Brown Butter Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Pizookie
/There are few desserts better than a warm skillet cookie straight from the oven, especially when brown butter, pumpkin, oats, and melty chocolate are involved. This one has crisp edges, a soft and gooey center, and all of those cozy fall flavors in one big cookie made for sharing.
This is one of those desserts I start craving as soon as fall baking begins. Brown butter has always been one of my favorite flavors to bake with, and pairing it with pumpkin and chocolate just makes sense.
The oats give the cookie a little more texture and chew, while the pumpkin keeps the center soft. Then everything is baked together in a cast-iron skillet so you get those golden edges and the warm, gooey middle that makes a skillet cookie so good.
Serve it warm from the oven with vanilla ice cream melting into the center and a little extra chopped chocolate over the top. Everyone can grab a spoon and dig in, or you can slice it into wedges and serve it individually.
Ingredients You'll Need
For the Brown Butter Pumpkin Oatmeal Skillet Cookie
1/2 cup unsalted butter, browned and slightly cooled
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
For Serving
Vanilla ice cream
Chopped or shaved chocolate, optional
Flaky sea salt, optional
How to Make a Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie
1. Brown the Butter
Add the butter to a light-colored saucepan or skillet over medium heat.
Let it melt completely, then continue cooking as it begins to foam. Stir or swirl the pan frequently. The milk solids will begin turning golden brown and you'll notice that unmistakable toasted, nutty smell.
As soon as the butter is golden brown, remove it from the heat and transfer it to a mixing bowl so it doesn't continue cooking in the hot pan.
Let the brown butter cool slightly before making the cookie dough.
Brown butter was one of the things I loved most about the original recipe—the nutty flavor works especially well with pumpkin and chocolate.
2. Mix the Wet Ingredients
Preheat your oven to 375°F.
Add the granulated sugar and dark brown sugar to the slightly cooled brown butter and mix until combined.
Add the vanilla, egg, and pumpkin puree and mix again until smooth.
Make sure your butter has had a chance to cool before adding the egg. It can still be warm, but you don't want it piping hot.
3. Add the Dry Ingredients
Add the all-purpose flour, baking powder, and sea salt. Mix just until the flour is incorporated. Once you add the flour, avoid overmixing the dough so the finished skillet cookie stays soft.
4. Fold in the Oats and Chocolate
Fold in the old-fashioned oats and chocolate chips or chopped chocolate.
I love chopped chocolate here because you get a mix of little chocolate flecks and bigger melted pockets throughout the cookie, but chocolate chips work just as well.
The oats are important too. They give this cookie more chew and texture against the soft pumpkin center.
5. Bake in the Skillet
Transfer the cookie dough to a cast-iron skillet and gently press it into an even layer.
Bake at 375°F for about 20 minutes, or until the edges are golden and set but the center is still soft.
Don't wait for the center to look completely firm before pulling it from the oven. The skillet stays hot and the cookie will continue setting as it rests.
That slightly underdone-looking center is what gives you the warm, gooey texture you want.
6. Add the Ice Cream
Let the skillet cookie cool for a few minutes—just enough that your ice cream doesn't disappear immediately.
Add scoops of vanilla ice cream right into the center and finish with chopped or shaved chocolate.
Then serve it while everything is still warm.
The Secret Is the Brown Butter
If you're tempted to skip browning the butter and just use melted butter, don't.
Brown butter is what gives this dessert so much of its flavor.
As the butter cooks, the milk solids toast and develop that deep, almost caramel-like nuttiness. Pair that with dark brown sugar, pumpkin, and chocolate and you get a skillet cookie that tastes much more interesting than a standard chocolate chip cookie.
The biggest thing to watch is the color. There's a fairly short window between beautifully browned butter and burnt butter.
Once you see those little golden-brown flecks at the bottom and smell that nutty aroma, take it off the heat.
Why Add Pumpkin to a Skillet Cookie?
Pumpkin does two things here: it gives the cookie that unmistakable fall flavor, but it also adds moisture.
That's part of what makes the center of this skillet cookie so soft.
Make sure you're using pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling. Pumpkin pie filling already contains sugar and spices and will change the recipe.
And because we're only using 1/4 cup, you'll have pumpkin left in the can—which sounds like a very good excuse to make another pumpkin recipe.
Why Oatmeal Works So Well Here
I love the contrast that oats give this cookie.
Without them, pumpkin can make cookie dough especially soft. Old-fashioned rolled oats add chew and structure without taking away that gooey skillet-cookie center.
I would stick with old-fashioned rolled oats rather than instant oats. They give you a much better texture in the finished cookie.
How Do You Know When a Skillet Cookie Is Done?
This is probably the most important part of the recipe because you don't want to overbake it.
Look at the edges rather than waiting for the center.
The outside should look set and lightly golden, while the center can still look soft when you remove the skillet from the oven.
Remember that cast iron retains a lot of heat. Your cookie doesn't stop cooking the second you take it out of the oven.
If you bake it until the entire center looks completely done, you're much more likely to lose that gooey texture by the time you serve it.
What Size Skillet Should I Use?
For this recipe, I use a 9-inch cast-iron skillet. The size matters because it gives the cookie enough thickness to stay soft and gooey in the center while the edges become golden and crisp.
If you use a larger skillet, the dough will spread into a thinner layer and may bake more quickly. A smaller skillet will create a thicker cookie and may require additional baking time.
For the texture you see in my photos, I recommend sticking with a 9-inch skillet.
The Best Chocolate for a Pumpkin Skillet Cookie
You can absolutely use regular chocolate chips, but chopped chocolate is my favorite for this one.
Chopping a chocolate bar gives you uneven pieces. Some melt into big pools while all those tiny chocolate shards work their way through the dough.
Milk chocolate will make the dessert sweeter, while semisweet or dark chocolate gives you a little more contrast against the pumpkin and brown sugar.
You could even use a combination.
The original recipe intentionally gave the option of chocolate chips or chunks of chocolate, so I'd keep that flexibility.
What to Serve on Top
Vanilla ice cream. Always.
The contrast between the warm skillet cookie and cold vanilla ice cream is what makes this dessert so much fun.
A few chocolate shavings over the top make it especially pretty, and I love the idea of a tiny pinch of flaky sea salt if you're someone who likes that salty-sweet combination.
You could also drizzle a little caramel sauce over the top, but I don't think this cookie needs much. There are already so many good flavors happening between the brown butter, pumpkin, oats, and chocolate.
Can I Make This Ahead?
This is one recipe I really love fresh from the oven.
You can prepare some of the components ahead—brown the butter earlier in the day, measure your dry ingredients, and chop the chocolate—but I would bake the cookie shortly before you plan to serve it.
That way everyone gets the crisp edges, soft center, melted chocolate, and cold ice cream together.
How to Store Leftover Skillet Cookie
If you somehow have leftovers, let the cookie cool completely before storing it.
Cover the skillet tightly or transfer individual pieces to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3–4 days, which is also how the original recipe was stored.
To reheat an individual serving, microwave it for about 20–30 seconds, just until warm.
You can also warm leftovers in a 350°F oven for about 5–7 minutes.
Add fresh vanilla ice cream after reheating rather than storing the cookie with the ice cream on top.
Can I Add Nuts?
Absolutely.
Chopped pecans or walnuts would be especially good with the brown butter and pumpkin.
I'd fold them into the dough along with the chocolate and oats. Just keep in mind that adding too many extras can change the texture of the cookie, so I'd keep it to a small handful.
For me, though, the original chocolate-and-oat version is exactly what I want when I'm making this.
A Fall Dessert Made for Sharing
There is something about putting one warm skillet in the middle of the table that feels so much more fun than serving individual cookies.
It's casual. Everyone can grab a spoon. The ice cream starts melting into all of those little pockets of chocolate, and suddenly no one is particularly worried about making perfect slices.
That's exactly the kind of dessert I love for a cozy night at home, but it's also such an easy one to bring out after dinner when you have friends or family over.
Shop My Baking Favorites
These are the kitchen pieces I reach for again and again when I'm baking—from a good cast-iron skillet and mixing bowls to the tools that make brown butter and cookie dough easier.
More Fall Baking Recipes to Make Next
Pumpkin Molasses Cookies
Soft, warmly spiced pumpkin cookies that belong on the fall baking list every year.
Brown Butter Maple Pecan Chocolate Chunk Cookies
If the brown butter is your favorite part of this skillet cookie, make these next.
Brown Butter Caramel Pretzel Cookies
Another brown butter cookie, this time with that salty-sweet combination of caramel and pretzels.
Ready to Make It?
This Brown Butter Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Skillet Cookie is everything I want in a fall dessert: warm brown butter, pumpkin, chewy oats, plenty of chocolate, crisp edges, and a soft center.
And the vanilla ice cream melting into the top might just be the best part.
Make it for a cozy night at home, bring the skillet straight to the table, and serve it while it's still warm.
A Note From Amanda
Fall baking is one of those little things that makes home feel especially good to me.
It's the smell of brown butter on the stove, pumpkin waiting in the fridge for whatever we're making next, and something warm coming out of the oven when everyone is home.
This skillet cookie isn't meant to be perfect or fancy. It's meant to go right in the middle of the table with a few scoops of ice cream and enough spoons for everyone.
And I think those are usually the desserts we remember most anyway.
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.”
Psalm 34:8
Made with love for the people you love.
