Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

YUM, Cookies! There is nothing like a warm cookie. Cookies in our house are like Lay's Potato Chips, you can never eat just one. We have a serious love for cookies, especially Mr. Woodward! What better way to celebrate fall and Thanksgiving (plus use up the 10 million cans of pumpkin I have) than with pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. A special note on this one; I am including the regular recipe, plus notes for people at higher elevations (above 3500 ft). Let's get to baking!

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 cup light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup canned pumpkin pie mix (you can also use canned pumpkin, but I like a strong pumpkin spice flavor to mine)

3 cups all-purpose flour (High Altitude: add 2 Tbsp)

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

2 cups (12 oz bag) chocolate chips (you can use either semi-sweet or milk)

Nonstick cooking spray, parchment paper or silicon baking mats

Directions:

Heat the oven to 350 F (375 F for higher altitudes). Spray with nonstick cooking spray or line with parchment paper or silicon baking mats.

Using a mixer, beat the butter until smooth.

Beat in the white and brown sugars, a little at a time, until the mixture is light and fluffy.

Beat in the eggs one at a time,

then mix in the vanilla

and the pumpkin puree.

In a large bowl, combine the flour baking soda, salt,

cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.

Slowly beat the flour mixture into the batter in thirds.

You can almost smell it, huh? Go ahead take a little sample.

Stir in the chocolate chips.

Scoop the cookie dough by heaping tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 15 -20 minutes (11-15 for higher altitudes), or until the cookies are browned around the edges. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 2 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to finish cooling ( or to be swiped by little hands, ok not so little hands. Yes, Mr. Woodward that would be you)

Now go enjoy your pumpkin chocolate goodness! I know I am :)

Somethings I love:

I used to have baking stones, which were great, but honestly they were heavy and made a horrible sound when you rub them together (you know like nails on a chalk board kind of sound). So I gave them away and bought regular cookie sheets along with these amazing silicon baking mats! They are so easy to clean and I never have to worry about running out of parchment paper. LOVE THEM SOOOOO MUCH!

Another handy dandy tool I love is my cookie scoop! Yes I could use just a plain old Tbsp, but then I would have to scrap the dough out and it wouldn't make a nice little circle. Work smarter not harder, right? This scoop is great, just scoop up the batter, squeeze the handle and bam, perfect little lumps of dough. You can usually find these items at places like Walmart or Bed, Bath & Beyond.

As American as Apple Pie

Who doesn't love apple pie? I mean, come on; there is nothing like a slice of warm pie with a heaping scoop of premium vanilla ice cream melting right next to it. Can we say, "comfort on a plate." There are so many things that are great about apple pie, like it makes your house smell soooooo good! Also it has apples in it, so it must be healthy (just ignore how much sugar and butter go into it). It tastes great with vanilla ice cream. Poor vanilla ice cream doesn't get to much press these days, but throw down a warm piece of apple pie and it knows it's going to be the supporting star. It tastes great the next morning cold, and in the case of Mr. Woodward, right out of the pie plate. Hey, who needs a plate right, I'm sure he's just trying to save me the trouble of washing an extra plate later. Thanks honey!

Forever ago (ok, more like a year ago), a very good friend of mine asked me to show her how to make an apple pie. I got a little busy what with my husband being deployed, being pregnant, then taking care of five kids. I always say better late than never, so Jana, this ones for you, sweetie! I hope you enjoy it.

Pie is just as much about the crust as it is about the filling. If your crust gets soggy, no one is going to want to eat it. Nobody likes limp pie, trust me. So step one, GREAT crust!

The type of crust we're going to make is called, Pâte Brisée. Everything sounds better in French, doesn't it? We would call it a mealy pie crust. What would you rather eat mealy pie crust or pâte brisée? Like we really even need to vote on this, moving on.

Ingredients:

1 lb 4 oz (570 g) bread flour

12 oz (340 g) cake flour

1 Tbsp (15 g) salt

12 oz (340 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature

4 oz (115 g) lard, at room temperature *

2 eggs

1/3 cup (80 ml) ice water

1 Tbsp (15 ml) lemon juice

*I used shortening instead. The idea of going up to the check out counter with a big o'l tub of lard was just too much for me. If you have issues with buying lard like I do, then it is just as good to use Crisco. For those of you braver then I, rock on!

Directions:

1. Using the paddle attachment on the mixer, blend together the bread flour, cake flour, salt, butter, and lard (or Crisco) at low speed, scraping down the bowl as necessary.

2. Combine the eggs, water, and lemon juice. Incorporate the liquid and blend only until the mixture forms a dough; do not over mix.

3. Cover the dough and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hrs.

**Special Note: I made both the crust dough and the filling the night before. That way all I had to do the next day was assemble it all together and bake it. Also, this crust will be a little stiffer than a flaky crust, but trust me, it's worth the extra muscle (and possible yelling fit at the dough) to get this great crust.

Step Two: Awesome filling!

Apple Pie Filling

Ingredients:

5 lbs (2 kg 275 g) cooking apples, such as Pippin, Granny Smith, or Golden Delicious. It ends up being about 11-12 apples; I used Granny Smith.

10 oz (285 g) unsalted butter

2 tsp (3 g) ground cinnamon

1 lb (455 g) granulated sugar

2 oz (55g) melted unsalted butter (used for brushing the top of the pie)

Peel,core, and halve the apples. Cut the halves in 1/4-inch (6-mm) slices. Melt the first measurement of butter in a large skillet or saute pan.

Add the apples and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.

Mix the ground cinnamon into the sugar. Add this to the apples, stirring until thoroughly combined. The juice released from the apples in combination with the melted sugar will cause a large amount of liquid to collect in the pan.

Continue cooking the apples, still stirring frequently, until they are caramelized and translucent but still firm to the touch. Depending on the apples used and their stage of ripeness, it may be necessary to remove some of the liquid to expedite the caramelizing process and avoid over cooking the apples. If so, boil the liquid in a separate pan until it is reduced to a thick syrup, then add it back to the apples.

Now at this point I put the apples in an air tight container and put it in the refrigerator over night. I didn't need the pie till the following evening, so I decided to not assemble it till about 90 minutes before we had to leave with it. However, you can assemble the pie after the apples are done cooking as well. And that is where we will continue.

While the apples are cooking, roll out a portion of the pâte brisée into a 11-in circle, about 1/8-inch (3 mm) thick, using flour to prevent the dough from sticking. Line a 10-inch pie plate with the dough. Trim or flute the edges at this point. Place in refrigerator till ready to use.

Once the apples are done cooking allow them to cool to just above room temperature. Brush some of the melted butter over the bottom of the lined pie plate. Fill the crust with the apples, shaping them into an even mound on the top. (sorry, not sure why Mr. Woodward didn't get a picture of this. Probably because he was sneaking pieces of the apple filling while I was working)

Roll out another portion of dough (large enough to make a rectangle 9-inches wide). I trimmed mine up with a pizza cutter. I would also suggest using a ruler for this next part. Our children misplaced ours, so the strips for the lattice didn't come out perfectly straight.

Cut 3/8-inch strips and arrange on top of apples in a lattice pattern (instructions follow). Pinch the ends of the strips against the edge of the bottom crust.

To make a lattice crust:

Evenly space strips of dough vertically across the pie, letting the ends hang over.

Starting with the strip on the left lift up and fold back every other strip halfway.

Place a strip of dough horizontally across the center of the pie. Return the folded strips to their original position so they cross over the horizontal strip.

Starting with the second strip from the left this time, fold back every other strip. Place a second horizontal strip, evenly spaced, below the first. Return the folded strips to their original position.

Repeat this pattern until you have covered the bottom half of the pie, then turn the pie around and repeat with the other half.

Trim the edges of your pie if necessary (and don't forget to pinch the edges).

Brush the remainder of the melted butter over the lattice strips.

Bake at 375 F (190 C) for approximately 1 hour. Let cool a bit, then serve with ice cream, either vanilla or cinnamon, if you can find it.

By the time I got around to taking a picture of it on a plate this is what was left. No one in my house has any patience.

This pie is just as amazing the next day, cold (this is when I finally got to take a picture of it on a plate; it was the last piece left).

Something I love:

I love my apple peeler, corer, slicer from Pampered Chef®. It cuts the apples a little thinner (which just means you have to keep a closer eye on them while they are cooking), but saves me so much time. I have had this since Mr. Woodward and I got married, WOW almost 11 yrs. I love it!

I hope you all enjoy this, I know my family did. Nothing like an empty pie plate to make a baker's heart happy.