Pumpkin S’mores Cookies Are the Perfect Mash-Up Dessert for Fall
Updated: Oct. 30, 2023
These soft-baked pumpkin s'mores cookies are the perfect combination of summer campfires and fall harvest.
From s’more cheesecake to berry brownie pizza, we love a good food mashup. These pumpkin s’mores cookies are no exception.
Bursting with warm pumpkin spice flavor, bejeweled with toasted marshmallows and pooling with puddles of chocolate, these magical cookies take two of our favorite dessert recipes and bring them together into one heavenly union of flavors.
If pumpkin and s’mores are not enough to get your mouth watering, we’ve also added notes of toasted brown butter and warm cinnamon to take these tender and chewy cookies to all-new levels of bliss.
Pumpkin S’mores Cookies Recipe
This recipe makes 18 large cookies.
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (144g) unsalted butter, cold from the fridge
- 1/2 cup (113g) canned pumpkin puree
- 1 cup (220g) light or dark brown sugar
- 2/3 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2-1/3 cups (300g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1-1/2 cups mini marshmallows
- 2 cups dark chocolate, chopped (or dark chocolate chips)
Directions
Step 1: Brown the butter
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
To a medium saucepan, over medium heat, add the butter. Cook, stirring often with a whisk, until the butter has melted, begins to foam, and turns a rich golden brown color. Remove promptly and transfer to a bowl of a stand mixer. Cool for 10-15 minutes. (This is important! You don’t want the butter to scramble the egg when it’s added to the bowl in the next step.)
Editor’s Tip: Keep a close eye on the butter, as it can burn easily if you’re not careful. Browning butter typically takes 3-5 minutes and is ready when the butter has a warm, nutty aroma.
Step 2: Beat in the sugar, eggs and pumpkin
To the cooled butter, add the brown sugar and granulated sugar. Stir to combine, and then whisk in the vanilla and room-temperature eggs. Beat for 1-2 minutes, or until the mixture thickens slightly and turns paler in color.
Step 3: Mix in the dry ingredients
To the wet ingredients, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Gently fold in the dry ingredients using a rubber spatula until just combined—a few streaks of flour are okay.
Step 4: Add the chocolate and chill
Fold in 3/4 of the chocolate chunks into the dough. Then chill the cookie dough for at least 1 hour or overnight.
Step 5: Shape the cookies
Divide and shape the dough into 18 balls (about 2 tablespoons each) and arrange cookies on the prepared sheet pans. Then, firmly press additional chopped chocolate and 3-4 mini marshmallows on top of each ball.
Editor’s Tip: This dough for these cookies should be wet and sticky, even after chilling it. To make it easier to shape, try greasing your cookie scoop with nonstick cookie spray. If shaping by hand, rub a few drops of canola oil into your palms.
Step 6: Bake the cookies
Bake for 10 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies are set, and the centers are still a bit gooey. If you prefer a more well-done cookie, bake for up to 12 minutes.
Editors Tip: For perfectly shaped cookies, try these cookie tips: Bang the pan flat on your counter 2-3 times to deflate the cookies immediately after removing them from the oven. Then, use a round cookie cutter, a little larger than the baked cookies, to gently scoot and reshape them into circles while they’re still warm.
Step 7: Cool
Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes on the pans and then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
How to Store Pumpkin S’mores Cookies
Allow the baked pumpkin s’mores cookies to cool completely, then store them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Don’t want to bake all the cookies at once? Shape the dough into balls as directed and then store in an airtight container lined with parchment paper. Freeze for freshly baked pumpkin s’mores cookies on demand. Allow the dough to rest at room temperature for 10-15 minutes while your oven preheats before baking as directed above.
Want to freeze baked cookies? Don’t miss this cookie-freezing guide.
