Cosy autumn baking is calling, and these Sourdough Pumpkin Cookies are everything I love about the fall season wrapped into one soft, chewy bite. Packed with warm spices, brown butter, pockets of melty chocolate and that unmistakable sourdough tang, these sourdough pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are about to become your new favourite pumpkin recipe for using up leftover starter.
Jump to:
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost for you! Thank you!
Problem of Extra Moisture in Sourdough Discard
Sourdough starter discard is a great way to add flavour, reduce food waste and make more tender bakes - but it does come with an extra moisture challenge.
A 100% hydration sourdough discard contains equal parts water and flour. When we add it to a cookie recipe that doesn't use liquid ingredients (like milk), we're suddenly increasing the water content and risking cakey cookies instead of chewy cookies. Now add pumpkin purée into the mix - even when blotted with paper towels - and we're working with two high-moisture ingredients.
Here's how we balance it:
- Browned butter not only adds rich, nutty flavour, but gently cooks off some moisture during melting.
- Only the egg yolk is used - leaving out the egg white removes extra liquid and keeps the dough thick.
- Drying the pumpkin purée on paper towels helps remove excess moisture before it hits the dough.
These small tweaks work together to maintain structure, avoid cakey texture, and create that soft-chewy middle with crisp, golden brown edges that makes a cookie irresistible.
Ingredients and Variations
- Unsalted butter - brown it for the nutty flavour boost. Don't skip this step; it's key to the best texture and taste.
- Caster sugar (or granulated sugar) + light brown sugar - the combination gives both chewy texture and balanced sweetness.
- Egg yolk - no egg whites here to avoid extra moisture.
- Sourdough starter discard - 100% hydration. Avoid very old, overly acidic discard (especially if it has a layer of hooch), as it can clash with the sweetness. Active sourdough starter works too.
- Plain flour (all-purpose flour) - no need for strong flour here.
- Canned pumpkin puree - use real pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Dry it well before using.
- Nutmeg - optional; swap for cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice if preferred.
- Chocolate chips - white chocolate chips give a sweet, creamy contrast (my choice for a proper pumpkin-spice cosy feel), but dark chocolate chips or milk chocolate work beautifully if you'd prefer less sweetness. Have more chips? Try our Sourdough Red Velvet Cookies, Matcha Sourdough Cookies and Sourdough Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies next!
- Sea salt flakes (optional) - a tiny sprinkle on the top of the cookie enhances the flavour and balances the sweetness.
As always, find the ingredient quantities, detailed instructions and nutritional information in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.
Step-By-Step Method
1. Spread the pumpkin purée onto a few sheets of paper towels to draw out excess moisture.
2. Brown the butter: add butter to a small saucepan over medium heat until melted, foaming, then golden with a nutty aroma. Cool slightly.
3. Add brown and white sugar to a large mixing bowl and pour over the browned butter. Beat with a hand mixer for 2-3 minutes until the sugar begins to dissolve.
4. Whisk in the egg yolk until creamy, then add the sourdough discard and dried pumpkin purée. Mix with a balloon whisk or rubber spatula to combine (avoid overmixing).
5. In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.
6. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
7. Fold through the chocolate chips. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill for 3-4 hours (overnight is even better).
8. Divide the dough into 8 cookie dough balls using a cookie scoop for even sizing and place the balls in the freezer for 10-15 minutes whilst you preheat the oven.
9. Preheat the oven to 170°C Fan. Line two prepared baking sheets with parchment paper.
10. Arrange the cookies on the trays with space to spread. Bake cookies for 15-16 minutes or until edges look set and lightly golden brown, but the tops still look a little soft.
11. Optional but recommended: at the 10-minute mark, remove trays and firmly drop them on the worktop to create crackly tops, then return to bake.
12. Cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Tips for Best Results
- Brown the butter properly - you want golden bits on the bottom of the pan for maximum nutty flavour and reduced moisture.
- Dry the pumpkin - don't skip this step or you'll risk cakey cookies. A minute's prep makes all the difference.
- Don't overmix - once the flour mixture goes in, mix just until combined to avoid tough cookies.
- Chill the dough - minimum 4 hours allows the flour to hydrate, flavours develop and prevents spreading. Overnight rest = deeper flavour.
- Drop the tray - the pan-banging method creates those swoon-worthy ripples and a chewy texture.
Storage
- Room temperature: Store cooled cookies in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
- Freeze baked cookies: Place in a freezer-safe ziploc bag for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature.
- Freeze unbaked cookie dough balls: Freeze on a baking sheet, transfer to a freezer bag, and bake from frozen for an extra 2 minutes.
More Sourdough Cookies
If you're loving sourdough discard recipes as much as I am, these are only the beginning - I'll pop more sourdough chocolate chip cookies, sourdough oatmeal cookies, sourdough red velvet cookies and sourdough snickerdoodles recipes below so you can keep baking through pumpkin season and beyond.
More Pumpkin Sourdough Recipes
Pumpkin lover, who's also a sourdough baker? Try our sourdough discard pumpkin muffins and sourdough pumpkin bread next! Here are some more of our favourite recipes for the season:
Sourdough Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
Equipment
- Small Saucepan
- Large Bowl
- Rubber Spatula
- Wire rack
Ingredients
- 75 g (2.65 oz) unsalted butter
- 130 g (1 cup + 1 tbsp) plain flour all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda bicarbonate of soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 70 g (½ cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 70 g (⅓ cup) light brown sugar
- 1 egg yolk large
- 80 g (⅓ cup) sourdough starter discard 100% hydration
- 80 g (⅓ cup) pumpkin puree
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- 150 g (¾ cup) white chocolate chips
- sea salt for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- Spread the pumpkin puree on a few sheets of paper towels to draw out excess moisture.
- To make browned butter, place the butter in a small pan and heat it over medium heat. The butter should melt, then foam, and finally brown. Leave the butter to cool down slightly.
- Add both brown and caster sugar to a large mixing bowl. Pour the cooled melted butter over the sugar, and using a handheld electric mixer, beat the mixture for 2-3 minutes until the sugar starts dissolving (it will still be grainy, and it's ok).
- Add an egg yolk and whisk again for approximately 2 minutes.
- Add the sourdough discard and scrape the dried pumpkin puree from the paper towels. Mix with a balloon whisk until combined (you don't want to use an electric mixer here as it will promote gluten development).
- In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just enough to combine.
- Finally, add the chocolate chips and mix to distribute them evenly throughout the sourdough cookie dough.
- Cover the dough and place it in the fridge for at least 3 hours.
- Divide the cookie dough into 8 even portions and shape each into a ball. Place the balls in the freezer for 10-15 minutes, whilst you preheat the oven.
- Preheat the oven to 170°C Fan. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Place the balls onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving plenty of space in between them
- Bake the cookies for 15-16 minutes. The cookies should have browned crispy edges, but the centre should still be a little soft and puffy.
- OPTIONAL, BUT RECOMMENDED: After 12 minutes, take the baking sheets out of the oven and drop them from 20cm height onto a kitchen worktop - this creates that signature cracked tops. Return them to the oven and repeat the banging after your cookies are fully cooked.
- Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with sea salt flakes and leave them on the tray for 10 minutes to firm up.
- Transfer the cookies onto a cooling rack.
Nutrition
Leave a Reply