As I’ve mentioned before, pumpkin and I have this thing. We are involved. And it’s the greatest thing in life. And as promised, here is the first of many pumpkin-themed recipes. And I realize October is pretty much over, but never fear. I will be making pumpkin-flavored goodies well into 2013.
I’m kind jumping on the cookie bandwagon, thanks to those special people in my life who can not live without them. But pumpkin cookies are definitely the wagon I choose to be on. Everyone get on board because these little yummies are amazing.
I had never made snickerdoodles before but I always heard they were one of the easiest cookies to make. This part is totally true. I’m going to let you in on a secret: adding pumpkin to this fall baking treat is pretty amazing. So amazing. It’s true. Because of the nature of pumpkin and the fact that snickerdoodles are meant to be fluffy and delicious, these cookies are like eating a cookie cake. So soft, so perfect. A perfect compliment to some mulled wine. I haven’t gotten there yet, but don’t worry. I will. I most definitely will.
I feel so accomplished. Pumpkin and a new cookies experiment. I killed two birds with one stone and introduced my first pumpkin recipe to you, my friends. Who doesn’t love balls rolled in sugar? I ask you, what could be better? Balls of pumpkin rolled in cinnamon-sugar. It’s kind of a match made in heaven. Perfection. Go. Make. Eat. Be extremely happy.
Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodles
*makes 20-30 medium sized cookies
Ingredients
- 2 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon all-spice
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
- 2/3 cup + 2 tablespoons pure pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons molasses
- 1 egg, room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar, for coating
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon, for coating
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
- In the bowl of your mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes, then add in the brown sugar and beat until fluffy, about another 2 minutes. Add in the molasses and pumpkin puree, and beat until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add in the egg and beat until combined.
- Add dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt), beating slowly until just moistened.
- Add spices, mix by hand with a rubber spatula
- Put the dough in the freezer for 5 minutes to firm it up.
- Combine the 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons of cinnamon.
- Line and/or grease your baking sheets (I used parchment paper and it worked wonderfully) and scoop a ball of dough out from your bowl. Roll them in the cinnamon-sugar mixture, then place on the baking sheet, about 1 inch apart from one another. Press down lightly with your palm.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, until slightly more golden (it’s sort of hard to tell since these cookies are already brown in the first place) and set – the edges should be firmed up but the center will still be a bit soft. Place the cookie sheets on cooling racks and allow the cookies to cool for 5-10 minutes before removing them to finish cooling on another surface.
The Little Red Mixer 