I recently visited my sister Christine, who lives in Westport, CT. with her husband and two adorable young daughters. A former  Ralph Lauren buyer, she brings style and creativity to nearly everything she does, so it came as no surprise when her contribution to the annual school bake sale was a basket of beautifully packaged cookies in cellophane bags with bright grosgrain ribbon bows.  The fall inspired Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies stood out in a sea of brownies and cupcakes, a delicious departure from the run of the mill bake sale treats. The spicy cookies are cake like and deliciously moist with a healthy dose of chocolate bits. Best of all, they take only 15 minutes to prepare. I grabbed a small bag of cookies to take with me but they were so good that a few crumbs and the pretty ribbon were all that remained by the time I got home!

These cookies would make a delicious addition to your holiday dessert table or consider arranging a wicker basket filled with the packaged treats for your guests to take home with them as a delectable reminder of their Thanksgiving dinner.

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES  

Prep Time: 15 min 

Cook Time: 15 min

Serves: 60 cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 cups (12-ounce bag) milk chocolate chips, not semisweet
• Nonstick cooking spray or parchment paper

Directions 

Spray cookie sheets with nonstick spray or line them with parchment paper.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 1 at a time, then mix in the vanilla and pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Slowly beat the flour mixture into the batter in thirds. Stir in the chips. Scoop the cookie dough by heaping tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cookies are browned around the edges. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let them rest for 2 minutes. Take the cookies off with a spatula and cool them on wire racks. 

Recipe courtesy George Duran