A pumpkinny twist on chocolate chip cookies

In a pumpkin-induced craze, I baked almost 9 dozen of these delectable goodies!

I’m having so much fun with the pumpkin theme that I think I’ll stay with it a while. Pumpkin nut and chip cookies are a superb way to add fiber and Vitamin A to your diet. Did you know that half a cup of pumpkin contains 5 grams of fiber and 300 percent of the suggested intake of Vitamin A? Sneaking some into chocolate chip cookies is brilliant!

I picked up this recipe at BlogHer Food, a women’s food blogging conference held in San Francisco recently. I find that these taste better the second (and third) day, as the pumpkin pie spice melds with the pumpkin and the chocolate.

Pumpkin nut and chip cookies

California Milk Advisory Board

Makes about 4 dozen

1/2 c butter, softened (I used Earth Balance margarine)

1 1/2 c sugar

1 c canned pumpkin

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 tsp. vanilla extract

2 1/2 c flour

2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c milk chocolate chips (I used mini chocolate chips)

3/4 c walnuts, toasted and finely chopped

1.         Preheat oven to 350F.

2.         Sift dry ingredients into bowl; add chocolate chips and walnuts, stirring well.

3.         In a separate, larger bowl, mix butter and sugar until creamy; add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla, beating well after each addition.

4.         Gradually add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture until well blended.

5.         Drop batter by heaping teaspoons onto lightly buttered cookie sheets.

6.         Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until edges are golden brown.

7.         Cool on wire racks and store in airtight container.

Vegan pumpkin cake and cream cheese frosting

Here at last are the recipes I described in my October 8 posting for the pumpkin cake from Veganomicon and the cream cheese frosting from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World.

Both books are extremely – to borrow a term from the 1980s – user friendly. They’re upbeat and accessible, even if you’re new to vegetarian/vegan ingredients. You’ll never miss the artery-clogging butter, eggs, and milk used in traditional baking. I own every one of Isa Chandra and Terry's cookbooks, so you can plan on seeing more where these came from!

Pumpkin cake

Adapted from Veganomicon

 

1 15 oz. can pureed pumpkin

3/4 c milk (I used almond; Isa recommends soy)

3/4 c canola oil

1 1/2 c granulated sugar

3 T light molasses

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

2 2/3 c all-purpose flour

1 T baking powder

1 tsp. Salt

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

3/4 tsp. ground ginger

1/2 tsp. ground allspice

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

3/4 c chopped, toasted pecans (my addition)

1/2 c raisins, softened by soaking briefly in boiling water (my addition)

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Lightly grease a 9 x 13” baking pan.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the pumpkin, soy milk, oil, granulated sugar, molasses, and vanilla. Mix well. Add roughly half the flour, the baking powder, salt, spices, and nuts and use a fork to fold everything together. Add the remaining flour and mix gently until combined. Add raisins. Don’t use a hand blender for this, as pumpkin can get gummy if it’s mixed too aggressively. Blending with a fork helps maintain the texture.

Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and spread it out with a spatula. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until a knife inserted through the center comes out clean.

From the book Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. Reprinted by arrangement with Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Copyright 2007. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com.

Vegan cream cheese frosting, 2x

From Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World

1/2 c nonhydrogenated margarine, softened

1/2 c vegan cream cheese, softened (dairy cream cheese would probably work fine, too)

4 c confectioners’ sugar

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Cream together margarine and cream cheese until just combined. Use a handheld mixer to whip while adding the confectioners sugar in 1/2 c batches. Mix until smooth and creamy, then mix in the vanilla. Keep tightly covered and refrigerated until ready to use. (This also freezes very well.)

From the book Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World by Isa Chandra Moskowitz & Terry Hope Romero. Reprinted by arrangement with Da Capo Lifelong, a member of the Perseus Books Group. Copyright 2006. www.dacapopresscookbooks.com.

Pumpkin trivia

Even Annabelle loves pumpkin!

DID YOU KNOW... that some veterinarians recommend feeding cats pumpkin to help keep them regular? Our girl Annabelle -- who is very regular, thank-you-very-much -- discovered pumpkin on her own and ate  it with great gusto. Who'd a thunk it?

Great newsletter from Nava Atlas

I've been a fan of Nava Atlas for years. She's the esteemed author of several veg cookbooks, including three that I have: Vegan Soups and Stews for All Seasons, The Vegetarian 5-Ingredient Gourmet, and The Vegetarian Family Cookbook. She also writes a monthly newsletter and maintains an information-filled web site, In A Vegetarian Kitchen with Nava Atlas.

This month's newsletter is particularly interesting. She includes a recipe for apple streudel, a bulghur salad with fruit and nuts, and a link to her e-book containing 65 vegetarian recipes for Thanksgiving. Be sure to have a look at her newsletter.

...and be sure to try that delectable pumpkin spice latte I mentioned earlier!

Pumpkin latte from neversaydiet.com

Remember the pumpkin latte I mentioned a couple days ago? Well, I made it last night and it's fabulous. GO MAKE IT NOW! It's that delicious.

You might remember that the recipe is available on neversaydiet.com. Made with real pumpkin (as opposed to pumpkin flavored syrup), this latte one-ups Starbucks by light years -- and I like Starbucks!

The recipe is a little bit of spice heaven. In addition to the pumpkin, espresso and milk, the drink features whole cloves, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, orange zest, and vanilla. I streamlined things by not straining it or frothing the milk. I'd give you the recipe here, but I really want you to go visit neversaydiet's web site!

You know you want to taste this stuff. So hey -- it's the weekend. You can afford to mess around in the kitchen for an extra five minutes...go do it. You won't be sorry!

Isa Chandra's Pumpkin Cake

What a happy coincidence that I procured a case of canned pumpkin just days before the annual Sukkot potluck dinner my husband's congregation puts on every year. Briefly, Sukkot is the annual harvest festival celebrated by Jews. A sukkah (hut) is erected and we all get together in it to thank God for the plentiful harvest and to share food with friends. This year's turn-out was good with about 20 of us there. The hut was solidly constructed, which kept us warm, and enough people brought lanterns that we weren't completely in the dark by 7 p.m.

The buffet was ample and satisfying with lots of noodle dishes, including kugel, lasagne, and pasta salad, and there was a lot of good crusty bread. Is it me or do potlucks generally lack in green vegetables? Maybe next time I'll get gutsy and bring a platter of sauteed spinach or steamed broccoli.

But not this time. This weekend, I was itching to get into that pumpkin. I wanted to make a pumpkin cake. Not muffins or bread. Cake. The difference is subtle and some would say there is no difference, but I find that whether it’s made with carrots, pumpkin, bananas or some other fruit or veggie, a cake typically has a softer crumb than its related bread or muffin.

I ended up finding what I was after in Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s book, Veganomicon. I made her Pumpkin Crumb Cake with Pecan Streusel on page 255, with a couple of alterations. First, I omitted the streusel, instead using vegan cream cheese frosting (from one of her other books, Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World). I also added 3/4 cup chopped pecans and 1/2 cup softened raisins (softened by soaking them briefly in boiling water before adding to the batter).

I had originally planned to serve the cake

at the dinner, then bring two big pieces to Leona and Larry, new friends who live down the street. This is the gorgeous jewel of a cake I brought to the dinner...

And this is what I brought home…

Sorry, guys; I promise, you’ll have first dibs on the next baked good I create!

Pumpkin palooza

Armed with my case of pure, canned pumpkin, I am on a quest for every interesting way to cook and eat the stuff. This afternoon, I caught wind of a yummy-looking pumpkin latte on neversaydiet.com. It rivals the Starbucks creation, packing fewer calories and containing real pumpkin. (Starbucks uses flavored syrup.) So have a look at this delicious pumpkin spice latte. Feel free to try it out and report back your impression of it. I'll do the same.

What's your favorite way to eat pumpkin?