These spiced pumpkin cookies are soft cake-like and beautifully flavoured. Enjoy them plain or decorate them with spiders and webs! They make the perfect kid's treat for Halloween.
I picked a pumpkin last week and I think I might spend all of October eating it. I carve a bit off and it still looks almost as big as it was before. It wouldn't be so bad if the rest of this household loved pumpkin.
Although I love pumpkin and squash and would like to make lots of roasted vegetable dishes, I think I might be the only one eating them.
My lovely husband was not quite as lovely as normal the other night when he actually refused to eat my delicious pumpkin creation and went and got a pizza out of the freezer. Well, more for me, although pumpkins are pretty big so that means a lot lot more.
The Inspiration for these Halloween Pumpkin Cookies
It seems I'm going to have to disguise the pumpkin and add it to cakes and biscuits instead of savoury dishes. It was largely the rest of my family's reluctance to eat pumpkin that inspired me to make these biscuits!
Yes, I do my best to turn everyone's picky eating into a positive!
As Halloween was approaching when I developped this recipe, I wanted them to embrace the spooky theme. I adapted a recipe from All Recipes but decorated them in my own way.
How do you make the spider decoration?
I've decorated these cookies with melted chocolate. The easiest way to do it is to use packets of chocolate buttons. Fill a saucepan with boiling water and put the packets in the water. Leave them for a minute.
Take the chocolate button packets out of the water. Dry them and squish them between your fingers. If you can feel hard bits of chocolate still then just put the packets back in the hot water.
When the chocolate has melted, snip off a corner of the packet and drizzle the chocolate onto the top of the cookies in a circular motion followed by some lines across going through the middle to make the chocolate spider's webs.
Finish by putting an unmelted chocolate button onto each cookie to make a spider's body. Then squeeze a little more melted chocolate on to make the spider's legs.
How did I adapt these Halloween pumpkin cookies?
I adapted the pumpkin cookie recipe to make it a little healthier and to suit the ingredients I had. Firstly I used half the amount of sugar as it looked like the original recipe would have made very very sweet pumpkin cookies.
Then I used mixed spice instead of individual spices. Even with half the sugar, the pumpkin cookies were still sweet enough for me and if you put a little icing on the top it makes them even sweeter.
What is the texture of these pumpkin cookies like?
I was hoping the recipe would give me lovely moist maybe slightly chewy cookies. What I got was lovely moist light cakey cookies. The consistency was definitely more cake than cookie.
Now, that wasn't a problem as I love cake and even if it comes in the disguise of a cookie, I won't complain. However I do feel it's fair to warn you in case you also have two thirds of a huge pumpkin staring at you across the kitchen.
And just in case you are rather particular about the consistency of your cookies!
As you can see, I used melted chocolate in an attempt to make a spider's web decoration on top of the cookies. I then used chocolate buttons to make the spiders. I didn't manage to make them quite as neat as I'd have liked but I did enjoy making them. And I enjoyed eating them even more!
Could you adapt these spiced pumpkin cookies?
I'm all for adapting recipes to suit the ingredients I have at home. The first way you can adapt these is to vary the spices. If you have a jar of pumpkin spice then do use that. Of just use a little cinnamon. Or a mixture of ginger and cinnamon.
You could also adapt the way you decorate them. I used melted chocolate but it can be quite difficult to work with. You could just buy tubes of chocolate icing to make it easier.
What is Pumpkin Puree?
Pumpkin puree is just cooked pureed pumpkin. You can buy tins of it or you can make your own. Do whatever is easiest but do be aware that tinned pumpkin puree is sometimes sweetened so you may end up with sweeter cookies than if you make your own.
If you do want to make your own pumpkin puree, it's very easy. Just steam or roast slices of pumpkin or squash and then use a blender to make a puree. If you make too much you can store it in the fridge for a few days or put it in the freezer until you need it.
It will freeze for up to three months.
You can also roast the seeds with salt and pepper to avoid wasting them too!
Storing and freezing these cookies
These cookies will keep well in an airtight container for about three days.
You can also freeze them but it is best to freeze them before decorating. Just put them in an airtight container and they will keep for about 2-3 months. Defrost at room temperature for about an hour before eating.
Recipe
Spiced Pumpkin Cookies
Ingredients
- 300 g plain flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 3 teaspoon mixed spice Or use pumpkin spice
- 150 g caster sugar
- 125 g butter
- 1 egg lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 250 g pumpkin puree
To Decorate (optional)
- 60 g white chocolate buttons I used 2 bags weighing 30g each
- 60 g milk chocolate buttons I used 2 bags weighing 30g each
Instructions
- Turn the oven on to 160C (fan). Line 4 baking trays with baking paper.
- Put the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and mixed spice in a bowl.
- Put the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream together. Add the egg, vanilla and pumpkin puree. Beat together.
- Add the bowl of dry ingredient to the bowl of wet ingredients and mix together.
- Using a tablespoon, put spoonfuls of the mixture onto the baking trays, leaving a gap around each cookie as they will spread in the oven.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Leave the cookies to cool on a wire rack.
- Boil a kettle and pour the water into a bowl. Put a packet of white and a packet of milk chocolate buttons in the hot water. Leave for a minute.
- Take out one of the packets of chocolate buttons and dry it on a towel. Squish it between your fingers to check that the chocolate is fully melted. If necessary put it back in the hot water.
- Snip off a very tiny corner of the packet and squeeze out the chocolate to make a spider's web shape on half the cookies. Stick a chocolate button of the opposite colour onto the spider's web. It will stick to the wet chocolate.
- Repeat with the other packet of melted chocolate.
Notes
Nutrition
Do you need more recipes to use up a pumpkin or Squash?
How about one of these?
- Salt and pepper pumpkin seeds
- Pumpkin and apple muffins
- Pumpkin and feta quiche
- Chocolate chip pumpkin cereal bars
Or if you are looking for Halloween recipes then do try my ultimate Halloween chocolate cake! My zombie brain celeriac is also worth checking out!
Keep in touch
Do let me know if you make these spiced pumpkin cookies or any of my other recipes.
I love to get feedback from readers. You can also stay up to date by following on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.
Kat (The Baking Explorer)
These cookies are so fun! And pumpkin is so yummy in baked goods!
Corina Blum
Thanks Kat! I really would love to do some more baking with pumpkin but I don't think I'm going to have time this year!
Christine
Isn't it exciting that fall is coming, which means Halloween is around the corner, which means pumpkin time is here! 🙂
Corina
Exactly! I'm looking forward to going out and picking some pumpkins from the farm soon too.
Amy | The Cook Report
These are really cute, a great Halloween treat!
Corina
Thanks Amy!
Mrs M
Hello love the sound of these cookies, I dont want to use pumpkin puree but would like to use the dry spices instead can I alter the recipe without the puree
Thanks xxx
Corina Blum
Hi Mrs M
As pumpkin puree is such a large part of these cookies you really can't make them without it. Instead of altering them I would suggest you search for a pumpkin spice cookie recipe instead. You could try my gingerbread cookie recipe and use pumpkin spice instead of the ginger and cinnamon. Here's the link: https://searchingforspice.com/gingerbread-biscuits/
Corina
Lisa Bynum
I love the little spiders on the top of these cookies! I think my boys would get a kick out that.
Corina
Thanks Lisa! My daughter loved them too. The chocolate goes really well with the spices as well.
Kristina
ha! same here - I am the only one who likes pumpkin in this house... more for me 😉
these sound SO good - and are so fun!
Corina
I love 'more for me' recipes! I'm so pleased you like them.
Danielle Martin
What cute little cookies! These would be so much fun for a kids halloween party.
Corina
Exactly! I'm planning to make some more when it's actually Halloween. My daughter loves them so she'll be happy.
Elaine @ Dishes Delish
These pumpkin cookies look so fun! No, not just fun, but delicious! I can't wait to make these for Halloween!
Corina
Thanks Elaine! I think I'll be remaking them for Halloween too and will hopefully get them a little neater next time too!
Nadja | Nashi Food
These cookies look so cute!!! I can imagine how good they must taste
Corina
Thanks Nadja! They are lovely and my daughter is a big fan too!
Beth
i love anything pumpkin, but like you, my family, not so much! I love making a big pot of soup because I can freeze it small portions all for me for lunch! These cookies are adorable and also like you, I love a cakey cookie!
Corina
I also made some pumpkin soup this week Beth and it was so good I'll be remaking it and doing the same! It's good to have easy lunches sorted for during the week.
Sarah Grace
helllllo delicious! Anything pumpkin is a winner in my heart <33
Corina
So glad you like them!
athleticavocado
these look awesome and i love the spider web decoration! so cute
Corina
Thank you! I really hope to make these again this year but it will probably be after Halloween now!
Dominic Franks (@belleaukitchen)
they sound (and look) superb... i've never made a cookie with pumpkin so I too would head to the internet... I've just made a pumpkin cake which was amazing and stayed fresh for ages (in fact improved with age and I bet these cookies did too. Love the decoration too, great fun!... thanks so much for the random recipes entry x
Corina
Yes, they did keep fresh for quite a few days. I actually think if I'd put this mixture into a cake tin I could have made a cake instead of a cookie!
Dana Fashina
Ooh yeaaah!
My mom used to make cookies like this when were were little.
Mmm MMPH!
And not a bad spider web, pretty good actually!!
Corina
Thank you. I did actually try and ice some spiders onto the webs after taking this picture but they just looked a mess!