Pumpkin Pie Cookies

Pumpkin Pie Cookies ~ Yes, it’s plain looking. No add-ins, no finishes, no embellishments of any sort. By all appearance this would seem like a quiet cookie-but the operative word there is appearance. These fall cookies are packing the full flavor of pumpkin pie in a soft chewy cookie crumb.

Have you ever done something that seems so unnatural to your usual way the motions come out stuttered? That was me with this cookie. I must have stopped three or four times while writing the recipe and making the cookie about whether or not to “add this” or “this” to the cookie. In the end I decided to keep it true to the pie and left the chocolate chips, toffee bits and nuts out of the cookies. Along with that there was also no dipping, no glazing-no final finishing of any sort.

It’s like going out with no make-up. It’s not that I wear a lot of make-up, but I definitely use and like it for enhancement. Same logic goes for my baked goods when it comes to add-ins. But for these pumpkin pie cookies I wanted to stay true to the flavor.

I threw up the picture of the cookies on Facebook before this posting and one of my friends told me they were too plain looking and needed something. I explained my logic and she suggested a simple sugar glaze would dress it up without interfering with flavor too much.

She’s right. I could have used a simple sugar glaze and mixed in some pumpkin pie flavors with it.  But too late-they were already consumed. Next time-these pumpkin pie cookies will have that bit of enhancement.

A few notes:

• I used pumpkin pie filling not regular pumpkin puree and then of course added more spices to it.
• For a soft and chewy cookie I generally add in a little honey or molasses. You can also use shortening, to soften cookies, but I’m not a fan of shortening, so I never use it.. For these cookies I used unsulphured molasses. There are a few of types of molasses, but to get the benefit of a soft chewy cookie without the strong flavor, unsulphured is the mildest. If you use honey, again to get the benefit, without the honey imparting too much of its own flavor, use a mild one like clover.
• Too keep cookies soft and chewy longer during storing, place a slice of plain bread in the cookie jar with the cookies. The cookies will draw moisture from the bread and stay soft and chewy while the bread will end up dry and like a crouton.

Pumpkin Pie Cookies

Makes about 30 one and a quarter inch cookies. | Preparation: Heat oven to 350 degrees and line bake sheet with parchment paper.

Ingredients:

• ½ cup of butter, melted (not hot)
• 1 large egg
• ½ cup of granulated sugar
• ½ cup of dark brown sugar, packed
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon of unsulphured molasses
• ¾ cup pumpkin pie filling (not pumpkin puree)
• 3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon cloves
• ¼ teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• ½ teaspoon of salt
• 2 cups of flour

Instructions:

1. Combine the melted butter, egg and sugar in a stand mixer bowl fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium high for about 1 minute. Add in pumpkin pie filling, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and allspice; mix for another 1 to combine. Add in baking soda and salt and mix to combine. Turn off mixer.
2. Using a sturdy spatula or wooden spoon, add in flour into wet mixture. Using a small ice cream scoop, drop dough onto parchment lined bakesheet and bake at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes or until bottoms of cookies are a slightly darker than the top.