Pumpkin Cakies
I have been a cooking machine this last week!
Our youth group made a pasta meal for our church as a fundraiser on Sunday so I was busy with that. Then I hosted a board committee meeting here for supper last night so I made soup, buns and a sweet treat for a few extras around the table. Add into that cooking suppers for the family ever since I started my week off (a few days at work eating leftovers is inspiration enough for this chickie to get cooking as soon as I'm done my set of shifts). I'm almost getting tired of cooking.
I said 'almost'.
;)
I'm making sweet and sour meatballs for supper tonight. We had a 'round table' discussion at work the other day on how to make the best meatballs. We debated the merits of soft bread crumbs vs cracker crumbs, small meatballs vs large meatballs, wondered (or was it just me?) how to properly brown a meatball so it stays round instead of turning into some sort of wicked pyramid thingy. Ah, the things we talk about around the lunch table.
While I searched through my recipe binder for the handwritten scrap of paper with "Linda's" sweet and sour sauce recipe on it, I noticed that I've been collecting recipes for a loooong time. I have so many handwritten ones in that orange binder - many recipes from my mom - some for things that I've made, some for things that I thought I should make (hello homemade perogies....ain't gonna happen); signature recipes from special people - like Great Granny's chocolate roll recipe handwritten on the thinnest of papers in her signature green ink; somewhere in there you'll find a monster cookie recipe from my mother-in-law long before she became my mother-in-law; recipes from friends spanning many decades, co-workers through the years, classmates from my Grade 12 year (can you imagine - that's what I wanted from each classmate as a souvenir of our 12 years together - a hand-written recipe from their home!!). Seems I've been a geek for quite awhile!! ...(no comments please)... I can't bear to throw any of them away, whether I've actually used the recipe or not. I can't imagine re-typing any of them into a recipe data base - they are precious to me in their current scrappy handwritten state, representing the lives of those that have shared them with me - bits and pieces of unique people that have graced my life with theirs.
"Someday" I'll put them in order and glue the scraps onto paper. Maybe.
For today, I'm happy to be "in" rather than "out". I'm happy to be "done" rather than "starting" a big project. I'm delighted to be on "days off" rather than "days on". And I'm happy to have my house clean (kinda), my supper on the go, cookies in the cookie jar and a good book waiting to be read. Go ahead, go out, shop, run your errands - you'll find me watching from the comfort of my warm house, on a cosy couch, wrapped in a soft blanket, cupping a warm mug between my hands, breathing a happy sigh.
Here's a new cookie recipe that I tried out yesterday. When I took a look at my "Sweet Things" board on Pinterest, I found it to be dominated with pumpkin and apple recipes, with a smattering of chocolate/peanut butter combos mixed in between. I smell a sweets preference....
These cookies have a cake-like texture - thus, I made the recipe exactly the way I found it, but re-dubbed it "Pumpking Cakies"!! Please, do make the icing with the browned butter - really nice flavor!
For the Cookies:
2¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1¼ teaspoons ground ginger
¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¾ cup (6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2¼ cups light brown sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1½ cups canned pumpkin
¾ cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon half-and-half
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Our youth group made a pasta meal for our church as a fundraiser on Sunday so I was busy with that. Then I hosted a board committee meeting here for supper last night so I made soup, buns and a sweet treat for a few extras around the table. Add into that cooking suppers for the family ever since I started my week off (a few days at work eating leftovers is inspiration enough for this chickie to get cooking as soon as I'm done my set of shifts). I'm almost getting tired of cooking.
I said 'almost'.
;)
I'm making sweet and sour meatballs for supper tonight. We had a 'round table' discussion at work the other day on how to make the best meatballs. We debated the merits of soft bread crumbs vs cracker crumbs, small meatballs vs large meatballs, wondered (or was it just me?) how to properly brown a meatball so it stays round instead of turning into some sort of wicked pyramid thingy. Ah, the things we talk about around the lunch table.
While I searched through my recipe binder for the handwritten scrap of paper with "Linda's" sweet and sour sauce recipe on it, I noticed that I've been collecting recipes for a loooong time. I have so many handwritten ones in that orange binder - many recipes from my mom - some for things that I've made, some for things that I thought I should make (hello homemade perogies....ain't gonna happen); signature recipes from special people - like Great Granny's chocolate roll recipe handwritten on the thinnest of papers in her signature green ink; somewhere in there you'll find a monster cookie recipe from my mother-in-law long before she became my mother-in-law; recipes from friends spanning many decades, co-workers through the years, classmates from my Grade 12 year (can you imagine - that's what I wanted from each classmate as a souvenir of our 12 years together - a hand-written recipe from their home!!). Seems I've been a geek for quite awhile!! ...(no comments please)... I can't bear to throw any of them away, whether I've actually used the recipe or not. I can't imagine re-typing any of them into a recipe data base - they are precious to me in their current scrappy handwritten state, representing the lives of those that have shared them with me - bits and pieces of unique people that have graced my life with theirs.
"Someday" I'll put them in order and glue the scraps onto paper. Maybe.
For today, I'm happy to be "in" rather than "out". I'm happy to be "done" rather than "starting" a big project. I'm delighted to be on "days off" rather than "days on". And I'm happy to have my house clean (kinda), my supper on the go, cookies in the cookie jar and a good book waiting to be read. Go ahead, go out, shop, run your errands - you'll find me watching from the comfort of my warm house, on a cosy couch, wrapped in a soft blanket, cupping a warm mug between my hands, breathing a happy sigh.
Here's a new cookie recipe that I tried out yesterday. When I took a look at my "Sweet Things" board on Pinterest, I found it to be dominated with pumpkin and apple recipes, with a smattering of chocolate/peanut butter combos mixed in between. I smell a sweets preference....
These cookies have a cake-like texture - thus, I made the recipe exactly the way I found it, but re-dubbed it "Pumpking Cakies"!! Please, do make the icing with the browned butter - really nice flavor!
Pumpkin Cakies
with Brown-Butter Icing
Yield: 48 cookiesFor the Cookies:
2¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1¼ teaspoons kosher salt
1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1¼ teaspoons ground ginger
¾ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¾ cup (6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2¼ cups light brown sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1½ cups canned pumpkin
¾ cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Icing:
4 cups powdered sugar10 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon half-and-half
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with
parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg; set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the pumpkin, half-and-half and vanilla. Beat until very well blended, about 2 minutes (the batter may look grainy at this point, but don't worry, it will come together). Keep the mixer on low and gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Use a rubber spatula to give it a final mix, incorporating any flour on the sides and scraping the bottom of the bowl.
4. Use a large cookie scoop to scoop balls of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1½ inches between them. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies spring back when lightly pressed. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool for 5 minutes then remove them to the rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining batter.
5. To make the icing: Add the powdered sugar to a heatproof bowl. Put the butter in a small saucepan over medium heet and let it start melting. Continue cooking, swirling occasionally, until the butter becomes golden brown and smells nutty (be paitent and watch carefully, it can go from brown to burnt quickly. I found that this step took a little longer than I thought it would but don't walk away from it either - hover and watch, hover and watch!). Remove it from the heat and pour it over the powdered sugar, scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the half-and-half and vanilla and stir until the icing is smooth. Using a small offset spatula or a table knife, spread icing on each cookie. (If the icing stiffens before you get them all frosted, stir vigorously to lighten it up.)
Sigh, yawn and good night.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg; set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the pumpkin, half-and-half and vanilla. Beat until very well blended, about 2 minutes (the batter may look grainy at this point, but don't worry, it will come together). Keep the mixer on low and gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Use a rubber spatula to give it a final mix, incorporating any flour on the sides and scraping the bottom of the bowl.
4. Use a large cookie scoop to scoop balls of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1½ inches between them. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the tops of the cookies spring back when lightly pressed. Transfer the baking sheet to a wire rack and let the cookies cool for 5 minutes then remove them to the rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining batter.
5. To make the icing: Add the powdered sugar to a heatproof bowl. Put the butter in a small saucepan over medium heet and let it start melting. Continue cooking, swirling occasionally, until the butter becomes golden brown and smells nutty (be paitent and watch carefully, it can go from brown to burnt quickly. I found that this step took a little longer than I thought it would but don't walk away from it either - hover and watch, hover and watch!). Remove it from the heat and pour it over the powdered sugar, scraping the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the half-and-half and vanilla and stir until the icing is smooth. Using a small offset spatula or a table knife, spread icing on each cookie. (If the icing stiffens before you get them all frosted, stir vigorously to lighten it up.)
Sigh, yawn and good night.
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