Italian bakers add pumpkin puree instead of eggs, trapping steam inside so these cookies stay cakey-soft for nearly a week.
Soft Pumpkin and Chocolate Cookies
Get ready to indulge in the ultimate fall treat with these delightful Soft Pumpkin and Chocolate Cookies! Bursting with warm cinnamon and studded with rich dark chocolate chips, these cookies are an easy way to bring cozy autumn vibes to your kitchen. With a simple blend of pumpkin puree and a sprinkle of spice, you’ll have a deliciously soft batch that’s perfect for sharing (or keeping all to yourself)!
Prep
15
min
Cook
20
min
Serves
4
people
Level
beginner
The Story
Right, this gluten-free pumpkin number is basically Italy's answer to New England's autumn obsession, except Venetian nonnas were cramming zucca into sweet biscuits centuries before American pumpkin spice became a personality trait—using rice flour and potato starch like a proper Milanese bakery sidesteps gluten entirely, proving Italy was doing allergen-friendly baking long before it was trendy, cinnamon be damned as the only immigrant spice allowed through customs here.
Regional Twist
Down in Sicily, bakers would swap half the rice flour for almond flour and stir orange zest into the purea di zucca, because Palermo never met a dessert it couldn't improve with citrus and nuts stolen from the Arab-Norman pantry.
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥬Fresh Produce(1)
- 50 g di fecola di patate (1.76 oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(5)
- 1 cucchiaino di lievito per dolci (5 ml)
- 60 g di gocce di cioccolato fondente (2.12 oz)
- 150 g di farina di riso (1.2 cup)
- 50 g di olio di semi o di riso (1.76 oz)
- 50 g di zucchero (0.25 cup)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- 1 cucchiaino di cannella (5 ml)
📦Other(1)
- 150 g di purea di zucca cotta (5.29 oz)
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
427
Protein
4g
Carbs
65g
Fat
17g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Cook the pumpkin, weigh 150 g and mash it until you get a puree. Let it cool.
- 2
Add the sugar, oil, and cinnamon and mix well.
- 3
Combine the rice flour, starch, and baking powder and mix until you get a workable dough.
- 4
Add the chocolate chips and incorporate them into the dough.
- 5
Form balls with your hands, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and slightly flatten them.
- 6
Bake in a preheated fan oven at 180°C for about 20 minutes.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Measure pumpkin puree at exactly 150g after cooling to room temperature, as warm puree contains 8-12% more water that will hydrate the rice flour differently and create a denser cookie.ingredient150g at room temperature; 8-12% excess moisture when warm
- ✓Mix the rice flour and potato starch together for 30 seconds before adding to the wet ingredients—this distributes starch evenly and reduces gluten development, which is critical since rice flour lacks gluten and needs starch to provide structure without toughness.technique30 seconds dry mixing
- ✓Chill the dough for 15-20 minutes before portioning because the oil and pumpkin puree need time to fully hydrate the starches; this prevents cookies from spreading excessively during baking and maintains a soft, cake-like crumb.timing15-20 minutes at 4°C
- ✓Flatten cookies to exactly 1-1.2 cm thickness by hand rather than using a glass, as gentle pressure preserves air pockets created during mixing, which helps cookies stay tender and ensures even baking at 180°C in 20 minutes.technique1-1.2 cm thickness
- ✓Bake for 20 minutes at 180°C with the fan on, checking at 18 minutes—the cookies are done when edges are set but the center still yields slightly to finger pressure, as carryover cooking from residual heat will firm them by another 10% as they cool.timing20 minutes at 180°C; check at 18 minutes
Share this recipe
Prep
15
min
Cook
20
min
Serves
4
people
Level
beginner
Share this recipe
Italian bakers add pumpkin puree instead of eggs, trapping steam inside so these cookies stay cakey-soft for nearly a week.
Soft Pumpkin and Chocolate Cookies
Get ready to indulge in the ultimate fall treat with these delightful Soft Pumpkin and Chocolate Cookies! Bursting with warm cinnamon and studded with rich dark chocolate chips, these cookies are an easy way to bring cozy autumn vibes to your kitchen. With a simple blend of pumpkin puree and a sprinkle of spice, you’ll have a deliciously soft batch that’s perfect for sharing (or keeping all to yourself)!
The Story
Right, this gluten-free pumpkin number is basically Italy's answer to New England's autumn obsession, except Venetian nonnas were cramming zucca into sweet biscuits centuries before American pumpkin spice became a personality trait—using rice flour and potato starch like a proper Milanese bakery sidesteps gluten entirely, proving Italy was doing allergen-friendly baking long before it was trendy, cinnamon be damned as the only immigrant spice allowed through customs here.
Regional Twist
Down in Sicily, bakers would swap half the rice flour for almond flour and stir orange zest into the purea di zucca, because Palermo never met a dessert it couldn't improve with citrus and nuts stolen from the Arab-Norman pantry.
📝 Ingredients
Serves 4🥬Fresh Produce(1)
- 50 g di fecola di patate (1.76 oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(5)
- 1 cucchiaino di lievito per dolci (5 ml)
- 60 g di gocce di cioccolato fondente (2.12 oz)
- 150 g di farina di riso (1.2 cup)
- 50 g di olio di semi o di riso (1.76 oz)
- 50 g di zucchero (0.25 cup)
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- 1 cucchiaino di cannella (5 ml)
📦Other(1)
- 150 g di purea di zucca cotta (5.29 oz)
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
427
Protein
4g
Carbs
65g
Fat
17g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Cook the pumpkin, weigh 150 g and mash it until you get a puree. Let it cool.
- 2
Add the sugar, oil, and cinnamon and mix well.
- 3
Combine the rice flour, starch, and baking powder and mix until you get a workable dough.
- 4
Add the chocolate chips and incorporate them into the dough.
- 5
Form balls with your hands, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and slightly flatten them.
- 6
Bake in a preheated fan oven at 180°C for about 20 minutes.
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Measure pumpkin puree at exactly 150g after cooling to room temperature, as warm puree contains 8-12% more water that will hydrate the rice flour differently and create a denser cookie.ingredient150g at room temperature; 8-12% excess moisture when warm
- ✓Mix the rice flour and potato starch together for 30 seconds before adding to the wet ingredients—this distributes starch evenly and reduces gluten development, which is critical since rice flour lacks gluten and needs starch to provide structure without toughness.technique30 seconds dry mixing
- ✓Chill the dough for 15-20 minutes before portioning because the oil and pumpkin puree need time to fully hydrate the starches; this prevents cookies from spreading excessively during baking and maintains a soft, cake-like crumb.timing15-20 minutes at 4°C
- ✓Flatten cookies to exactly 1-1.2 cm thickness by hand rather than using a glass, as gentle pressure preserves air pockets created during mixing, which helps cookies stay tender and ensures even baking at 180°C in 20 minutes.technique1-1.2 cm thickness
- ✓Bake for 20 minutes at 180°C with the fan on, checking at 18 minutes—the cookies are done when edges are set but the center still yields slightly to finger pressure, as carryover cooking from residual heat will firm them by another 10% as they cool.timing20 minutes at 180°C; check at 18 minutes