Soft Glazed Pumpkin Sugar Cookes

I have made these cookies 2 times already this fall and they are a hit!  They stay soft and make the BEST breakfast the next day!

Soft Glazed Pumpkin Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup pumpkin puree {canned pumpkin}
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

for the glaze-
3 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat and set aside. In a large bowl, stir butter, oil, pumpkin, sugars, vanilla and eggs together until incorporated and smooth. Slowly mix in all dry ingredients until completely incorporated. Scoop onto prepared baking sheet using 1 1/2 tablespoon scoop and flatten to 1/2 inch thick using the bottom of a glass. If the dough is sticking to the glass, press the bottom of the glass in granulated sugar before flattening. Bake 8-9 minutes.

While cookies bake, stir all ingredients together for glaze until smooth.

Once cookies are finished baking, cool 3 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to cooling rack. Spread 1 1/2 teaspoons glaze over each warm cookie. Let glaze harden 2-3 hours before serving. OR eat them warm with lots of runny glaze :)

Pumpkin pie spice Recipe 
(in case you live in Ghana and can't find any)
from the kitchen

How To Make Pumpkin Pie Spice

Makes 2 1/3 tablespoons

Adapted from The Contemporary Encyclopedia of Herbs & Spices by Tony Hill

What You Need

Ingredients1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground mace
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Equipment
Measuring spoons, bowl, whisk or spoon

Instructions

1. Measure: Measure out all ingredients in the order listed (to ensure you don't double up or leave one out) into a small bowl.
2. Mix: Whisk or stir to combine. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 year

Fresh Pumpkin Pie

This is good!

We can get a kind of squash/pumpkin here and it makes a great pumpkin pie. I peel, cube, and roast it (tossed with a little oil - 400 degrees until tender).

2 cups mashed, cooked pumpkin

1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk

2 eggs, beaten (Ghana eggs can be small so I often add an extra egg)

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

Make your favorite pie crust recipe. I used McVites Digestive biscuits, crushed, mixed with a little melted butter. I patted them in the bottom the pie pan.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

I threw all the ingredients into a vitamix and blended until smooth. You could also use a mixer with speed on medium - beat pumpkin with evaporated milk, eggs, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt. Mix well. 

Pour into a prepared crust. Bake 40 minutes or until when a knife is inserted 1 inch from the edge comes out clean.

Serve with whipping cream!

Beef stew in a pumpkin

A perfect fall dinner....

We made it tonight and it was yummy

This recipe is from Allrecipes.com

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes 3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided 1 cup water 3 large potatoes, peeled and cubed 4 carrots, sliced 1 large green bell pepper, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped 2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper 1 (14.5 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped 2 tablespoons beef bouillon granules 1 sugar pumpkin

DIRECTIONS:

1.	Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Place beef in the saucepan and cook until evenly brown. Mix in the water, potatoes, carrots, green bell pepper, garlic, onion, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer approximately 2 hours.
2.	Dissolve the bouillon into the beef mixture. Stir in the tomatoes.
3.	Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
4.	Cut top off the pumpkin and remove seeds and pulp. Place the pumpkin in a heavy baking pan. Fill the pumpkin with the beef mixture. Brush outside of the pumpkin with remaining oil.
5.	Bake in the preheated oven 2 hours, or until tender. Serve the stew from the pumpkin, scraping out some of the pumpkin meat with each serving.

chocolate-glazed pumpkin cookies

This is a recipe from Martha Stewart.  I made these yesterday and we loved them.  I ate 4 for dinner then another 2 for breakfast this morning.  The have a nice cakelike texture.  For the chocolate on top I used the microwavable dark melting chocolate and drizzled it with an icing bag with the corner snipped off.  Enjoy!!

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 can (15 ounces) pure pumpkin puree
• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, pumpkin-pie spice, and salt; set aside.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg; beat until smooth. With mixer on low speed, alternately add flour mixture in two parts and pumpkin puree in one, beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix just until combined (do not overmix).
3. Drop dough by heaping tablespoons onto two baking sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until puffed and edges are golden, 15 to 20 minutes, rotating sheets once during baking. Immediately transfer cookies to wire racks, and cool completely.
4. When cookies have cooled, set them (still on rack) over a baking sheet or waxed paper. Place chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water; stir until almost melted. Remove from heat; stir until completely melted. Pour chocolate into a resealable plastic bag. Snip off a corner with scissors or a knife to make an 1/8-inch hole; pipe chocolate over cookies. Refrigerate until chocolate is firm, about 20 minutes
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