sugar, but it will change the texture of the cookie slightly.
Pumpkin Pie Spice: If you don’t have pumpkin pie spice, you can make your own. The recipe for this is in the notes section of the recipe card.
Chocolate Chips: These pumpkin chocolate chip cookies call for semisweet chocolate chips, with the option of also adding vegan white chocolate chips if you'd like. If you want to use chopped vegan chocolate, that works too! You can use all white chocolate to make pumpkin white chocolate chip cookies too!

Step By Step Instructions

Note: Full ingredient measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of this page.

STEP ONE: Preheat the oven to 375°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Measure the butter, then put it in a large microwave-safe bowl and microwave until melted.

STEP TWO: Whisk the brown sugar and granulated sugar into the melted butter, then add in the pumpkin puree, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.

STEP THREE: Add in the flour, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice and stir until just incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips. Scoop 1 ½ Tablespoons of dough onto the baking sheet and bake the vegan pumpkin cookies for 8-11 minutes.

instructions showing how to make vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies

FAQs and Expert Tips

Why are my cookies cakey?

Pumpkin cookies are naturally more on the cake texture side of the cookie scale, but this recipe should not come out cakey, because it only uses ⅓ cup of pumpkin puree. If it does, you likely over-measured your flour.

How do I get cookies to stay soft?

Don’t over-bake them! This is my number one tip for cookies that stay soft. Keep a close eye on the cookies and they will continue baking on the baking sheet once removed from the oven, so it’s better to underbake than overbake.

Where can I find vegan white chocolate chips?

You can either order them on Amazon, or you can often find them in the natural/health food section of your grocery store. Most major grocery stores carry at least one brand.

Can I make these cookies gluten free?

I haven't tested these cookies gluten free, but I would recommend using gluten free 1-1 baking flour if you want to try it

Can I make these cookies with dairy ingredients?

Yes! These cookies have been tested with regular butter and they turn out amazing. Adding an egg to these cookies would make them cakey so even if you aren't following a vegan diet, you'll love these!

vegan pumpkin cookies stacked with more cookies in the background

Expert Tips

Properly measure your flour: Please, please don’t over-measure your flour! The result will be cakey or dry cookies! I strongly recommend investing in a $10 kitchen scale, but you can also use the scoop and level method.
Don’t add extra flour to the dough: The cookie dough will be soft, likely too soft to form into a ball with your hands! This is how it should be. You can use a spoon if you don’t have a cookie scoop.
Don’t let the cookie dough sit out too long. These vegan pumpkin cookies are made with melted butter, but the butter starts to firm up a little as the dough sits. This will make the cookies slightly thicker and puffier, so try to bake the cookies right away.
Add nuts or pumpkin seeds if desired!

Storage and Freezing Instructions

The vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies should be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

You can also freeze them for up to 3 months in a freezer ziploc bag, then thaw at room temperature. You can also freeze the dough in individual balls and bake them later!

More Vegan Recipes You'll Love

If you make this recipe, let me know how it went in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you! You can also tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can check it out!

The calorie information provided for this recipe is an estimate. The accuracy of the calories listed is not guaranteed.