In a mixing bowl, with an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar and brown sugar until smooth and fluffy. Add the canned pumpkin, molasses and eggs and continue to beat until combined. Add the vanilla, flour, baking soda and spices. Continue to beat the dough until combined. When the dough has been mixed thoroughly, use a spoon or scoop to make one inch portion cookie balls. Roll into a round ball and then roll in the extra 1/2 cup of sugar that has been placed into a bowl. Spray a cookie sheet with non stick cooking spray and place 12 cookies onto the pan. Bake at 350 for 8-9 minutes, or until the sugar is cooked through.
Variations: After making these cookies several times, we have had fun playing around with this dough. We have cut up caramel pieces and added to the dough. We have added white chocolate chips into the batter and we have also drizzled white chocolate on top of the cookies. Either way, these cookies are great