Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

Fluffy, pillowy, bakery-style sugar cookies scented with pumpkin and warm spices. We’ll roll these cookies in sparkling sugar, drizzle on a maple glaze, and then shower them with even more sugar. Here, we’re definitely putting the “sugar” in sugar cookie, and we cannot get enough of these delightfully perfect fall-inspired treats. You can, however, simply make the cookies without the glaze and use just extra sprinkling of sugar and they will still be completely wonderful in every way.

Author: Lauren McDuffie
Yield: about 12 cookies 1x

Ingredients

Scale

2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for your hands
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (see note)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup unsweetened pumpkin puree
1 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for rolling
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
¼ cup turbinado sugar (optional, but delicious)

For the glaze (also, optional)

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

¼ cup maple syrup

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Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and adjust your oven rack to the middle position. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and pumpkin together until the mixture is nice and fluffy; about 5 minutes (it’s long – but this helps create the slightest, fluffiest cookies). Add the granulated and brown sugars and whip for an additional minute. Add the egg and mix to combine. Add the flour mixture to the butter/pumpkin mixture, and mix just until everything is well combined. NOTE: The dough will be pretty sticky (thanks to that pumpkin), so I like to coat my hands in flour before forming each cookie.
Roll the cookie dough into balls, allotting about ¼ cup of dough per cookie. Roll each ball in some of the extra granulated sugar and place them on the baking sheets, allowing about 4 to 5 cookies per sheet (they’re large and need room to spread).
Bake one sheet at a time, for 12 to 15 minutes, or just until the cookies are puffy and done in the middles.
Cool them completely before drizzling on the maple glaze and sprinkling some sparkly turbinado sugar over their tops. They will firm up significantly as they cool.
To make the glaze: Combine the confectioner’s sugar and the maple syrup in a small bowl, stirring until smooth and well mixed.

Notes

If you don’t have pumpkin spice, just use 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ground ginger, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and 1/4 tsp ground cloves instead. Just use whichever ones you happen you have, if you don’t care to purchase any more spices.

Keywords: Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

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