These vegan gluten free pumpkin spice cookies are soft and chewy with a smooth kick of warming spices. They strike a lovely harmony of sweet and spiced, being neither too much of one or the other. Like molasses cookies, they have an almost bendable texture yet are also incredibly soft, tender, and even a bit puffy, too.
Is it too late for one last pumpkin recipe? I know we should be moving on to holiday things—like cranberries, sweet potatoes, and stuffing—but I couldn't help but squeeze in one last nod to the pumpkin.
These pumpkin spice cookies are soft and chewy with a smooth kick of warming spices. They strike a lovely harmony of sweet and spiced, being neither too much of one or the other. Their texture reminds me of molasses cookies in that they're almost bendable. Yet they're also incredibly soft, tender, and even a bit puffy, too.
To make them, you'll start by beating together a mix of coconut sugar, puréed pumpkin, coconut oil, brown rice syrup, and vanilla. The brown rice syrup helps bind the cookies together and gives them their desirable, molasses-cookie-esque chew. Then, you'll whisk together oat flour, baking powder, baking soda, sea salt, and all those enticing pumpkin spices. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and beat until just incorporated.
Chill the mixture in the freezer for a quick 20 minutes, then scoop out mounds of the dough, drop on lined baking pans, and bake for 12 to 16 minutes.
Allow the cookies to cool on the pan for about 10 minutes before you attempt to move them anywhere else (be it your mouth or a cooling rack), or you'll be left to contend with cookie fatalities. Although I don't bother crying over spilled milk, all rational judgment dissipates in the presence of a cookie fatality. Exhibit A.
Read through Exhibit A and there'll be no need for an Exhibit B.
Bottom line, please, let those cookies cool. Then, pile 'em high, pour yourself some almond milk, and enjoy. xo
📖 Recipe
VEGAN GLUTEN-FREE PUMPKIN SPICE COOKIES
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut sugar
- ⅓ cup unsweetened pumpkin purée, at room temperature
- ¼ cup virgin coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons brown rice syrup
- 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups oat flour*
- ¾ teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon fine grain sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the coconut sugar, pumpkin purée, coconut oil, brown rice syrup, and vanilla extract for 1 minute using a hand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or stand mixer fitted with the beater attachments.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the oat flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, cloves, and sea salt. Place within reach of the mixer.
- With the mixer off, add the dry ingredients. Turn the mixer on low and slowly increase speed to medium and beat for 15 seconds or until the flour mixture is just incorporated, stopping to scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl with a spatula if necessary. The mixture will resemble a loosely set cookie dough. Chill the dough in the freezer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until just firm enough to scoop.
- Use a cookie scoop or 2-tablespoon measuring spoon to scoop out about 2 tablespoons of dough. Then, release the dough onto one of the lined pans (or hold the measuring spoon over the pan and use a spoon to scoop the dough out, allowing it to drop on the pan). Repeat with all remaining cookie dough.You should have 14 to 16 cookies.
- Bake for 12 to 16 minutes, or until the cookies are puffy with crinkled tops and the edges are golden brown. If your oven is prone to uneven baking, rotate the pans at the 6-minute mark to ensure both trays bake evenly.
- Cool for 10 minutes on the pans before using a spatula to transfer the cookies to a cooling rack. Cool completely.
Notes
Tori//Gringalicious says
These cookies look and sound so yummy! I always love finding new ways to include pumpkin this time of year!
Abby @ Heart of a Baker says
Never too late for pumpkin! I still have a bit of a can left, so these need to happen this week! xo
Lauren says
What can you substitute for the brown rice syrup?
Ashley says
Hi, Lauren! There isn't a substitute for the brown rice syrup that will yield the same results in terms of texture. You could try molasses but it will impart a molasses flavor to the cookies (could be a nice flavor addition if you like molasses)!
Effie says
Hi! These look absolutely amazing and will be heading towards my stomach sometime today depending on this: could I substitute coconut flour for the oat flour? :)
Ashley says
Hi, Effie! So glad you're excited to make these! One very important word of caution though: please, please, please do not substitute the oat flour with coconut flour! I often joke that coconut flour should come with a warning; it's so highly absorbent that it doesn't work as a 1:1 substitute for other flours (results in incredibly dry, crumbly baked goods). You could make homemade oat flour and sub that in instead (grind oats into a fine flour in a food processor). I hope this is helpful and that you have a chance to try the cookies! xo
suzi says
these are fantastic!!! My whole house smells like the yummiest warm pumpkin goodness!! And I just had a bite.... OMGOSH!! incredible dense flavor and texture that just melts in your mouth. so rich for a gluten free cookie. just the right amount of sweet too. a total home run!!
Celeste Jackson says
My mouth is watering just looking at your photo's! I look forward to making these.
Kathryn says
Wow. These look amazing! I always love using oat flour in cookies. Thanks for sharing :)
Ashley says
Thanks, Kathryn! Oat flour is so great for cookies, isn't it?!