Pumpkin Spice Thumbprints and a CSN Winner!!!

(For the CSN winner, scroll down to the bottom of this post)

I seem to be going a little pumpkin crazy this year. Every time I read people's blogs, I keep seeing new and delicious looking pumpkin recipes that I simply have to try. As it is, I'm dying to try the Pumpkin Molasses Cookies from My Baking Addiction, the Pumpkin Biscotti from My Recipe Finds Online, the Pumpkin Gingerbread from Allrecipes, and Martha Stewart's Pumpkin Swirl Brownies (which I know a lot of you have made). Consequently, I'll probably be turning out pumpkin goodies till the New Year. What can I say, I love pumpkin. I may turn orange but it'll be worth it.

These Pumpkin Cookies were something that especially caught my eye. It's received over 1500 good reviews on Allrecipes. Well, with a glowing commendation like that, how could I not try them.

The cookies came together like a dream and soon I had little fluffy pillows of sweet, spicy, pumpkiny goodness. I decided to forgo the icing and instead jazzed things up by adding cinnamon chips or chocolate chips to several of the cookies.


I also made pumpkin thumbprints by putting some Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses into the cookies while they were still warm. Then, as a nod to Katrina from "Baking and Boys," I melted some semisweet chocolate chips, added some pumpkin pie spice to it, and then drizzled it onto the cookies.


For those of you who don't know Katrina, she always finds a way to add her signature chocolate touch to her treats and it never fails to make the results even better. This time was no exception. The chocolate drizzled pumpkin spice thumbprints were the best of the bunch. Just heavenly!!! I hope you've still got some of those Kisses lying around your house because you'll definitely want to make these cookies.

WINNER!!!

There were over 200 entries to the CSN giveaway. Thank you to all those who entered for making my first giveaway such a special and successful one and thank you to CSN for sponsoring it. And now, for the moment you've all been waiting for, the winner of the CSN giveaway is #29 Tanya from Dreams, Diapers, and Dilemmas!!! Congratulations Tanya! An e-mail has been sent to the winner.



Pumpkin Cookies (adapted from Allrecipes)

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
cinnamon chips, semisweet chocolate chips, or Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, and salt; set aside.

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. (If desired, you can add some cinnamon chips or semisweet chocolate chips to the dough). Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoonfuls; flatten slightly.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven.

To make pumpkin spice thumbprints, omit the cinnamon chips/chocolate chips from the dough and press Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses into the baked cookies while they're still warm. Melt some semisweet chocolate chips. Add a little pumpkin pie spice to the melted chocolate if desired, according to your taste. Pipe some of the melted chocolate onto the pumpkin thumbprints after they have cooled a bit.

This recipe is linked to:
Remodelaholic Recipes
Potluck Sunday
My Meatless Mondays
Midnight Maniac's Meatless Mondays
Homemaker Monday
Tasty Tuesdays @ A Beautiful Mess
Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays
Tuesdays at the Table
Dr. Laura's Tasty Tuesdays
Tuesday Twister
Hearth and Soul Hop
Home and Pantry's Recipe Swap