These cookies are soft and crunchy all at the same time. And they stay soft, too. So they are a great option for a do-ahead dessert that you can take to any Thanksgiving or Christmas party. For the pumpkin, I prefer to use fresh rather than canned. But either will work for this recipe. If using fresh, just cut the pumpkin in half, clean out the seeds, and roast cut side-down on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 350 degrees until very tender. Scoop out all the pumpkin flesh and allow to cool. You can then portion the pumpkin into zip top bags and freeze if you’re not going to use it all right away.
2 ¼ C | unbleached all purpose flour | ||
1 tsp | baking soda | ||
1 ½ tsp | ground ginger | ||
½ tsp | cinnamon | ||
½ tsp | fresh grated nutmeg | ||
½ tsp | kosher salt | ||
¼ lb | unsalted butter at room temperature | ||
1 ½ C | sugar | ||
2 | fresh eggs | ||
½ C | pumpkin puree | ||
1 tsp | vanilla | ||
1 C | pecans (optional) |
Crumble:
1 C | unbleached all purpose flour | ||
1 tsp | sugar | ||
½ C | run sugar (can substitute white sugar or brown sugar) | ||
1 tsp | cinnamon | ||
½ tsp | kosher salt | ||
6 Tbl | unsalted butter at room temperature |
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. For the Crumble: Whisk together sugars, flour, cinnamon, and salt. Using your fingertips, combine the flour and sugar mixture with the butter until it resembles fine, lumpy sand. Set aside. For the Cookies: Sift together first six ingredients. Cream softened butter and sugar. Add vanilla, eggs, and pumpkin one at a time to butter. Slowly incorporate flour mixture. Mix until combined. The batter will be rather wet and resemble cake batter. Using a 1 oz scoop, portion batter onto parchment lined baking sheets. The cookies will spread so leave at least 2 ½” between each cookie. Sprinkle the crumble mixture generously on the top of each cookie. Bake 20 – 25 minutes or until golden brown and set. Let cool.