Pumpkin Pecan Caramel Chip Cookies are the perfect fall treat!  Easy to make, these delicately spiced cookies are dotted with crunchy pecans and melty caramel chips, making them the best pumpkin cookie recipe, in my book!

These pumpkin pecan caramel chip cookies are chock full of tasty goodness–make a batch today!

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One of my neighbors is a very generous person.  She routinely brings our family bags of assorted goodies, and recently one of those goodies was a package of caramel baking chips.

In all honesty, I didn’t know caramel chips were a thing, but they sounded delicious, so I knew I needed to put them to use.  The bag she brought us was Ghirardelli brand, and I love all things Ghirardelli.

Random Fact: As a kid, my family almost always celebrated my birthday with ice cream at the Ghirardelli shop in Orlando.  Later in life, my husband and I visited the original Ghirardelli during a vacation in San Francisco.  Needless to say, I’m a fan.

So if you can find the Ghirardelli caramel chips, use them.  They’re larger chips than a typical chocolate chip, so you’ll get lots of caramel flavor in your cookies.

Anyways, back to finding a way to use the caramel chips.  With fall upon us, I want to eat ALL the pumpkin spice things.  I had some leftover pumpkin puree in the fridge from this pressure cooker pumpkin spice bundt cake, so I decided to make some pumpkin pecan cookies with the caramel chips.

Because really, what’s not to love about a soft cookie with hints of pumpkin and warm spices, dotted with crunchy pecans and melty caramel chips?

My thoughts exactly.

So I set out to create the perfect pumpkin pecan cookie with these caramel chips.  I’ve found that some pumpkin cookies are cake-like, some are more dense, some are still kind of sticky, even after baking…it can be a little tricky.

I took elements of my favorite cookie recipes and combined them into these pumpkin pecan caramel chip cookies, and they did not disappoint.  They’re basically bite-size morsels of fall.  My kids ate half the batch in one sitting.

You’ll love them!

There are a couple of different ways you can shape them.  You can leave the edges irregular and craggy, giving them a bit more rustic appearance once they bake.

Or, you can use your fingers or the bottom of a glass to press down the tops a bit, giving them a flatter and more regular surface.

They taste the same either way, so take your pick!

More Pumpkin Recipes You’ll Love:

• Baked Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Donut Bites
• Grandma Wilhelm’s Pumpkin Bread
• Pressure Cooker Caramel Pumpkin Spice Bread Pudding
• Soft and Chewy Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
• Pumpkin Cinnamon Sugar Scones

How to Make Pumpkin Pecan Caramel Chip Cookies

You’ll start by creaming together some melted butter with both brown and white sugars.  Once that’s light and fluffy, add in the pumpkin puree.  The pumpkin puree acts as the binder in this particular recipe, so no eggs are needed!

In a separate bowl, whisk together some flour, pumpkin pie spice, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.  Gradually add that into the wet ingredients until it’s combined well.  Last, add the good stuff–the pecans and the caramel chips.

I scoop out scant half-cupfulls of dough, roll the dough into a ball, then pull the ball apart into two halves.  So each half is mostly round, but with a craggy edge where it was pulled apart.  Place each half onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet, with the irregular edge facing up.

If desired, flatten the tops just a bit before baking. Then, bake them just until the edges start to turn golden brown and the centers are still a bit soft.  They may look underbaked, but when they cool, they’ll be just right.

The result is a delightfully soft cookie, with a perfect balance of sweetness and warm fall spices.  The contrast of the crunchy pecans and the deep flavor of the caramel chips is oh so good.

These pumpkin pecan caramel chip cookies would be perfect for:

• a holiday get-together
• fall parties at school (you can omit the nuts to be allergy friendly at school)
• an easy Thanksgiving dessert other than pie
• fall bake sales
• Christmas cookie swaps

They’d also be a great “just because” treat for your family. 🙂  Savor the tastes of fall, friends, and enjoy!

More Cookie Recipes You’ll Love:

• Perfectly Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Bakery Style Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
• Soft and Chewy Snickerdoodles
• Easy Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Easy Brownie Mix Cookies