These are hands-down the best Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Chip Cookies! I first tried something similar at a bakery and couldn’t stop thinking about them, so I set out to recreate the magic at home. After a few rounds of testing (and lots of cookie tasting), this recipe totally nailed it. They’re soft, chewy, packed with cozy pumpkin spice, and those melty white chocolate chips are next-level good. Honestly? They’re fall in cookie form—and yes, they absolutely count as breakfast thanks to the oats. Originally published October 4, 2011.
Table of Contents
- The best pumpkin oatmeal cookies
- Pumpkin white chocolate chip oatmeal cookie ingredients
- How to make pumpkin oatmeal cookies
- How to store pumpkin white chocolate chip cookies
- Can you freeze pumpkin oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies?
- More pumpkin desserts you´ll love
- Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe
We just moved from Indianapolis to Utah. I decided a long time ago to stop waiting for neighbors to bring me treats when I move in somewhere. When we moved to Indy, I started the tradition of bringing cookies to our new neighbors instead of moping around waiting for them to bring some to us. (Let’s be honest, I’ve got plenty of extra baked goods lying around anyway!)
So I whipped up a double batch of these babies to give to our new friends sharing our walls. We chatted with the cute just-married couple next door. We met the lady upstairs and her teenage son who likes to play his drums on our living room ceiling. And then we knocked on the last door. It creaks open a sliver. An eye peers out. A man with boxers and no shirt on opens the door a little further to glare at us, the couple who has dared to knock on his door at 8:30 pm.
After a very rushed and awkward conversation, we hurry back to our apartment. I don’t know what it is with naked people answering their doors. When we were in Indiana, we brought cookies to the guy next door. He opened the door wearing nothing but a towel. We all just stared at each other for this horrible moment, and then he said “I thought you were someone else.” We practically threw the cookies at him and ran.
I hope you enjoy these cookies and don’t have to deal with any scantily clad men in the process!
(Here’s the original photo of these cookies. This was my first ever blog post here on The Food Charlatan!)
The best pumpkin oatmeal cookies
There is a bakery in Indianapolis that has the best pumpkin oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies. I’m telling you—they’re soft, perfectly spiced, and have those melty pockets of white chocolate that make you question why raisins were ever a thing. Naturally, I had to try to sweet-talk the recipe out of them. I asked nicely. I hinted. I begged. No dice. So, I did what any determined cookie-lover would do: I set out to recreate them myself. I dug around and found a recipe that looked promising… except it called for raisins and nuts (um, hard pass). I swapped in white chocolate chips, made a few other tweaks to get the texture just right, and let me tell you—they turned out awesome. Honestly, I might love these even more than the originals (but don’t tell that bakery).
Featured Comment
“I made these pumpkin oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies for the Super Bowl party, and it was a crowd favorite.” – Bella H.
Pumpkin white chocolate chip oatmeal cookie ingredients
Here’s a quick shopping list to help you gather your ingredients. Jump to the recipe card below for the full ingredients and instructions!
- salted butter
- white sugar
- light brown sugar
- vanilla extract
- pumpkin puree, canned or homemade (NOT pumpkin pie filling)
- all-purpose flour
- salt
- baking powder
- baking soda
- cinnamon
- old-fashioned oats (also called rolled oats)
- white chocolate chips
How to make pumpkin oatmeal cookies
Start by melting your butter in the microwave, then pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl if you’re going the electric hand mixer route). Toss in the sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and pumpkin, and whisk it all together until smooth.
In another bowl, stir together the flour (spoon and level, friends!), salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and oats. Give it a quick whisk to mix, then slowly add the dry ingredients to your wet mix. Don’t overdo it. Once things are mostly combined, toss in the white chocolate chips. Mix just until everything’s incorporated.
Pop the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to chill. When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Use a cookie scoop to grab generous portions of dough—about 2 tablespoons each—and space them 2 inches apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat. Gently press each cookie with your palm just enough to flatten them slightly so they don’t bake up like little cookie mountains.
Bake for 8–10 minutes. The cookies might look a bit underdone when you pull them out, but that’s exactly what you want. While they’re still hot, press a few extra white chocolate chips on top to make them look bakery-level fancy. Let them rest on the pan for 5–10 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool completely (if you can wait that long).
How to store pumpkin white chocolate chip cookies
You can store leftover cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 or 5 days. If you’d like them to last a bit longer, you can refrigerate the cookies for up to a week. Just bring them to room temperature or warm them briefly in the microwave before eating.
Can you freeze pumpkin oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies?
YES! These cookies also freeze very well. Place them in a single layer on a baking sheet to freeze, then transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or container. They’ll keep in the freezer for 2 to 3 months, and you can thaw them at room temperature or warm them up for that fresh-baked taste.
More pumpkin desserts you´ll love
- Pumpkin Pie Bars (Pumpkin Shortbread Bars) >> super easy and they have the perfect ratio of pumpkin pie filling to shortbread crust
- Butterscotch Pumpkin Cake >> this is pumpkin dessert at its finest
- Layered Pumpkin Cheesecake >> two layers of cheesecake, buttery crust, caramel, whipped cream, and graham crackers crumbs!
- Pumpkin Cream Cheese Roll >> so impressive and delicious with copious amounts of cream cheese frosting, of course
- Peanut Butter Pumpkin Blossoms >> peanut butter decadence with a hint of pumpkin spice
- Pumpkin Scones from Handle the Heat
- Pumpkin Pound Cake from Life, Love and Sugar
- Pumpkin Pecan Cobbler from Lauren´s Latest
Pumpkin Oatmeal White Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup salted butter, melted
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 3 cups all-purpose flour, spooned carefully into the measuring cup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 cup old-fashioned oats
- 1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips, plus more to top cookies with
Instructions
- Melt the butter in the microwave. Pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large bowl and use an electric mixer) and use the whisk attachment to combine in the sugar, brown sugar, vanilla, and pumpkin.
- In another medium bowl, add the flour (make sure you spoon and level it!), salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and oats. Whisk to combine, then add to the wet ingredients. Stir until it is not quite combined, then add the white chocolate chips. Once all the flour is mixed in turn the mixer off, you don’t want to overdo it. The dough will be pretty soft.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least a half hour, or longer.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Use a cookie scoop to make large balls of dough, at least 2 tablespoons each. Place them 2 inches apart on baking sheets that are lined with a silpat or parchment paper. Gently flatten each ball with the palm of your hand–not a lot, just enough to make it not so dome-y.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. The cookies will not appear done, but take them out anyway and immediately press some white chocolate chips on top of the cookies. Let them sit on the pan for 5 or 10 minutes. Then remove to a wire rack and let cool.
These are delicious! They feel kinda healthy what with the pumpkin & oatmeal. I used maple syrup in place of the white sugar, and we all really enjoyed them. A perfect Halloween night cookie!!!!
Having read the other reviews, I was surprised and disappointed with my first attempt at these! My experience showed the recipe”s suggested time of 8-10 minutes to be not even close to long enough. I like cookies most and chewy as a rule, but it took a third pan and about22 minutes to get the desired result! Those that were fully baked (still chewy!) were quite good!
Currently the first two pans are back in the oven, hopefully baking enough to use as a crumble over ice cream.
I’m sorry the recipe didn’t work out for you! I’ve never had that issue with these cookies before.
Gorgeous pictures. I made these pumpkin oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies for the super bowl party and it was a crowd favorite. Thanks for sharing! Happy Independence Day!
Thanks Bella! I’m so glad you liked them!
Love your pumpkin oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies recipe. I’ll definitely try it, but instead of 1/2 cup sugar i would use honey! I’m also gonna pin this post on my Pinterest board my followers will love it. Can i post it on my blog? Thanks for sharing, Karen!
um these have to happen in my life! I LOVE white chocolate and of course pumpkin, yum!
Totally try them out Adell! They are super good. Haven’t made these in years. About 5 years I think. This was my first post on my blog! haha!
That’s awesome, congrats on 5 years of blogging! What’s crazy is I gave birth to my daughter that day, haha. She turns 5 on October 4th!
That is too funny Adell! Your daughter and my blog are the exact same age :)
Yay for first posts! Who opens the door with a towel on? I don’t care who you are, if I’m opening the door, I’m putting clothes on.
I sprawled across my bed to read the scriptures this morning and ended up reading your blog for at least 30 minutes. I hate myself. Congratulations on 8 successful years.
Bahaha!!! I’m sorry Maureen!! Can’t tell you how often that happens to me, I go to read the scriptures and get distracted! Thanks for reading though :)
Hilarious! I love the description of your neighbors! So sweet that you brought them cookies … not so sweet that they answered the door half-naked, though! And, ummmmm … these cookies?!? Are you kidding?? Pumpkin + Oatmeal + White Chocolate = Brilliant! So totally pinning these … and wishing they’d jump right in my belly! Love that you included your original pic … really fun seeing how very (beautifully!) far you’ve come! :D
This was fun to read. I actually thought of taking treats to our neighbors when we first move to our apartment and to our now home… but I am always worried about will they take it? will they eat it? what if they get a tummy ache later? will they blame me? hehehe Do you ever think about that?
Oh yeah totally Melissa. But I’m super nosy and I need SOME excuse to knock on my neighbors doors!! :)
KAREN I LOVE YOUR BLOG. KEEP IT UP.
Best quote of the website: Never is there a time when I think to myself, “I want cookies, but I can definitely wait a half hour for my butter to soften before I start making them.” No way.
Awesome.
You’re so right, Nikki, who waits for butter to soften? That’s why God invented microwaves:)
Funny how that quote ties in with today’s 9th anniversary post – never enough butter!
Eric G: I think your opinion is tainted . . . You would like anything the Food Charlatan would make . . . .
Bogs looks yummy . . I will add it to my favorite food blog list!
I think the guy with the towel’s name was Stan. My dad talked to him and he thought Stan was a nice guy. I hope he enjoyed the cookies…
Great cookies btw! I love ’em!