My story in recipes: Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies

This October has been a really busy month for my business. The increase in business is a huge blessing - no complaints from me. I feel like I'm living the dream. Doing what I love - baking cupcakes, cookies and cakes and getting paid for it! What could be better?

Ok, so I admit that I could probably use a little more sleep - these long days in the kitchen are exhausting. The whir of my Kitchen Aid mixer can be heard almost continuously between the hours of 7:00 am until about 10:00 in the evening. There are times when I've heard it for so long that I just have to turn it off for a few minutes just to get have some peace and quiet in the kitchen. (Such a mom thing to say.)

A cookie recipe that doesn't require an electric mixer is a welcome change. A bowl, a whisk and a few simple ingredients - cooking at its finest.(and quietest) I found this recipe for Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies on sallysbakingaddicition.com and it was just the recipe that I needed to give my mixer a rest. I love the roughly chopped dark chocolate on top of each lightly spiced pumpkin cookie. This is Fall - all wrapped up in a cookie.

Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (1 stick or 115 grams) unsalted butter
1/4 cup (50 grams) light or dark brown sugar
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 Tablespoons (86 grams) pumpkin puree
1 and 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup (90 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until no brown sugar lumps remain.

Whisk in the vanilla and pumpkin until smooth. Set aside.

In a large bowl, toss together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together with a large spoon or rubber spatula. The dough will be very soft.

Cover the dough and chill for 30 minutes, or up to 3 days. Chilling is mandatory.
Take the dough out of the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
Roll the dough into balls, about 1.5 Tablespoons of dough each. Slightly flatten the dough balls because the cookies will only slightly spread in the oven. Press chocolate onto the top of each cookie.