Vegan Pumpkin Cookies Recipe
If you are looking for a simple, vegan pumpkin cookie recipe, you have got to try this one for sure. These egg free pumpkin cookies are easy to bake and will make a huge batch that will feed a crowd.
Ingredients
Ingredients for Cookies:
- ½ Cup Shortening (I Used Crisco All)
- 1 Cup Sugar
- 1 Cup Pumpkin Puree (Not Pumpkin Pie Filling Simply Canned Pumpkin Puree Or You May Also Choose To Buy Fresh Pumpkin And Cook It)
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract (I Use Trader Joes Pure Vanilla Flavor Alcohol Free)
- 2 Cups All Purpose Flour
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
- 1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon (I Made It ½ Teaspoon)
- A Dash Salt
- 1 Cup Raisins
Ingredients For Frosting:
- 2 Tablespoons Butter (Vegans Can Use Earth Balance Or Any Other Soy Products)
- 1 And ½ Cups Confectioner's Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Milk (For Vegan Version Use Soy Milk Instead)
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
Instructions
Procedure for cookies:
- Preheat the oven at 350F for 15 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add pumpkin and vanilla.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and mix well.
- Fold in raisins.
- Drop by teaspoonfuls (I used ½ tablespoon measurement to scoop the dough) 2 in. apart onto greased baking sheets.
- Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes or until lightly browned. Mine took exactly 14 minutes for the batch which I baked in an aluminum baking sheet. The dark non stick baking sheet batch began to brown at 12 minutes itself. So watch closely.
- Remove to wire racks to cool.
Procedure for frosting:
- Melt butter in a small saucepan.
- Stir in the sugar, milk and vanilla until smooth.
- Frost cooled cookies.
Notes
- Since this was my first experience with shortening, when I began to cream it with sugar, I was sure that the cookies would not bake properly because it did not cream like softened butter and sugar. Shortening is more solid than butter, even at room temperature, so even after creaming it with a hand-held electric mixer for more than 7-8 minutes, it was sort of in a semi-solid state. Or maybe that's what is light and fluffy; I do not know. I proceeded with the recipe, but the cookies did not bake well enough.
- I think using freshly prepared pumpkin puree or adding more liquid (like milk/soymilk), or using canned pumpkin, would make the cookies even lighter and crispy. I used the canned puree, which is solid packed, so it does not have enough moisture. Already, the creamed mixture did not release any moisture, and the pumpkin puree was also solid, so the cookie dough was stiff. I was literally praying that the cookies should come out properly or I would have to run out to the store at 9 in the night to get something for the kids next day. Fortunately it came out well. Since I have not tasted pumpkin cookies before, I don't have anything to compare with. But we liked it very much. As I have mentioned earlier, the cookies were chewy and not crispy.
Nutrition
Calories: 75kcal | Carbohydrates: 13.3g | Protein: 0.9g | Fat: 2.4g | Sodium: 68mg | Potassium: 61mg | Fiber: 0.5g | Sugar: 7.4g
