Prep time: 2 hours Cook time: 20 mins Rest time: 10 mins Total time: 2 hrs 30 mins
Makes: 7-8 large cookies
Make it Dairy-Free and AIP: Use animal fat other than ghee or butter
These animal-based pumpkin cookies are made with pumpkin puree, beef flour, eggs, ghee, vanilla, and optional pumpkin spice and are sweetened with fruit.
What you need to make Animal-Based Pumpkin Cookies
Ingredients:
- Carnivore Crisps beef flour (ASHLEYR for 10% off) or dehydrated ground beef (instructions in this recipe)
- Pumpkin puree
- Eggs (ASHLEY20 for 20% off)
- Pitted dates
- Grass-fed ghee (or butter)
- Pumpkin spice (optional; recommended if tolerated)
- Sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)
- Vanilla extract
Equipment:
Substitutions
You can substitute the ghee (or butter) for your animal fat of choice, although I do highly recommend ghee with this recipe due to its sweet and buttery flavor.
How to make Animal-Based Pumpkin Cookies
If a visual will help, watch the Instagram Reel for this recipe.
If you’re using Carnivore Crisps beef flour (ASHLEYR for 10% off), continue on with the recipe as-is. If you plan to dehydrate beef and create your own beef flour, follow the instructions in the “Dehydrate the beef” section of this recipe.
Prepare the dates.
Soak the pitted dates in water for 1-2 hours to get them soft.
Note: use 9 oz (about 1.5 cups) of dates if you like your cookies on the sweeter side, and 6 oz (about 1 cup) if you don’t want them as sweet. I used 9 oz and it was perfect for my taste.
Make the cookie dough.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
If you’re using Carnivore Crisps beef flour (ASHLEYR for 10% off), portion out 1 cup to the food processor. If you’re making your own beef flour, grind the dehydrated ground beef into a powder in your food processor.
Add the melted ghee (or butter), eggs, sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off), vanilla extract (if using), pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice (if using), and soaked dates to the food processor with the beef flour and blend until smooth.
Note: if you go through tons of salt in your household like we do, check out this salt-purchasing hack that will save you money + make things more efficient. We started this last year, and I’m so happy we did!
Bake the cookies.
Place a piece of parchment paper onto your baking sheet, and form the dough into cookies. I used these cookie cutters to help form them into circles since the dough is a bit sticky. For a visual, see the Instagram Reel for this recipe.
Note: these cookies do not rise or spread, so you will need to form the dough pre-baking into whatever shape you prefer them to end up in.
Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
Once the cookies are done, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for about 10 minutes.
These cookies taste good fresh, but they are also wonderful straight out of the fridge. Enjoy!
Store leftovers (if there are any!) in an airtight container on the counter or in the fridge for 4-5 days.
Tips to make the best Animal-Based Pumpkin Cookies
- Don’t skip on soaking the dates. It makes a big difference.
- These cookies do not rise or spread, so you will need to form the dough pre-baking into whatever shape you prefer them to end up in.
A few of my other favorite sweet eats:
Jumbo Chocolate Cups with Salted Chunky Date Filling
Flourless Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Animal-Based Pumpkin Cookies
Animal-Based Pumpkin Cookies
Equipment
- Baking sheet
Ingredients
- 1 cup Carnivore Crisps beef flour (ASHLEYR for 10% off) or 1 lb ground beef (as lean as possible)
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup melted ghee (or butter)
- 1-1.5 cups (6-9 oz) pitted dates
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice (optional; recommended if tolerated)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (optional, but recommended)
- 1/4 tsp sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off)
Instructions
- If you’re interested solely in the recipe, skip this bullet point and keep on reading. For those interested in sourcing nutrient-dense food, low-toxic household products, and discounts on brands that may support your AB journey, you may find value in my product guides. Head over to this page if you’d like to check them out. All are free (and always will be).
- Note: If you liked this cookie recipe, click here for more animal-based cookie recipes.
If a visual will help, watch the Instagram Reel for this recipe.
- If you're using Carnivore Crisps beef flour (ASHLEYR for 10% off), continue on with the recipe as-is. If you plan to dehydrate beef and create your own beef flour, follow the instructions in the "Dehydrate the beef" section of this recipe.
Prepare the dates.
- Soak the pitted dates in water for 1-2 hours to get them soft.
- Note: use 9 oz (about 1.5 cups) of dates if you like your cookies on the sweeter side, and 6 oz (about 1 cup) if you don’t want them as sweet. I used 9 oz and it was perfect for my taste.
Make the cookie dough.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- If you're using Carnivore Crisps beef flour (ASHLEYR for 10% off), portion out 1 cup to the food processor. If you're making your own beef flour, grind the dehydrated ground beef into a powder in your food processor.
- Add the melted ghee (or butter), eggs, sea salt (ASHLEYR for 15% off), vanilla extract (if using), pumpkin puree, pumpkin spice (if using), and soaked dates to the food processor with the beef flour and blend until smooth.
- Note: if you go through tons of salt in your household like we do, check out this salt-purchasing hack that will save you money + make things more efficient. We started this last year, and I'm so happy we did!
Bake the cookies.
- Place a piece of parchment paper onto your baking sheet, and form the dough into cookies. I used these cookie cutters to help form them into circles since the dough is a bit sticky. For a visual, see the Instagram Reel for this recipe.
- Note: these cookies do not rise or spread, so you will need to form the dough pre-baking into whatever shape you prefer them to end up in.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
- Once the cookies are done, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for about 10 minutes.
- These cookies taste good fresh, but they are also wonderful straight out of the fridge. Enjoy!
- Store leftovers (if there are any!) in an airtight container on the counter or in the fridge for 4-5 days.
What I used for this recipe:
Looking for some more easy sweet eats? Try one of these recipes:
Jumbo Chocolate Cups with Salted Chunky Date Filling
Flourless Lemon Blueberry Muffins
Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means that if you click on a link and make a purchase, I will receive a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting me!
Ashley Rothstein develops tasty, whole food, animal-based recipes that include a moderate amount of “minimally toxic” plant foods. To fix her own health issues, she bounced around between the carnivore, keto, and paleo diets for a few years. After experiencing and studying each diet philosophy, she learned she feels her best by merging the three and following an animal-based diet. As a glut at heart, she likes to channel her creativity and create meals that are healthy but also satisfy her inner gluttonous spirits.
