Super Soft Pumpkin Cookies

Here in the south, we tend to take the Fall season with a grain of salt. The leaves sort of change. The temperatures drop, sort of – if you consider the 60’s cold like we do. The biggest reason we love Fall is that the mosquitos take a break, and we can go a few months without huge welts on our bodies from all the bites.  Let’s face it, we here in the south will take our wins any way we can get them, and being able to stay outside and enjoy the beautiful weather without an attack on our bodies by flying teeth is a win in our book.

One thing I love about Fall, in particular, is the flavors. It seems that in the Fall, we tend to use more cinnamon, nutmeg, and those beautiful deep spices. For whatever reason, pumpkin seems to get used more in the Fall as well, even though we can buy it any time in the grocery store.  Maybe it’s because we associate pumpkins with Halloween and Thanksgiving and don’t think about them much the rest of the year. Perhaps it’s because pumpkin, and the spices that bring out its flavor, are more profound, and we usually don’t associate them with spring and summer.

Whatever the reason, I feel like the first and last bake of the season should be something made with pumpkin.  It’s kind of like announcing the beginning and end of the season.  While I enjoy baking pumpkin bread and pie, I hardly ever make cookies using canned pumpkin. This year I decided that I would give them a try, and I found this wonderful recipe that I, of course, had to change up a bit just for fun.

With canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice, these cookies only take 10 minutes to pull together.  Although the batter does seem a little thin for a cookie, they bake up to be not only moist and fluffy but also delightfully light.

They are like biting into little pumpkin pillows.  The original recipe calls for a basic powdered sugar glaze, but, of course, I put my spin on them and substituted the vanilla for maple syrup to give them a bit of a twist.

Thanks to Very Best Baking for the base recipe for these soft, moist, yummy pumpkin cookies.

Super Soft Pumpkin Cookies

These are the softest, moistest pumpkin cookies you'll ever taste.  With the addition of maple glaze, they are sure to be a year-round favorite.

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 25 minutes mins

Servings 4 dozen

Ingredients

  

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup softened unsalted butter 1 stick (I Prefer Kerry Gold)
• 1 15-oz. can pure pumpkin (I use Libby's - Do Not Use Pumpkin Pie Mix)

Glaze

• 2 cups sifted powder sugar
• 2 tbsp mild
• 1 tbsp melted unsalted butter
• 1 tsp pure maple syrup (Not pancake syrup - it's too thin)

Instructions

 

Cookies

• Preheat Oven to 350   

  Grease or line baking sheets with parchment paper  

  Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice and salt in medium bowl.  

  Beat sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended.  Beat in pumpkin, egg, and vanilla until smooth.  

  Gradually add flour mixture and beat thoroughly.  

  Use a small scoop or drop by rounded tablespoon onto cookie sheets.  

  Bake for 15-18 minutes or until edges are brown.  Cool on baking sheet for a few minutes and transfer to wire cooling racks to cool completely.  

  When cool, drizzle with glaze and ENJOY!

Glaze

• Sift powdered sugar into medium bowl.  Add milk, melted butter, and maple syrup and stir until well blended and smooth.  If the glaze is too thick, add milk by teaspoon or if too thin, add more powdered sugar until desired consistency is achieved.