Brown Butter Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
- Cook Time: 32 minutes
- Total Time: 32 minutes
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree (blotted with paper towels)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
- For the coating: 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Place the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter, then continue cooking while whisking constantly. The butter will foam and then start to show little brown specks. Once it smells nutty and looks golden brown, remove it from the heat immediately and pour it into a large mixing bowl to cool for 15 minutes.
- Measure out 1/2 cup of puree and spread it onto a few layers of paper towels. Fold the towels over and press down gently to soak up the excess liquid. You want the pumpkin to be thick and concentrated.
- Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar to the cooled brown butter. Whisk until smooth. Mix in the blotted pumpkin puree, the egg yolk, and the vanilla extract until fully combined.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring with a spatula until a soft dough forms. Do not overmix.
- Cover the dough and place it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. This makes the dough easier to handle and prevents the cookies from spreading too much in the oven.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). In a small bowl, mix the coating sugar and cinnamon. Scoop about 1.5 tablespoons of dough, roll into a ball, and roll the ball generously in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
- Place the balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges are set but the centers still look slightly soft. Let them cool on the pan for 5 minutes before moving them to a wire rack.