These Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies are soft and sweet with a mild pumpkin flavor and loaded with chocolate chips. They're the perfect cozy cookie for autumn, or whenever that pumpkin craving hits! Best yet, they're of course gluten free, nut free, eggless and can easily be made vegan!
These Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies could not be more delish! If you're a pumpkin lover, these beauties are for you! They have a mild pumpkin flavor throughout while still tasting like my Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies. This recipe makes 6 large or 12 small cookies and only requires 30 minutes of chill time!
For more eggless chocolate chip cookie recipes, try Eggless Chocolate Chip Cookies, Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies and Eggless Chocolate Cookies.
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Reasons To Love These Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Allergy Friendly- These cookies are gluten free, nut free, egg free and can easily be dairy free (vegan)!
- Autumn Flavors- These cookies have pumpkin, cinnamon and chocolate!
- Soft & Gooey Inside- The cookies are chewy and oozing with chocolate inside!
- Chocolate Chips- They are loaded and topped with chocolate chips!
Ingredient Notes
- Gluten Free Flour- If you also have nut allergies, make sure to use a brand that’s made in a nut free facility. I really love to use this gluten free flour because it’s free of the top 9 allergens. It also contains xanthan gum which really helps give baked goods their bounce and prevents them from falling apart.
- Unsalted Butter or Vegan Baking Sticks- Don’t use melted; the cookies will spread.
- Pure Pumpkin: Gives the cookies lots of moisture since they are egg free. Make sure to use pure pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling, just like in my Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Cookies.
- Granulated Sugar: We use granulated versus brown so that the cookies retain that light orange color.
- Cinnamon- Brings in the sweet yet woodsy flavor like in my Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Cookies.
- Chocolate Chips- To make vegan, make sure to use gluten free/vegan chocolate chips. I love these allergy friendly chocolate chips.
- Milk- If there are no dairy allergies or if you’re not vegan, you can use regular whole milk. For non-dairy, use a dairy-free milk of your choosing.
See my recipe card below for a complete list of the ingredients with measurements.
Substitutions and Variations
How to Make these into Vegan Pumpkin Cookies
- Use a gluten free flour that’s free from dairy.
- Make sure the brand of sugar you use is vegan.
- Use vegan baking sticks instead of butter.
- Only use a non dairy milk of choice.
- Make sure the pumpkin you use is pure and doesn't have any strange fillers.
Make this Recipe with All Purpose Flour
- Use ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons of packed cups of AP flour (294 grams).
- Only use 1 tablespoon of milk.
For Smaller Cookies
- Use a small cookie scoop or roll the dough into 1 inch balls.
- Bake the cookies at the same temperature but for 13 minutes. Reshape as needed. Should make 12 cookies.
This recipe has not been tested with some of these substitutions and/or variations due to celiac disease and food allergies. If you change any of the ingredients, please let us know how the recipe turned out in the comments below!
How to Make Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Here are the step by step instructions to make these pumpkin and chocolate chip cookies!
Step 1: Whisk Together The Dry Ingredients
In a medium bowl, combine the gluten free flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Whisk to combine.
Step 2: Cream the Butter and Sugar
Beat the butter and granulated sugar together until smooth and creamy. About 2 minutes.
Step 3: Strain The Pumpkin and Add in the Other Wet Ingredients
Measure out ¼ cup of pumpkin. Place it in a paper towel and very gently squeeze so that excess liquid comes out.
Into the creamed butter and sugar, beat in the strained pumpkin, milk and vanilla until fully combined. It will appear chunky; that's normal.
Step 4: Add in the Dry Ingredients, Fold in the Chocolate Chips and Chill
Slowly beat in the gluten free flour mixture and mix until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with the spatula and combine again.
Fold in the chocolate chips using a spatula and freeze for 30 minutes.
Step 5: Scoop The Dough, Add More Chocolate Chips and Flatten into a Disc
Using a large cookie scoop (I use a 2 ounce cookie scoop), scoop the dough out into 6 scoops.
Press the top of each dough ball into the extra ¼ cup of chocolate chips.
Gently flatten each scoop into a thick disc versus a ball.
Step 6: Bake and Cool
Bake the cookies in the center rack of the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes until golden on the bottoms. You can carefully use a cookie spatula to check.
Immediately reshape the cookies into a circle with a spatula when they come out of the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 min before transferring to a cooling rack.
Expert Baking Tips
- Use Packed Cups of Flour- Normally in baking we do not use packed cups however, when working with gluten free, I've found using packed cups works best to help the baked goods keep their shape.
- Use Room Temperature Butter- Do not use softened or melted butter/vegan baking sticks. The cookies will spread out when baking into a giant mess.
- Squeeze out the Excess Pumpkin Liquid- If you don't do this step, the cookies stay puffed up in the center and look more like little cakes. In addition, the center of the cookie won't cook if it remains puffed and they will be raw.
- Make Sure to Press Down the Cookie Dough- Pumpkin cookies have a tendency to want to be cake like. Gently pressing them helps them into more of a cookie shape than a small cake. Again, I have only tested this with a multipurpose gluten free flour with xanthan gum. You may not need to do this step with all purpose flour which is thinner.
- Chill the Dough- If you don’t chill the dough in the freezer for 30 minutes, the cookies will spread and be flat and thin.
- Reshape the Cookies- If you want your cookies nice and round, reshape them as soon as they come out of the oven. Use a spatula to push them back into a circle shape.
Recipe FAQs
You can make the dough the night before. Keep it shaped in a disc, wrapped in plastic and place in a zip top bag in the fridge.
If doing this, there is no need to chill it again, prior to baking.
Most gluten free baked goods are best made the same day, but you can make these cookies a day before!
I don’t recommend using a different sugar.
Light or dark brown sugar will make the cookies brown instead of orange. In addition, the pumpkin already adds enough moisture.
Storing: Keep any extra cookies in an airtight container or zip top bag at room temperature for two days.
If you want the cookies warm, heat the cookie in the microwave for a few seconds prior to serving. Be careful not to burn your mouth.
Freezing Baked Cookies: To freeze already baked cookies, place cookies (not stacked) on a parchment lined baking sheet and pop in the freezer uncovered. Freeze for 10-15 minutes or until the cookies are completely frozen. Once frozen, you can store them stacked in a freezer safe airtight container or zip top bag in the freezer for up to 1 month. To defrost, take the container out and leave at room temperature until soft. 1-2 hours.
Freezing Raw Dough: Form the dough into discs. Place dough discs (not stacked) on a parchment lined baking sheet and pop in the freezer uncovered. Freeze for 10-15 minutes or until the dough discs are completely frozen. Once frozen, store in a zip top bag for 1 month. When ready to use, bake at the same temperature for 18-19 minutes instead of 15.
More Fall Recipes You'll Love
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📖 Recipe
Gluten Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons multipurpose gluten free flour (I use a gluten free multipurpose flour with xanthan gum already in it)
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- ¼ cup unsalted butter or vegan baking stick, room temperature
- ¼ cup pure pumpkin (squeezed out excess liquid)
- 2 tablespoons milk
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¾ cup semi sweet chocolate chips (save ¼ cup for sprinkling)
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, combine the ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons gluten free flour, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon kosher salt and ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon. Whisk to combine.
- Add the ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and ¼ cup unsalted butter or vegan baking stick into the bowl of an electric mixer or use a hand held mixer to combine. Beat until soft; about 2 minutes.
- Measure out ¼ cup of pumpkin. Place it in a paper towel and very gently squeeze so that excess liquid comes out.
- Beat in the strained pumpkin, 2 tablespoons milk and ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract into the creamed butter and sugar until fully combined. It will appear chunky. That’s normal.
- Beat in the gluten free flour mixture a third at a time until just combined. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides. It will be very sticky.
- Fold in ½ cup of chocolate chips using a spatula.
- Pop the entire bowl of dough in the freezer for 30 min. Make sure the bowl is freezer safe.
- While the dough has 15 min left of chilling time, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- After 30 min, using a large cookie scoop, make 6 scoops with the dough. (I use a 2 ounce cookie scoop).If the dough is sticking to the cookie scoop, wash the scoop half way through to get off any stuck on dough.
- Press the top of each dough ball into the extra ¼ cup of chocolate chips.Then place the dough balls, chocolate chip side up about 3-4 inches apart on the parchment lined baking sheet. Take a slightly wet and clean hand and gently press the cookies down a little bit into more of a disc shape than a ball shape. This is to help them cook in the center when baking.
- Bake the cookies in the center rack of the oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes until golden on the bottoms. You can carefully use a cookie spatula to check.
- Immediately reshape the cookies into a circle with a spatula when they come out of the oven and let cool on the baking sheet for 5 min before transferring to a cooling rack.
- If you don't let them cool on the baking sheet, the cookies will break apart into a giant mess.
Sierra says
Super soft and delicious, love the pumpkin and cinnamon! These are amazing.
Lee says
Thank you so so much!
Sariya says
Is there a substitute for the pumpkin?
Lee says
These are pumpkin cookies so I would check out my recipe for Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies.They're similar but have zero pumpkin! https://laneandgreyfare.com/small-batch-chocolate-chip-cookies/
John says
These pumpkin cookies are so soft and delicious! Thanks for the recipe!