Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Fall is upon us. Or, is it? Oh, wait, it is. Sorry, the weather is confusing me. I got sick a couple weekends ago from it being 50 degrees and windy outside. Then this past weekend, it was 75 degrees and sunny, no wind. And now, the temperatures are in the 60s and it's raining and windy again. Seriously?

Whatever temperature it may be, it is officially Fall according to the calendar. I don't have any trees around my apartment, but I was in Lexington this past weekend and all the trees had changed colors. Halloween costumes and candy have been out since the beginning of October. Pumpkins are now making their appearances in the stores for carving. Canned pumpkin puree is low in stock.

Pumpkin is not a flavor that I particularly enjoy on its own, but when mixed with other flavors, I don't mind so much. That's why I went for these cookies because chocolate makes everything better. I had actually thought about making muffins, but cookies give me more servings. The weird thing is that I was a bit disappointed by how little it tasted like pumpkin. Maybe it's because I was expecting an overpowering flavor. But I love that it's so cakey and soft, definitely not your normal cookie texture. These were probably one of the most well-received goodies I've brought into school!



Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies [Makes 24 cookies]
From Kirbie Cravings

1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk together pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, vanilla and egg in a large bowl . In a separate bowl, whisk together together flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, and salt. Add the flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and stir until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Take large tablespoons full of dough and drop onto cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart. When finished, try to shape the dough to resemble a cookie. The cookies dough should be round and flat and smooth, resembling close to the finished baked product because the cookies don't spread much during baking and will rise up. It helps to work with the dough if your hands are freshly washed and slightly damp.

Bake for approximately 10 minutes or until lightly brown and firm. The cookie dough will be almost the same size and shape as the finished cookies as the batter does not spread much.