Pumpkin Cookie Recipe

Ahhhh…my favorite season is upon us. I just can’t imagine living anywhere but New England where we get to celebrate this season in all its glory. Bright trees, crisp air, the smell of woodstoves starting up, and harvest festivals make me feel so giddy! What the summer sun does for many people, the cool, crisp air of fall does for me. I just feel so energized by anything and everything pumpkin, spicy and harvest-related.

The summer may have passed by in a blur of sleepless postpartum recovery, but autumn has arrived and I am finally getting my mojo back – just in time to enjoy baking these yummy Iced Pumpkin Cookies with Halloween Decorations! Warning: These cookies are highly addictive! Especially when you factor in the “health benefit” of the canned pumpkin! Anything to justify eating more of these.

Did you know pumpkins are loaded with vitamin A and fiber, and low in calories. Maybe one of the reasons I feel so happy in the fall is because pumpkin flesh contains L-tryptophan, a chemical compound that triggers feelings of well-being and happiness. I love eating pumpkin foods and research shows it can keep your spirits high and prevent depression.

Iced Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup of butter and white sugar. Add pumpkin, egg, and 1 teaspoon vanilla to butter mixture, and beat until creamy. Mix in dry ingredients. Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls; flatten slightly.
3. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Cool cookies, then drizzle glaze with fork.
4. To Make Glaze: Combine confectioners’ sugar, milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add milk as needed, to achieve drizzling consistency.

Adapted from Allrecipes.com 10/3/2011