Pumpkin lovers, rejoice. I have the perfect Fall treat for you.
These protein pumpkin cookies are soft, chewy, and surprisingly low in calories!
Crunchy cookies have their place, but there’s nothing quite like a soft, gooey cookie center, and that’s exactly what these cookies deliver.
These soft pumpkin protein cookies have only 60 calories each, pack in 4g of protein, and have only 1 gram of carbs.
They’re keto-friendly, high-protein, gluten-free, and safe to under-bake (or even eat as raw dough). In other words: they check all the boxes.
And with all the pumpkin pie flavor you could want during pumpkin season, there’s no reason to not make these beauties.
How to Make Protein Pumpkin Cookies
Much like my regular keto-friendly cookies, these cookies are very simple to make.
The only “difficult” thing about these cookies is the wait time. Since these are virtually carb-free, the dough is going to be rather sticky, so it requires an hour in the fridge to thicken up.
But trust me: it’s worth the wait.
If you skip this step, the sticky dough is going to be very difficult to work with, and your cookies will also end up being a bit cakier.
After one hour in the fridge, the dough will be thick enough that you can use a cookie scoop to form your cookies.
If you don’t have a small cookie scoop, a spoon works just fine!
I chose to make 12 small cookies here, but you can use larger scoops to make larger cookies if you prefer. I personally prefer smaller cookies, so I tend to stick with 9-12 cookies total for this recipe.
Roll the cookies in circles using your palms, then space them out on a baking sheet.
Bake the pumpkin cookies for 8 minutes.
They’re going to be very soft when they come out of the oven, but since all of the ingredients are safe to eat raw, it’s perfectly okay to underbake these a bit.
And while these pumpkin cookies might seem cakey right out of the oven, they will sink down and firm up as they cool.
If you want your cookies to have a crackly top, like my Molasses Crackle Cookies or Healthy Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, you can use your hands to press the tops of these cookies down lightly while they’re still hot.
When you do this, it will create a beautifully crackly top, but this step is completely optional!
Crackly top or not, just 10-15 minutes is all these cookies need to firm up inside and be ready to eat.
The insides of these protein pumpkin cookies are still going to be very soft, but that’s exactly what we’re after.
If you want to add another layer of flavor to these cookies, be sure to check out my Cheesecake Stuffed Pumpkin Cookies. We’re taking this same recipe but stuffing the inside with cheesecake filling for an extra high-protein dessert!
More Healthy Pumpkin Recipes to Enjoy this Fall
While I prefer apple to pumpkin when it comes to Fall recipes, I can’t fight the popularity of pumpkin this time of year! If you’re a pumpkin spice fan, I’ve got plenty of healthy recipes for ya…
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix together all of the dry ingredients.
- Microwave the butter (or coconut oil) for 20-30 seconds to soften it enough to mix- it doesn’t need to be hot, just soft. Mix it into your dry ingredients along with the pumpkin.
- Mix until a sticky cookie dough forms, then add to the fridge for one hour to allow the dough to thicken.
- After one hour, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and remove the dough from the fridge.
- Using a small cookie scoop or spoon, scoop out 9 to 12 cookies depending on how large you would like each to be.
- Roll the scoops into balls in your palms, then space them out on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let your pumpkin cookies cool for 10-15 minutes to fully cool and firm up, then enjoy.
Notes
- I use PEScience protein, which is a blend of whey & casein protein powder. When I first developed this recipe I used 100% whey protein and can confirm it works well! The only difference is that you’ll likely want to use slightly less pumpkin, as whey protein requires less liquid. Start with 40g of pumpkin and only add more if needed.
- PEScience protein has a pumpkin pie flavor, which works extremely well in this recipe and I highly recommend using it if you can.
- I typically use “light butter” in my recipes to save calories, but these cookies require full-fat butter or coconut oil. Since they are virtually carb-free, the extra fat gets us the texture we want.
- If your pumpkin cookies are too puffed up right out of the oven, they can be lightly flattened while hot to create “crackle” cookies.
- I do not count sugar substitutes in my carb totals. If you are very strict about carbs, be sure to count those.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition Information
Yield 12
Serving Size 1 Cookie
Amount Per Serving
Calories 60Total Fat 4.5gCarbohydrates 1gProtein 4g
