These sweet, soft, gluten-free pumpkin chocolate chip cookies make the perfect treat for fall! They are sweetened with coconut sugar, have just the right amount of spice, and are loaded with gooey chocolate chips.
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a large baking sheet (or two if you have multiple) with parchment paper and set aside.
Using the handheld electric mixer, cream the softened butter with ¾ cup of coconut sugar in a large mixing bowl for about 30 seconds or until it looks fluffy and uniform in color.
Add in the vanilla, egg yolk, and pumpkin puree. Mix together until everything is incorporated.
In a separate bowl combine the remaining dry ingredients (gluten-free flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and pumpkin pie spice) and mix together.
Pour the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix using the mixer until there are no lumps or streaks. Avoid overmixing.
Fold the chocolate chips into the dough using a rubber spatula.
If your dough is extremely soft, you can chill it for 15-30 minutes. However, this is not a necessary step.
Combine 1 tbsp. of coconut sugar, 1 tbsp. granulated sugar and ¼ tsp of pumpkin pie spice in a small bowl and stir together. Set aside.
Begin scooping out the dough using a 1-ounce cookie scoop and rolling it between your hands. Place the ball of cookie dough in the bowl of sugar and roll it until the outside is covered. Roll it in your hands to get a nice even shape and then place it on the lined cookie sheet. Repeat for all the cookies. This recipe will yeild 16-18 cookies.
Leave about 2 inches between cookies when placing them on the baking sheet. The cookies will spread out slightly while baking but not too much. You should be able to fit about 9 cookies on a large baking sheet. Bake in batches if needed.
Place the baking sheet on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 12-14 minutes or until the cookies rise and start to look crispy around the edges.
Allow cookies to cool for several minutes on the pan and then use a spatula to transfer them to a wire cooling rack.
Store extra cookies in an airtight container once fully cooled.
Notes
I was at about 5000 ft elevation and 13 minutes of baking seemed to be the sweet spot for me, you may need a little less or more time based on elevation.