Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

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These are the best Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies ever. They’re soft and gooey, loaded with pumpkin flavor. Just 1 bowl and less than 30 minutes to make these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

Side image of Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies brokem in half to see the gooey middle.

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Why you will love this recipe
Ingredients
Variations
How to Make these Vegan Pumpkin Cookies
Expert Tips
Recipe FAQs
More Vegan Cookies!
Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Why you will love this recipe

Rich Flavors, Gooey Center: This easy pumpkin chocolate chip cookies recipe is loaded with the sweetness of chocolate chips, brown sugar, vanilla and a hint of molasses; with the creamy texture and taste of pumpkin and cinnamon, delightfully giving you the best vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, that are chewy, soft and gooey in the middle.
Only One Bowl: These homemade Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies only need 1 bowl, 15 ingredients, under 1 hour and you’ll have some tasty, gooey vegan chocolate chip cookies to enjoy. Cleanups quick and easy with only a few items to clean.
Vegan, Eggless and Dairy Free: This vegan pumpkin chocolate chip cookies no egg recipe is absolutely irresistible, every ingredient in this recipe is egg-free, dairy-free and vegan, the taste, texture and flavor are perfect.

If you love cookies check out my Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Vegan Snickerdoodle Cookies, Vegan Apple Cider Cookies, Vegan Ginger Cookies, Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies, Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, Edible Cookie Dough or my Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies I know you will love them all! Or for some more pumpkin flavor check out my Vegan Pumpkin Bread and my Pumpkin Breakfast Cookies.

Ingredients

Let’s take a look at the ingredients to make these Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies. Check the recipe card for the full list and quantities.

Molasses: Added for more depth of flavor and to act as an acid for the baking soda.
Pumpkin pie spices: This is optional, and quite frankly a personal choice for most people. If you love pumpkin spice then use the spices, if you don’t then just omit them entirely and enjoy a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie with no pie spice!
Chocolate chips: Again personal choice, feel free to keep them or omit them, chipless pumpkin cookies are just as delicious and soft.
Pumpkin purée: Be sure to use plain pumpkin purée and not pumpkin pie filling. This adds flavor, moisture and replaces the egg in these vegan chocolate chip pumpkin cookies.

Variations

Spice or No Spice: This is a mouthwatering, spiced pumpkin chocolate chip cookies vegan recipe. But, the spice is not required and this cookie will still taste amazing. You can even add a frosting on top of these cookies, regardless if they are spiced or not, it will add additional sweetness to the top, feel free to try my vegan cream cheese frosting or any another vegan vanilla frosting recipe you like.
More Chocolate, White Chocolate or Chipless: This Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe is excellent as it is. But there are many optional choices for the chocolate chips; possibly pumpkin white chocolate chip cookies, made easily by adding vegan white chocolate chips. More chocolate, feel free to add additional vegan chocolate chips or you can even make, no chip chocolate chip cookies. No matter how you adjust the chocolate in these cookies they’ll still be a perfect delicious cookie snack.
Frozen Ready to Bake: You can have freshly baked, vegan chocolate chip pumpkin cookies anytime you’d like. Be sure to double or triple this recipe and just freeze the additional dough, scoop out the cookies on a lined baking sheet and place in the freezer until frozen, then store up to 3 months in a freezer zip lock bag. To bake let them thaw on the counter for 30 minutes before baking.
Gluten free: I have not personally tried it but, I usually have success with King Arthur 1:1 all purpose gluten free baking flour, so I would try that if you are wanting to experiment by making gluten free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies to try. But I do expect a slightly different texture as the base will be rice flour and not as glutinous as white flour.

How to Make these Vegan Pumpkin Cookies

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 370° F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Prep the canned pumpkin purée, if its a nice puree texture you're good to go, if it's runny and liquidy measure and place pumpkin purée in a paper towel and squeeze out the excess liquid if any. Set aside.

Clear glass bowl with the wet ingredients not mixed up yet, sitting on a marble surface.

Step 2: In a large mixing bowl add the butter and microwave in 10 second intervals until melted. Add in the sugar, brown sugar, pumpkin, vanilla and molasses and whisk together.

Wet ingredients mixed up.

Clear glass bowl with the dry ingredients added to the wet ingredients, sitting on a marble surface.

Step 3: Add the flour, salt, baking soda and spices and use a rubber spatula to fold everything together.

Clear glass bowl with the dough all mixed up, sitting on a marble surface.

Flour mixed into dough.

Clear glass bowl with the dough all mixed up and chocolate chips being folded into the dough, sitting on a marble surface.

Step 4: Fold in the chocolate chips. Place in fridge for 30 minutes.

Clear glass bowl with the cookie dough all mixed in it, sitting on a marble surface.

Step 5: Place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Cookie dough balls on a parchment paper lined baking sheet waiting to be baked.

Step 6: Remove from fridge and use a 1 ounce cookie scoop and scoop the cookie dough out on to the lined baking sheet, about 6-8 per sheet depending on the size of your baking sheet.

Freshly baked cookies.

Expert Tips

Storing: Store these Vegan Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies in an airtight container for 3-4 days. To keep cookies moist put a slice of plain white bread in the container, because the moisture from the bread will keep the cookies moist longer. If you have extra or you doubled the recipe you can put some in an airtight freezer container or bag. They will last up to 3 months frozen.
Pumpkin moisture: The moisture in the pumpkin will affect the cookie composition. When you look at the canned pumpkin if it looks watery and has lots of moisture you will need to squeeze out the extra moisture. Mine was a nice puree texture so I did not need to do that for these vegan pumpkin cookies, but if yours is watery use a cheese cloth or a few paper towels layered on top each other, place the measured out pumpkin in the cloth and give a gentle squeeze.
Kitchen Scale: If you have a kitchen scale please use it, you’ll get more accurately measured measurements for this easy vegan pumpkin cookies recipe. If not, scoop the flour and sugar. Do not pack it down into the measuring cup, also do not shake it down into the cup. We don’t want to end up with to much of any ingredients. The ingredients you will pack down is the brown sugar and butter (if you don’t have a full stick to cut).

Recipe FAQs

What does pumpkin replace in cookies?

The egg is usually what the pumpkin replaces in vegan cookie recipes.

Can pumpkin replace an egg in baking?

Usually yes. It’s not 100% because of course you will have some recipes that need the egg but for the most part I have had good success substituting pumpkin or even applesauce in place of eggs.

Is it safe to eat pumpkin cookie dough?

Technically no. If it’s vegan you may be asking why not? The answer is because the flour needs to be heat treated in order for it to truly be safe. So unless it says “edible” most likely the flour is not heat treated and it’s not really safe.

Should pumpkin cookies be refrigerated?

If they are frosted yes. If they do not have frosting they can be stored in a sealed container on the counter for 4-7 days.