51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (2024)

Celebrate the start of sweater weather with ALL the cookie baking.

By Mackenzie Filson
51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (1)

Fall brings so many of our favorite things: apple picking, (hopefully) the end of sweating our buns off, and all the cookie baking we can handle. Sure, you could warm yourself up with a mug of hot cider but we much prefer baking any (and all) of these fall cookie recipes, like sweet potato cookies, brown butter snickerdoodles, and apple cookies. Whether you're a pumpkin-everything kind of baker or craving apple-cinnamon, caramel, or all of the above, we've got 51 next-level brilliant cookie recipes featuring all the fall flavors you've been missing.

As far as we're concerned, pumpkin isn't just for pie. Yes, a pumpkin pie is a beautiful thing, but it's not the most casual dessert to whip up on a weekday. Which is why we love baking pumpkin into any and all of our favorite classic cookie recipes (the best way to use up canned pumpkin puree, TBH). It lends a tender fluffiness that lands it somewhere between cake and cookie, and adds earthy sweetness to our pumpkin sugar cookies, pumpkin cheesecake cookies, and pumpkin snickerdoodles.

Want to break out of the pumpkin or apple rut? We hear you. Try shaking up your baking routine with some fun, new cookie recipes that are just as comforting as those autumn classics. Festive cookies like pignoli cookies, alfajores, and pistachio chocolate chip cookies need to get to the top of your baking list ASAP. If you're a hardcore chocolate love, you'll flip over how rich our chewy chocolate cookies and espresso cookies are.

Hungry for more? Check out all of our favorite fall desserts and cider co*cktails. And if you have leftover cookies, you hereby have our permission to make an ice cream sandwich at your earliest convenience.

1

Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (3)

Get your pumpkin and cheesecake fix in one with these pumpkin-spiced cookies stuffed with a little surprise: cream cheese filling! The warming pumpkin spice cookies complement the creamy, tangy flavors of cheesecake, creating the most decadent cookie you'll have all season long. Although the pumpkin spice flavor screams fall, these cookies are truly enjoyable any time of the year.

Get the Pumpkin Cheesecake Cookies recipe.

2

Twix Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (4)

These easy Twix cookies are the simplest way to make a copycat of our favorite candy bar. Crunchy shortbread is topped with caramel and milk chocolate and mimics a Twix perfectly. If you like salty sweet, a little flaky sea salt on the chocolate before it sets would be divine too.

Get the Twix Cookies recipe.

3

Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (5)

Snickerdoodles are only made better by nutty, brown butter. These are chewy with pillowy soft centers and that classic snickerdoodle tang. As they cool, they settle into cracked and wrinkly cookies, which, in our opinion, are the very best kind.

Get the Brown Butter Snickerdoodle Cookies recipe.

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4

Lace Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (6)

These delicate little lace cookies—also known as Italian Florentine cookies—are so easy to make and a fun addition to your holiday cookie spread. They are shatteringly crispy and caramel-y with just enough flour and almonds to barely hold the cookies together.

Get the Lace Cookies recipe.

5

Cinnamon Bun Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (7)

Chef Christina Tosi's runs on cookies. Her other go-to special-occasion baked good? A fresh, warm cinnamon bun. The buttery cinnamon swirl, the gooey cream cheese frosting—she knew she had to dream it into this wildly good cookie recipe.

Get the Cinnamon Bun Cookies recipe.

6

Almond Joy Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (8)

What if your favorite coconut-almond-chocolate candy bar morphed into a crunchy, melt-in-your-mouth cookie? We've done it! Joy is in the name for a reason.

Get the Almond Joy Cookies recipe.

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7

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (9)

Perhaps the best part of fall is that it's the season of pumpkin treats. We're not just talking about pumpkin spice lattes and homemade pumpkin pie, but pumpkin cinnamon rolls and pumpkin ice cream too. [Insert head-exploding emoji here.] Now, there's a newcomer to the scene: pumpkin oatmeal cookies.

Get the Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies recipe.

8

Bizcochitos

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These anise and cinnamon scented cookies are the official state cookie of New Mexico! Though these cookies vary a bit in style depending where you are in the state, typically they are made with lard or butter, and cut into flower, star, or moon shapes. The anise seeds are crucial for that delicate floral licorice-y flavor, as is a dusting of cinnamon-sugar for added sweetness.

Get the Bizcochitos recipe.

9

Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (11)

You’ll fall in love with hazelnut flour once you realize how easy it is to make and how nutty it makes these gianduia-inspired cookies. Melted chocolate adds extra cocoa punch to the dough while rich and creamy Nutella tops them off.

Get the Chocolate Hazelnut Thumbprint Cookies recipe.

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10

Black & White Cookies

The cookies are sold at nearly every bakery or deli in New York City where they originated. The giant cookies started popping up in bakery cases as a way to use up leftover cake batter, which is why they have such a cakey texture. Whether you love chocolate or vanilla, this is the cookie for you!

Get the .

11

Peanut Butter Cookies

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Peanut butter cookies are one of those desserts we're always in the mood for. They're salty, sweet, and more rich than a chocolate chip cookie ever could be. We're suckers for the classic fork crosshatch look, but you can totally skip it. (Ready for the next level? Make peanut butter STUFFED cookies.)

Get the Peanut Butter Cookies recipe.

12

Ube Crinkle Cookies

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From halo halo and boba tea to more Western treats like brownies, ice cream, and pie, the uses of ube are endless. This recipe gives the classic crinkle cookie the ube treatment using ube halaya, a popular Filipino pudding made with ube and condensed milk, and ube extract.

Get the Ube Crinkle Cookies recipe.

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13

Monster Cookies

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The origin of the name "monster" cookies isn't clear, but it may refer to the fact that they're like Frankenstein's monster—they're a combination of many parts of other cookies (ours features oats, M&M's, peanuts, and pretzels) and are endlessly riffable. If you're looking for a version of monster cookies that have a bit more spooky-cute flair, check out our Halloween monster cookies.

Get the Monster Cookies recipe.

14

Butter Cookies

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These little guys might look simple, but they're dangerously decadent. There's a healthy dose of salt in the dough, making it easy to down 4 or 5 without overdosing on sugar. Serve them up with a cup of coffee or chai latte for dipping!

Get the Butter Cookies recipe.

15

Icebox Cookies

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Keeping a log of cookie dough in your fridge or freezer is the true genius move. It lets you have dessert ready in just a moment's notice for those last minute guests, and the ability to bake off only a cookie or two for yourself anytime. This recipe is the perfect base for mix-ins—we've included some of our tried and true favorites, but get creative!

Get the Icebox Cookies recipe.

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16

Sweet Potato Cookies

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Forget sweet potato casserole. Forget pumpkin spice lattes. Sweet potato cookies are our new fall staple. Once you taste the maple glaze, you'll understand why.

Get the Sweet Potato Cookies recipe.

17

Thumbprint Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (19)

It's true—this dough is firm, almost like a shortbread, so to make sure it doesn't crack, roll it into balls until smooth and firm, and then gently press your thumb in the center to make sure it doesn't crack. Gently.

Get the Thumbprint Cookies recipe.

18

Jack-O'-Lantern Sandwich Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (20)

Pumpkin sugar cookies get sandwiched together with a cream cheese frosting for a perfect fall dessert. Carve a Jack-o'-lantern into them for an adorable Halloween treat everyone will love. So much better than carving a real pumpkin.

Get the Jack-O'-Lantern Sandwich Cookies recipe.

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19

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (21)

Adding pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice to chocolate chip cookie dough results in a heavenly pillow-like cookie with major autumn vibes. Yum!

Get the Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.

20

Chewy Chocolate Cookies

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (22)

Love chocolate chip cookies, but want EVEN more chocolatey flavor? This recipe is for you. These chewy cookies double down on chocolate, thanks to the combo of cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and one of our favorite secret-weapon ingredients: instant coffee.

Get the Chewy Chocolate Cookies recipe.

51 Fall Cookie Recipes To Kick Off Baking Season (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to making good cookies? ›

The key is to always use top-quality ingredients as they'll result in a better cookie; it really is that simple.
  1. Always use butter.
  2. Choose the right sugar.
  3. Choose the right flour.
  4. Check your flour is in date.
  5. Choose the right kind of chocolate.
  6. Cream the butter and sugar.
  7. Beat in the eggs.
  8. Fold in the flour.

How do I make my cookies chewy instead of crunchy? ›

How To Make Cookies Chewy Without Cornstarch
  1. Go heavy on brown sugar. It has more moisture than its granulated counterpart, which means the cookie comes out less crispy. ...
  2. Choose margarine or shortening instead of butter. ...
  3. Use baking powder instead of baking soda. ...
  4. Rest your dough. ...
  5. Shorten baking time.
May 14, 2023

What is the trick to making soft cookies? ›

Baking cookies quickly in a hot oven – at 375 degrees F as opposed to a lower temperature – will make for soft results. They'll bake fast instead of sitting and drying out in the oven's hot air. Ever so slightly underbaking your cookies will give you softer results than cooking them the full amount the recipe says.

What cookie ingredient will rise and be softer? ›

For soft cookies, use: Brown sugar, as it has a high moisture content and retains moisture better than white sugar. Also, when combined with eggs, brown sugar can prevent spreading (taller cookies tend to be softer and fluffier). Shortening instead of butter or in addition to butter.

What brings out the flavor in cookies? ›

The Maillard reaction is a chemical reaction between amino acids and reducing sugars, so along with the caramelizing sugar, proteins in the cookie begin to brown, producing a rich, nutty, toasted flavour. This is the same reaction that occurs in bread and seared steak.

What makes cookies rise better? ›

Baking powder generally produces cakier cookies that rise higher during baking, producing smoother, shinier tops, while soda yields cookies that are craggier and denser in texture.

What is the trick to soften hard cookies? ›

The easiest way to soften cookies with bread is to place the cookies in an airtight container with a slice of bread and leave them for a few hours. The bread will release moisture and help to rehydrate the cookies, making them soft and chewy once again.

What makes cookies fluffy and not flat? ›

Flour adds fluff and texture to the cookies. Adding too little flour can cause cookies to be flat, greasy, and crispy. Most recipes assume you'll use all-purpose, but if you want a lighter, crumblier cookie texture, choose one with a lower protein content such as cake-and-pastry flour.

How do bakeries keep their cookies soft? ›

Corn Syrup (Light)

Light corn syrup is sometimes used in specialist cakes and confectioneries to help keep baked products soft and doughy for longer.

What happens if you use melted butter instead of softened for cookies? ›

Cookies made with melted butter often deflate and become denser when they cool, resulting in a perfectly cooked fudgy center — a similar textural result to brownies that get rapped (aka banged against an oven rack mid-bake to deflate them) or Sarah Kieffer's iconic pan-banging cookies that turn out pleasantly compact.

Should I use baking soda or baking powder in cookies? ›

Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.

Is it better to use shortening or butter in cookies? ›

Which One Should I Use in Cookies? Basically, cookies made with butter spread more and are flatter and crisper if baked long enough. However, they are more flavorful than cookies made with shortening. Cookies made with shortening bake up taller and are more tender, but aren't as flavorful.

What is cookie secret? ›

Cookie Secret is the secret used to encrypt and sign session cookies. If you don't provide a cookie secret, Pomerium will generate one for you.

How to bake cookies like a pro? ›

How to Bake Holiday Cookies Like A Pro
  1. Use room temperature butter. ...
  2. Mix the wet ingredients first, then add to the dry ingredients.
  3. Don't over mix—it makes the dough tough. ...
  4. Make your dough a day ahead and store it in the refrigerator so it the flavors mingle, and it has time to chill.

How long to chill cookie dough before baking? ›

Scooping then chilling your cookie dough for at least. 2 hours before baking. As you can see, this primarily affects spread and height, both of which significantly contribute to texture.

References

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