Recipe Review: Pumpkin-Chocolate Cookies

This recipe came to me via Janssen at Everyday Reading. It has come to my attention recently that lots of people don't actually love the taste of pumpkin. This is sad, but understandable. For me, my love of pumpkin is actually more of a love for fall/winter holidays and everything that comes along with them. Pumpkin is the seminal holiday vegetable, in my book. And, unlike most vegetables, it is associated primarily with sweets. (Awesome!) 

That being said, these cookies have only a very faint pumpkin taste, so if you aren't too much into pumpkins, these may be a good way to feel seasonal but still make something you will enjoy eating. From what I could tell, the pumpkin mainly functioned in adding some moisture, but with the cinnamon/nutmeg/clove combo, you end up with something a little more festive than your usual chocolate/chocolate chip cookie. I made a few minor adjustments for simplicity's sake and because I wanted some chocolate chips instead of just melted chocolate in the cookie. Overall, they were just as advertised: crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, and perfectly delicious. 

Pumpkin-Chocolate Cookies
adapted from Everyday-Reading.com

makes about 2 dozen

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/16 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons vanilla

Melt the butter in a small bowl; cool in the refrigerator slightly (so it is warm, not piping hot). Meanwhile, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a medium mixing bowl. Add the pumpkin, vanilla, and sugar. Remove the butter from the fridge and combine with chocolate chips briefly, allowing the chocolate to melt slightly before pouring into the flour mixture. Combine all ingredients. Drop golf-ball sized spoonfuls onto your cookie sheet and bake at 350 for 12-14 minutes, cooling afterwards for several minutes. 

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