Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Yes, you read that title correctly. Pumpkin snickerdoodles. Oh pumpkin. I have a feeling you will be seeing more recipes, featuring this splendid ingredient, in the very near future. (I can guarantee my next one will also be pumpkin because I needed to use up the rest of the can! I'm so smart!) I loved the look of these cookies the moment I set eyes on them. And then I made them. And then I ate them. And then my love was complete. These really aren't fantastically sweet or anything, despite how much sugar they're rolled in. The pumpkin really adds a nice toned down sweet flavor. This is a definite holiday type cookie. When I poured all of the dry ingredients in the bowl and then started mixing them, I could smell all of the spices coming together and it was just heavenly. I love it!! Also, I actually like them better the next day than when they were hot out of the oven. It's up to you :)


 
Pumpkin Snickerdoodles
Yield: about 3-4 dozen cookies
Ingredients:
For the cookies:
3¾ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
For the coating:
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice
Directions:
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Whisk to blend and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Blend in the pumpkin puree. Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated. With the mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Combine the sugar and spices for the coating in a bowl and mix to blend. Scoop the dough (about 2½ tablespoons) and roll into a ball. Coat the dough ball in the sugar-spice mixture and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough to fill the sheets, spacing the dough balls 2-3 inches apart. Dip the bottom of a flat, heavy-bottomed drinking glass in water, then in the sugar-spice mixture, and use the bottom to flatten the dough balls slightly. Recoat the bottom of the glass in the sugar-spice mixture as needed.
Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until just set and baked through. Let cool on the baking sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough. Store in an airtight container.


*Let me say this about the recipe: you can probably use about half of the ingredients for coating. It makes a lot. Also, these food bloggers with their fancy shmancy blogs (you will note the lack of both fancy and shmancy on mine) only want to make cookies that are the size of their faces. 2 and 1/2 tablespoons of dough for one cookie?? Those things will be baking forever. I did about 1 TB size dough balls, which is what I normally do. It's up to you. Just know that the ones she suggests will take longer than 10-12 minutes to bake. She must have an awesome oven.

And now, a pictorial review:

 

Do you want to hear the story about how my mom has 15 cans of pumpkin in her pantry? So, last year someone told me there would be a shortage of pumpkin and I freaked out because I had found a million pumpkin recipes I wanted to try (we ended up trying maybe 2?) Naturally, I went to the grocery store and took every can of pumpkin they had. Every time I go back and visit, my mom tells me to take my pumpkin. There's a lot...


Look at that. Beautiful. It's like a 70's living room waiting to happen.


This is the dough after chilling. It should hold together pretty well. And be tastey....


TA DA! Looks a lot like regular snickerdoodles right? Except they're not. Because my father in law can eat these and he can't eat other ones because of the cream of tartar. (he's 'llergic)



Recipe source: Annie's Eats