Gluten-free Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
gluten-free | tree nut free option | refined sugar free
by Alexa Lehr | The Pioneer Chicks | October 05, 2023
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Usually I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin cookies. The texture never seems to be cookie-like and they always turn out too moist and soft. But when I find a recipe that is hard to master, I just can’t quit. I have to keep trying recipe variations until I come up with one that fits the bill… and meets the taste test. These gluten-free pumpkin oatmeal cookies are probably the best pumpkin cookie I have ever made! They are bursting with fall flavors and have a great texture… not too moist but not too dry. Loaded with chocolate chips and topped with chopped nuts and flakey sea salt, these cookies make the perfect fall snack or dessert!
These gluten-free pumpkin oatmeal cookies are a modern pioneer recipe! However, they certainly have simple, wholesome ingredients that even the earlier pioneers might have used.
It is getting into the fall season here in Michigan, and I love cooking and baking with seasonal produce. I figured there is no better way to start fall than with pumpkin cookies! The early pioneers would have also cooked and baked seasonally, based on what produce and crops they could harvest from the fields, garden, and forest.
Gluten-free whole oats and a grain-free all-purpose flour (cassava flour) are two other ingredients that make these cookies simple and healthy. Natural sweeteners, like pure maple syrup and maple sugar are ingredients that can even be sourced from the homestead if you harvest your own maple products!
Butter would have been another pioneer staple, although it was sometimes sparingly used if not enough was made and stored. These cookies use organic, grass-fed butter, which is a dairy product that I can have despite being dairy-intolerant. A few fall spices, some leavening agent, and a fresh egg add to the simple ingredient list for making these cookies flavorful and yielding a perfect texture.
And we can’t forget the star ingredients… pumpkin, chocolate chips, and chopped pistachios! Okay, maybe the early pioneers didn’t have chocolate chips. But I’m sure they may have added pumpkin and chopped nuts to their cookies!
Simple and wholesome, these cookies are…
Yes! Pumpkin contains many good vitamins and minerals. It is a good source of fiber and antioxidants. Fiber helps keep the digestive track healthy and running smoothly. Pumpkin is also a great source of vitamin A.
A 100 gram serving of pumpkin (which is a little less than 1/2 cup) gives you more than your daily vitamin A requirement! Of course, you would have to eat the whole batch of pumpkin oatmeal cookies to get one 100 gram serving of pumpkin, but it’s the thought that counts right? Vitamin A helps with good vision, prevents heart disease, and prevents cancer. Pumpkin also contains vitamin C, riboflavin, potassium, copper, and manganese in substantial amounts.
The seeds of a pumpkin also contain the amino acid called tryptophan, which gets converted into GABA once it is in the brain. GABA is a nutrient that relaxes the body and calms the nerves. So you could call these stress free cookies (except….they don’t contain the pumpkin seeds)! But you could easily used roasted and chopped pumpkin seeds instead of nuts on top of the cookies!
Pumpkin is a fun vegetable to bake with and I love trying out new pumpkin recipes every fall. I always have a long list of all the pumpkin recipes I want to try and I never get to them all. Here are a few that I have made though:
Frozen, Canned, or Fresh Pumpkin?
You can use frozen, fresh, or canned pumpkin in these cookies! If you use frozen pumpkin, drain any extra moisture from the pumpkin before measuring it out to use in the recipe. I have used both pureed and non-pureed pumpkin flesh in these cookies, and you really can’t tell the difference!
Whole Oats or Quick Oats?
I have only made these cookies with gluten-free whole, rolled oats. Quick oats are finer and may alter the consistency or the texture of the cookies.
Extra Add-Ins
I added allergy-friendly chocolate chips to my cookies and then topped them with flakey sea salt and chopped pistachios. My favorite allergy-friendly chocolate chips include Enjoy Life chocolate chips, Lily’s Sweets chocolate chips (refined sugar free!), Pascha chocolate chips, and True Goodness chocolate chips (Meijer).
You can really add whatever goodies you want to these pumpkin cookies! Make them into pumpkin monster cookies by adding Unreal chocolate gems or convert them into a breakfast cookie and use more nuts and seeds.
Nut Free
You can easily make these cookies nut free! Just omit the chopped nuts on top!
Shaping the Cookies
These pumpkin oatmeal cookies do need to be shaped before baking. They will not melt down and spread like classic chocolate chip cookies or these grain-free double chocolate cookies. I spooned the batter out onto the cookie trays, then used a spoon to shape each cookie dough blob into a round cookie shape that was about 1/4″ thick. The cookies will rise some so don’t worry too much about uneven tops.
Storing Pumpkin Cookies
While these pumpkin cookies aren’t super moist, they should still be stored in the fridge since they are more moist than most cookies. Wait until the cookies have cooled completely before putting them in an airtight container to store in the fridge. These cookies freeze well too!
In this recipe I use frozen pumpkin that I froze last fall and un-thawed to use in these cookies. Store-bought canned pumpkin often contains sugars and syrups. Some may not even contain real pumpkin, it may be a combination of pumpkin and squash! If you do buy pumpkin, make sure it is organic canned pumpkin with no added ingredients.
I highly recommend buying or planting your own pie pumpkins to freeze or can for later use! Whole uncut pumpkins can be stored in a cool, dark place for up to 2 months. If you can’t grow your own pumpkins, support local farm stands or farm markets in your area!
Some people get intimidated by cooking up a whole pumpkin, but I think it is really simple:
If you want, you can save the pumpkin seeds to make homemade roasted pumpkin seeds. You will just need to scoop them out before you put the pumpkin in the oven. Also, the pumpkin seeds and leftover skins make a great treat for chickens! They love pumpkin and it is very beneficial for them!
For another delicious fall cookie recipe, be sure to check out my gluten-free zucchini cookie recipe!
These gluten-free pumpkin oatmeal cookies are the perfect cookie for the fall season! They would be great for family gatherings, fall parties, or just having on hand as a healthier dessert. These cookies are fun and easy to make, so let’s get baking!
After you have made these pumpkin oatmeal cookies once, you will definitely want to add it to your repeat cookie list or even to your ‘make for Thanksgiving’ list! They are so easy to whip up, the recipe uses simple ingredients, and they taste delicious. I love that these pumpkin cookies are not too soft and are bursting with fall flavors! The pumpkin in these gluten-free pumpkin cookies provides you with some valuable nutrition and the cookies themselves are gluten-free, sweetened with maple products, and use a grain-free flour!
Join our modern pioneer newsletter community and get recipes on a bi-weekly basis to grow your homestead kitchen menu and recipe list! We’ll be gearing up for fall baking and you don’t want to miss these fall recipes!
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View Comments
I was just wondering for myself and for others who may wonder what we could use instead of all those sugars if we can't find them I have coconut sugar but I do not have xylitol and I do not have maple sugar with maple syrup work?
Hi Tori!
I would suggest replacing the xylitol and maple sugar with more coconut sugar. You could also try substituting a little bit of zevia for one of the sugars. Keep in mind that zevia is a strong sweetener so you would only want to use a little bit. Good question, and hopefully this helps!
Sincerely, Alexa