🍂 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Cookies
Incredibly soft, fluffy, and delicious, these easy 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Cookies are the perfect fall treat! Made with just spice cake mix, pumpkin, and eggs, these cookies come together in minutes with no complicated mixing or special ingredients.
They’re wonderfully soft and cake-like, filled with warm pumpkin-spice flavor, and make an effortless dessert for fall gatherings, bake sales, lunchboxes, or cozy evenings at home. 🍪🎃
⏱️ Recipe Information
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 10–13 minutes
Total Time: 20–25 minutes
Servings: 24 cookies
Difficulty: Easy
Method: Oven-Baked
🛒 Ingredients
- 1 box (15.25 oz / 432 g) spice cake mix
- 1 cup (240 g) pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
Optional Toppings
Although these cookies are delicious on their own, you can dress them up with:
- Powdered sugar
- Cream cheese frosting
- White chocolate drizzle
- Chopped pecans or walnuts
- Cinnamon sugar
- Mini chocolate chips
- Caramel drizzle
👩🍳 Instructions
1. Prepare the Oven
Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C).
Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
2. Make the Cookie Dough
Add the spice cake mix, pumpkin purée, and eggs to a large mixing bowl.
Using a rubber spatula or electric mixer, mix until everything is thoroughly combined and a thick, sticky cookie dough forms.
Do not add the ingredients listed on the cake-mix box. You only need the dry cake mix, pumpkin, and eggs.
The dough will be softer and stickier than traditional cookie dough. That’s completely normal.
3. Portion the Cookies
Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, drop rounded portions of dough onto the prepared baking sheets.
Leave about 2 inches (5 cm) between each cookie because they will spread slightly as they bake.
For more uniform cookies, use approximately 1½ tablespoons of dough per cookie.
4. Bake
Place the cookies in the preheated oven.
Bake for 10–13 minutes, or until the cookies look set around the edges and the centers are soft but no longer look wet.
Because these cookies are naturally soft and cake-like, avoid overbaking them.
5. Cool
Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow the cookies to cool on the pan for about 5 minutes.
Transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
They will continue to set as they cool while maintaining their soft, fluffy texture.
6. Decorate and Serve
Once completely cool, dust the cookies lightly with powdered sugar or drizzle them with melted white chocolate or caramel if desired.
For an extra-indulgent fall dessert, top them with a little cream cheese frosting.
Serve with coffee, tea, hot chocolate, or a glass of cold milk.
🎃 Chef’s Tips
Use pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling: Pumpkin pie filling contains added sugar and spices and can change the texture and sweetness of the cookies.
Don’t overbake: The signature texture of these cookies is extremely soft and cake-like. Take them out once the centers are set.
Expect sticky dough: Pumpkin adds significant moisture, so the dough won’t behave like traditional cookie dough.
Use a cookie scoop: This makes it much easier to create evenly sized cookies that bake at the same rate.
Let them cool: The cookies become easier to handle and develop a better texture as they cool.
For taller cookies: Chill the prepared dough for about 20–30 minutes before scooping and baking.
🍪 Easy Variations
🎃 Pumpkin Spice Cookies
Add ½ teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice to intensify the warm fall flavor.
🍫 Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Fold ¾ cup (130 g) of mini or regular chocolate chips into the dough before baking.
🤍 Cream Cheese Frosted Pumpkin Cookies
Once completely cooled, spread each cookie with cream cheese frosting and sprinkle with a little cinnamon.
🥜 Pumpkin Pecan Cookies
Fold ½ cup (55 g) chopped toasted pecans into the dough.
🍁 Maple Pumpkin Cookies
Add ½ teaspoon maple extract to the dough and finish the cooled cookies with a thin maple glaze.
🍫 White Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies
Fold ¾ cup (130 g) white chocolate chips into the dough for a sweet, creamy contrast to the pumpkin spice.
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
These cookies are especially delicious served with:
- Hot coffee
- Chai tea
- Hot chocolate
- Apple cider
- Vanilla ice cream
- Pumpkin spice latte
For a beautiful fall dessert platter, arrange the cookies with pecans, cinnamon sticks, and a light dusting of powdered sugar.
🧊 Storage
Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
For longer storage, refrigerate them in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
If frosted with cream cheese frosting, keep the cookies refrigerated.
❄️ Freezing
Place completely cooled, unfrosted cookies in a freezer-safe container with parchment paper between the layers.
Freeze for up to 2 months.
Thaw at room temperature before serving.
For the freshest texture, you can also freeze scooped portions of the unbaked dough and bake them from chilled, adding a few extra minutes to the baking time.
🍂 Final Result
These 3-Ingredient Pumpkin Cookies are proof that delicious fall baking doesn’t have to be complicated.
With just spice cake mix, pumpkin, and eggs, you get wonderfully soft, fluffy, cake-like cookies bursting with cozy pumpkin-spice flavor.
Three ingredients, one bowl, and an irresistibly easy fall treat! 🎃🍪🍂