Fall in love with these delicious soft pumpkin molasses cookies made with simple ingredients liked canned pumpkin and oats. They are the perfect accompaniment to a piping hot cup of coffee.
These cookies are exactly what I think of when daydreaming about fall comfort food… pumpkin, molasses, and warm spices. Brew yourself a pot of coffee and make yourself a batch of these cookies ASAP. Seriously! I mean it is national homemade cookie day after all. 😉
As a kid, I never really appreciated the flavor of molasses but now I am so excited to start adding it to more recipes this fall. I used the molasses as a replacement for some of the sugar in these cookies so they are a little less sweet than normal. Which only makes them better in my opinion! Of course, you can’t make any fall recipe without incorporating a little bit of pumpkin in there as well.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Old-Fashioned Oats: I like the texture of old fashioned oats best for cookies, but you could also use quick oats/instant oats in these cookies.
- All Purpose Flour & Baking Soda: Adds to the fluffy texture of this soft molasses cookie recipe.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice: I always keep a jar of pumpkin pie spice in my pantry for fall baking recipes like this one but you can also make your own or substitute with ground cinnamon.
- Butter: Unsalted butter is best, but if you only have salted butter on hand – just add a little less salt to your dough.
- Sugar & Molasses: Granulated sugar adds most of the sweetness, while molasses adds a little sweetness but a ton of rich flavor.
- Canned Pumpkin Puree: make sure to buy the plain canned pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie filling which is already pre-sweetened.
- Egg: adds structure to these molasses oatmeal cookies. You can substitute with 1 flax egg (mix 1 tablespoon flaxseed with 2 1/2 tablespoons water and let sit until gel forms) if you want to make these cookies egg free.
- Vanilla Extract: adds a hint of lovely vanilla flavor to these pumpkin cookies.
How to Make Soft Pumpkin Molasses Cookies
Combine the Dry Ingredients: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, and oats.
Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a separate bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, molasses, and pumpkin with a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again.
Combine: Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredient mixture and beat until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Bake: Place rounded, tablespoon-size scoops of dough onto a baking sheet. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Place cookie sheet on a rack to cool and then transfer cookies to the rack. Allow to cool completely.
Make Glaze (Optional): To make the glaze, sift the powdered sugar into a bowl and stir in the milk and maple syrup until smooth. Use a fork to drizzle the glaze over these soft molasses cookies. Let sit for a couple of minutes to allow the glaze to set and then enjoy!
What Kind of Molasses is Best for Cookies?
When shopping for molasses in the store, you’ll come across a few different varieties. Light molasses has a less intense flavor, while dark molasses has a strong/rich flavor. Choose based on your preference for how molasses-forward you want your cookies to taste.
Do I Have to Chill the Dough?
Pumpkin adds a lot of moisture to the cookie dough so it can be sticky and difficult (but not impossible) to scoop. You could skip it if you’re in a hurry, but we recommend chilling the dough for at least 30 minutes before baking so that it is easier to handle.
Can I Make These Gluten Free?
I haven’t tested any gluten free flours on this recipe specifically, but it should work well with any cup-for-cup gluten free flours on the market. Be sure to use gluten-free certified oats as well.
More Delicious Recipes You’ll Love
- Vegan Pumpkin Gingerbread
- Pumpkin Spice Baked Oatmeal
- Pumpkin Spice Smoothie
- Vegan Pumpkin Donuts with Maple Frosting
- Strawberry Dark Chocolate Cookies
- White chocolate cranberry oatmeal cookies
Did you love this recipe? Make sure to leave a ⭐️ rating and tag #dietitiandebbie on instagram!
Did you love this recipe? Make sure to leave a ⭐️ rating and tag #dietitiandebbie on instagram!
Pumpkin Molasses Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies:
- 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Glaze:
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Sift together the flour, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice into the same bowl, then stir in the oats.
- In a small bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, molasses, and pumpkin with a mixer until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla and mix again.
- Pour in the flour/oat mixture and beat until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap and set in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to chill.
- After chilling, place dough onto a baking sheet using a tablespoon. Bake for 8-12 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Place cookie sheet on a rack to cool and then transfer cookies to the rack. Allow to cool completely.
- To make the glaze, sift the powdered sugar into a bowl and stir in the milk and maple syrup until smooth. Use a fork to drizzle over the cookies. Let sit for a couple of minutes to allow the glaze to set and then enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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Comments & Reviews
I ate 4 …
My brother ate 3
My husband ate 3 within the hour they were out
The only thing I tweaked was the icing part alittle and left them in the oven for 14 minutes only because I wanted the bottom to crisp up alittle. Thank you thank you.
So happy to hear you liked them!
Easy, delicious, and a great way to use up some pumpkin!
I wish you’d publish the nutritional info, like how many cookies this makes, and how many calories for each, etc. Thanks.
Oh my goodness- this is incredible! I love the idea of these cookies, yum, yum, yum! I am totally looking forward to a weekend of baking and these are on my must make list. Molasses with pumpkin!? Amazing!