Pumpkin Cookie Pointers

In an attempt to feel festive and fallish, I baked up a batch of Martha’s pumpkin cookies with brown butter icing. The recipe is included in her “Cookies” book and is also online here.

The cookies are beyond delicious, but the path to achieving such deliciousness was not easy. Rather than give you a play-by-play of the recipe, I’ll share a few pointers to consider in case you find yourself with nothing to do one afternoon and a hankering for some pumpkin cookies.

-- Give yourself a block of about four hours to make these. If you don’t have that much time to spare, consider halving the recipe.

-- I would also recommend halving the recipe if you don’t have an immediate need for six dozen cookies. The cookies are really hard to store because of the icing – You can’t stack them on top of each other in a Tupperware container unless you want a sticky mess. Because of this I have several trays of them covered in plastic wrap lining my counters right now.

-- I didn’t really read the recipe before I started and therefore experienced total panic when I got to the part that said I had to pipe the dough onto a cookie sheet using a pastry bag. I am not a friend of pastry bags, but I decided to give it a try and it was actually pretty easy (even though I have the cheapest pastry bag ever and I'm sure I didn't use the right kind of tip). Definitely more time-consuming than simply scooping the dough, though. I do wonder if they would come out the same if you rolled the dough into a ball and then flattened the ball. If you’ve tried that technique, let me know!

-- My icing came out runnier than it looked in the photo featured in the “Cookies” book. I guess I could have tried adding more powdered sugar, but I didn’t want to potentially ruin a good thing. Instead, I put down some waxed paper and iced the cookies over that for easy cleanup.

I hope I haven’t discouraged anyone from trying this recipe, because the cookies truly are scrumptious. They turn out a cakey texture and the browned butter really adds a unique and tasty flavor. Be prepared to be stuck in the kitchen for a while, but don’t worry – the reward will be a sweet one!

What’s your favorite pumpkiny treat for fall?

Is It October Yet?

I don’t know about you, but by this point in July I’m usually growing pretty tired of summer and longing for the crispness of fall. But I know that come February, I’ll be wishing I had done a better job of appreciating summer and all its balmy delights.

I found a way to merge summer and my fall lust this week: zucchini spice bread.

I grow zucchinis in my garden, and they are blowing up this season! Check this guy out (teaspoon included for size reference):

I searched Martha’s site for zucchini recipes and came across the zucchini spice bread recipe from the September 2003 issue of Everyday Food. It looked like it would help make use of my immense zucchini supply while also indulging my fall craving with spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger and cloves.

I followed the directions on the site, except that I shredded my zucchini in the food processor (much easier than grating) and I added a few handfuls of regular and golden raisins.

The recipe did not disappoint! The bread is moist and delicious, marrying the fresh veggies of summer with the spiciness of fall. It’s actually much better on day two, once everything has fully cooled and the moisture has set in.

Next time I might try substituting some of the oil with unsweetened applesauce or canned pumpkin. Two-thirds of a cup of oil seemed like a lot to me, but the bread sure is moist!

Are your summer veggie gardens producing? How are you making use of your harvest? And am I the only one wishing it was fall already?!! Let me know in the comments.

Sneak Peek: November Issue of Everyday Food

I received the November issue of Everyday Food and read the whole thing in a single evening. There are some wonderful looking things in this issue that I’m dying to try.

The Flatiron Steak with Arugula and Cauliflower from the Dinner 1-2-3 section would make a great choice, either for family or for company. Alone it’s perfect for those who try to stay away from starches, but it still provides a full meal. With a side of potatoes, it would be an excellent cozy autumn evening dinner.

Onion Soup with Cheese Toasts looks like a super make-ahead that would be perfect in a lunchbox. Since it’s the featured recipe in the Freeze It column, you know it would keep nicely and be easy to heat up in the microwave.

I’ll be digging out my slow cooker to try Slow Cooked Tex-Mex Chicken and Beans. I love meals I can put on to cook and leave so I can get other things done, and this one fits the bill. Plus since it uses a jar of pre-made salsa, it doesn’t require a lot of prep before plugging in the pot.

The Chicken with Lemon Mustard Sauce and Seared Radicchio is a must-try also. Searing radicchio seems like an interesting take on a vegetable that we’re more familiar with as a salad component. I’m always looking for new vegetables to try to keep from getting bored.

My son is a pumpkin fanatic, so I know he’s going to want to make the Chocolate-Glazed Pumpkin Cookies from the Cookie Jar feature. They look nicely cakey and puffy. Since he’s such a fan, I might make the Pumpkin Layer Cake as our contribution to Thanksgiving dinner with the family. With pumpkin pie spice in the batter and in the frosting, it should be warm and fragrant with the scents of fall.

If you’re not a subscriber, by all means pick up a copy of the November Everyday Food when you see it on the newsstand!