Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies (cakey texture)

Ingredients

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 (16 ounce) can puréed pumpkin
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 (12-ounce) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the sugar, pumpkin, melted butter and vanilla and mix until smooth. Add the eggs and beat for 1-2 minutes.
3. Whisk the pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and kosher salt in a small bowl and add to the wet ingredients. Mix well. Mix in 1 cup of the flour, then gradually add remaining flour while mixing. Add the chocolate chips and mix just until incorporated.
4. Drop 1 tablespoon rounded scoops of the cookie dough on an ungreased baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
5. Bake cookies for 13-15 minutes. Let rest on cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Makes 30 cookies

*Slightly adapted from Chaney's Charming Kitchen and foodiecrush.com

Pumpkin Chip Muffins

Pumpkin Chip Muffins

In a large bowl, beat:

4 eggs

2 c. sugar

1 16-oz. can pureed pumpkin

1 ½ c. vegetable oil

In a separate bowl, combine:

3 c. flour

2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. salt

Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, combine well.

Fold in: 2 c. chocolate chips.

Fill paper-lined muffin cups about ¾ full. Bake at 400* for 16-20 minutes. Makes about 2 dozen.

For 29oz. can of pumpkin:

Follow directions as given, but use:

7 eggs

3 ½ c. sugar

1 29-oz. can pumpkin (or 2 15-oz.)

2 2/3 c. oil (or 2 c. oil. 2/3 c. applesauce for lower-fat)

5 ¼ c. flour

3 ½ tsp. baking soda

3 ½ tsp. baking powder

1 ¾ tsp. cinnamon

1 ¾ tsp. salt

3 ½ c. chocolate chips

Makes about 4-5 dozen muffins.

Briscoe Christmas Cookies (sugar cookies)

Briscoe Christmas Cookies (sugar cookies)

Sift:

3 c. flour

1 c. sugar

1 tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. cream of tartar

With pastry cutter, cut in: 1 ¼ c. Crisco (butter flavor tastes best)

In another bowl mix:

2 beaten eggs

3 TBS. milk

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix both bowls together. Roll out, cut with cookie cutter. Bake at 375* on ungreased or greased cookie sheets until edges begin to tan/brown (maybe 8-10 minutes).  

Olsen's Pumpkin and Cream Cheese Roll-up

Olsen's Pumpkin and Cream Cheese Roll-up

3/4 c. sifted flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
3 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 c. sugar
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2/3 c. canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 c. chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 15x10x1 jelly-roll pan with wax paper and grease and flour it.

Sift together dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, beat together eggs and sugar in a large bowl until thick and fluffy. Beat in pumpkin. Add in wet ingredients all at once. Pour batter into prepared pan; spread evenly with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle with nuts. Bake for 15 minutes or until center springs back. Loosen cake around edges and invert onto a clean, damp towel dusted with powdered sugar. Peel off wax paper. Trim 1/4-inch from all sides. Roll up cake and towel together from short side. Place seam-side down on wire rack. Cool completely.

Prepare filling:
Beat together 1 c. powdered sugar, 8oz. cream cheese (softened), 6 TBS butter and 1 tsp vanilla extract until smooth.

Unroll cake. Spread with cream cheese filling. Re-roll cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Valentine's Day cookies

I made these super cute window pane cookies for Vday. I've seen these done for Christmas as "stained glass" cookies. Deceptively easy. The jolly ranchers didn't even have to be smashed up finely at all, just busted up a little. The cookie is like a short bread. I used parchment paper, not tinfoil and DID NOT grease it because after the first batch coming out cloudy, I didn't do it and they came out a little more clear in the middle. I had a nestling heart cookie cutter set that made it easy.



Windowpane Hearts
from Family Fun Magazine
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups flour
Hard candy for cookie center (we used Jolly Ranchers)

Instructions
To make the dough: Using an electric mixer at medium-high speed, cream the butter, gradually adding the sugar. Beat in the egg until evenly mixed, then blend in the vanilla extract and salt.

With a wooden spoon, stir the flour into the creamed ingredients, about one third at a time, until evenly blended. The dough may seem soft, but it will firm up when refrigerated.

Divide the dough in half. Flatten each portion into a disk and seal in plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight.

To create the cookies: Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Cover a sturdy baking sheet with aluminum foil and lightly coat the foil with cooking spray. Between 2 sheets of waxed paper lightly dusted with flour, roll the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. Remove the top sheet.

Cut out the cookies with a large cookie cutter. Use a spatula to transfer the shapes to the baking sheet, leaving about an inch between cookies. Remove the centers of the cookies with a smaller cookie cutter. (Save the centers to bake later.)

Place a hard candy (we used Jolly Ranchers) in the center of each heart and bake until the cookies start to brown lightly around the edges and the candy is melted, about 8 to 10 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely. To prevent sticking, line your serving plate or tin with waxed paper and place additional waxed paper between layers. Makes 30.

Passover Dinner

It just seemed odd to have significant traditions for Christmas and Thanksgiving and not have anything for Easter. I had a program tucked away from my days at BYU when my Bishop at the time put on Seder feasts (Victor Ludlow, may've heard of him) and put one on for us. So, I this year I experimented a little more.

Required things are: An extra place-setting for Elijah, a comfy chair for the orator, a lamb (bone-in), bitter herbs (horseradish), haroset (recipe below), parsley or watercress for green herbs, and matzahs (we use pita).

This year we did couscous (goes fantastically with the lamb), artichokes with a remoulade (fancy mayo and mustard), olives, black grapes (the only kind I eat anymore, they're so crunchy), capers, goat cheese, roasted beets (I thought it might be good to have something to remind us of Christ's sacrifice, even though Mark argued that they stain purple, not red), and hummus (in addition to the ones I already listed).

Haroseth:
2 tart unpeeled apples, grated or finely diced
1/2 c. walnuts or almonds, finely chopped
1/4 c. raisins (optional)
3 TBS honey (optional, or grape juice)
1/4 TBS cinnamon

Mix and serve. (I make this and then use the leftovers for filling in cinnamon rolls. It's seriously good.)

Kartoffel Latkes *never actually made these, but incase you want to...
6 medium-sized, raw potatoes
1 small onion
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 c. flour or matzah meal
salt and pepper to taste
2 eggs, beaten
vegetable oil for frying

Peel, then soak potatoes in cold water for one hour (this gets some of the starch out). Grate potatoes and onion. Drain excess liquid. Add dry ingredients, then eggs; mix well. Heat oil for frying. Make into small pancake-size patties. Fry until golden on outside. Turn only once. Can be served plain or with gravy, applesauce or sour cream. Serves 6 people (Apparently, cooked mashed potatoes may be substituted for raw potatoes... but like I said, never tried the recipe.)

Matzah-unleavened bread (I just buy pita bread or matzah crackers, but pita is so much more edible, I think. Again, I haven't made this, but here it is)
3 c. matzah meal or flour
Pinch of salt
Water

Knead together until soft and fine. Divide into 3 parts. Roll out thin like pie crust. Set on teflon or lightly oiled (vegetable oil only, to be kosher) cookie sheet and use a fork to lightly puncture the dough. Bake immediately at 400 degrees until lightly browned. May be turned over. Don't break matzos. Cover and serve.

For the lamb, I marinated it overnight in lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper, parsley, thyme and a little rosemary. I have found that lamb needs a lot of acid (lemon) to counter the muskiness of the meat. Last year I did a roast. This year all I could find was bone-in-steaks. With the roast, I threw it in the oven and I think I just did lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper, paprika and some greek seasoning as a marinade. With the steaks, I threw them on the stove top.

Symbolism:
Lamb-Christ and how he has blessed us (Lamb's blood over door in Egypt)
Matzah-how they left in haste from Egypt.
Bitter herbs (horseradish)-reminder of the bitterness of the Egyptian slavery
Haroseth-mortar used to build as slaves in Egypt
Green herb (parsley)-soming of spring and renewal of life
Cushioned chair for leader-symbolizes the freedom enjoyed by the Israelites when they were freed from bondage.