Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

It starts with that first pumpkin coffee, on an unexpected crisp morning in September. {You always have to go to Starbucks or Dunkins for it, because Keurig doesn’t have their fall K-cups out quite yet, and lord knows you didn’t save any from last year.}  Then you stock your fridge with pumpkin beer.  Next you find yourself picking up a few pumpkins at the local farm stand.  All of a sudden you’re pulling out your recipe binder to find last year’s pumpkin recipes, and clogging up your Pinterest board with 15 variations of pumpkin muffins.  Just like that, the annual Pumpkin Madness ensues, and will continue until the day after Thanksgiving, when sparkly bulbs and mistletoe abruptly take the place of your farmstand finds.

For me, Pumpkin Madness is the first sign that my favorite season for cooking has commenced.  I abandon my grill, turn on the oven, wipe Hannaford out of canned organic pumpkin {confession: I just can’t be bothered with the labor of using a whole pumpkin} and go to town cooking up pumpkin everything.

This year, I kicked off the fun with an old favorite: pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.  This is a great gateway pumpkin food if you are weary of the gourdtastic goodness.  They’re just like regular chocolate chip cookies, but with a hint of something different.  And the texture? Oh, the texture.  The light, cake-like consistency will have you convinced that’s okay to consume them by the 1/2 dozen. {I won’t judge.}  Put them in the refrigerator? It's a whole new cookie.  

For the full effect, enjoy with a mug of hot cider.  Happy Harvest!

 

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies 

(yields exactly 2 ½ dozen if you eat a cookie or two worth of batter)

Ingredients
1 c canned pumpkin (I never measure this, but use just over ½ of a 15oz can.)
1 c granulated sugar
½ c vegetable oil
1 egg
2 c all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp milk
1½ Tbs vanilla extract
1 12oz. bag semisweet chocolate chips

Directions 

In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, sugar, oil and egg.  In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.  Dissolve baking soda in the milk and stir in to the flour mixture.  Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and  stir by hand until well combined.  Add vanilla and chocolate chips and stir gently. Drop by spoonful on parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.