Chewy Pumpkin Cookies with Maple Icing

I had a vision of the perfect chewy pumpkin spice cookie. There are hundreds of cakey pumpkin cookies floating around and now I see why. Pumpkin is a temperamental ingredient. There were many delicious failures in my week-long attempt at the perfect cookie. I played with sweeteners from honey to maple syrup, brown sugar to white. I tried a wide assortment of butter and oven temperatures. Finally, I got it right.

Start With Fabulous Ingredients

I was lucky enough to have pumpkins available to make my own puree for this recipe. Fresh homemade and real maple syrup are two important ingredients in this recipe. Can you use store-bought canned pumpkin and/or artificial maple syrup? Of course, but these cookies have a natural goodness that “store-bought” doesn’t do justice.

If you haven’t ever canned pumpkin before, it’s really quite easy. You can see a tutorial in my post, Homemade Organic Pumpkin Puree. Remember, you don’t have to grow it to process it. Farm stands as well as many grocery stores offer cooking pumpkins this time of year. One pumpkin often costs less than a can of puree.

The Chewy Pumpkin Cookie Recipe

Ingredients for Cookies

• 2 c. King Arthur All-Purpose Flour
• 1 c. Brown Sugar
• 1 c. Pumpkin Puree
• 1/2 c. Butter (softened)
• 1 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 1/2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. Nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. Salt

Instructions

1. Cream together softened butter and sugar. Add pumpkin puree and vanilla and mix well.
2. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
3. Slowly add dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture, stirring gently, but making sure it’s well combined.
4. Refrigerate overnight in a covered container.
5. Preheat oven to 350F
6. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper and drop 1 tbsp. sized cookies 2″ apart.
7. Flatten cookies to about 1/4″ thick using the back of the spoon.
8. Cook for 12-15 minutes or until the bottoms start to stick to the parchment paper.
9. Cool for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Ingredients for Icing

• 2/3 c. Powdered Sugar
• 2 tbsp. Maple Syrup
• 1 tbsp. Half & Half or Light Cream

Instructions

1. Combine the sugar, syrup, and cream in a small bowl with a fork.
2. Using a spoon, drizzle icing over the cooled cookies.
3. Icing will harden in about 1 hour. To keep the icing solid, cookies should be kept in the fridge.

Shipping Your Cookies

This week my cookie-making tribe and I are focusing on cookies that ship well. These pumpkin cookies definitely fit the bill. I would, however, forgo the icing or place the icing in a small, well-sealed container for the recipients to add themselves. The softness of these cookies means they hold up well to the jostling of travel and they stay fresh for a week at least.

Do you want tips to shipping cookies to friends and loved ones? Check out these packing tips from my friend at The Monday Box.

Need someone special to send cookies to? Why not send them to our soldiers? A meaningful gift from the heart is sure to please our troops overseas. Learn more at Treat the Troops.