Since I've steered a little away from my crafty posts, the next few will be dedicated to the fluffy joy of craftiness and baking. A few posts back I outlined the mountain of crap I've been navigating this year. It hasn't really let up too much. But I've gotten to a place where I can let some of the demands on me float away...like quitting one of my jobs. That helped.
I know Thanksgiving is already over, but I have 2 super great pumpkin-y things to share.
The first is this adorable pumpkin birdy that my 5 year old made in school:
A little pumpkin, some strands of raffia or straw, a little pinecone, a wooden bead, a little feather and a glue gun--and Wa-La! Cuteness.
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The other pumpkin delight came from Matt Lewis of Baked Bakery, via Martha Stewart, by way of a friend sharing excess baked goods. Pumpkin whoopie pies will make a pumpkin lover out of you. I'm not a fan of pumpkin pie--too mushy, sometimes watery, often grainy, soggy-crusted...but these, they're worthy of the time it takes to make them. Do not be afraid to put in the quantity of spice called for (yes, tablespoons, not teaspoons). Moist and delicious little cake-ettes. I did only scoop about half of what they recommend for each dollop--made them cookie sized. They'd be too big for us otherwise, but if you want them big, go for it.
Ingredients
Makes 12 whoopie pies.
FOR THE PUMPKIN WHOOPIE COOKIES
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 tablespoon ground cloves
2 cups firmly packed dark-brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
FOR THE CREAM-CHEESE FILLING
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Directions
Make the cookies: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and oil until well combined. Add pumpkin puree and whisk until combined. Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until well combined. Sprinkle flour mixture over pumpkin mixture and whisk until fully incorporated.
Using a small ice cream scoop with a release mechanism, drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Transfer to oven and bake until cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of each cookie comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely on pan.
Make the filling: Sift confectioner' sugar into a medium bowl; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter until smooth. Add cream cheese and beat until well combined. Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla, beat just until smooth. (Filling can be made up to a day in advance. Cover and refrigerate; let stand at room temperature to soften before using.)
Assemble the whoopie pies: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Transfer filling to a disposable pastry bag and snip the end. When cookies have cooled completely, pipe a large dollop of filling on the flat side of half of the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies, pressing down slightly so that the filling spreads to the edge of the cookies. Transfer to prepared baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate cookies at least 30 minutes before serving and up to 3 days.
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