Fall Harvest Recipe: Amazing Pumpkin Spice Cookies

I love the smell of fall.

Dried leaves, roasting chilis, woodsmoke, and the aroma of fresh-baked cookies… Mmmm…

During harvest season, when we go to the Farmers Market, we make sure to stock up on pie pumpkins, butternut, red kuri, acorn, and spaghetti squash. Some go into savory dishes, like a soup or stir fry, and the rest go to feed my sweet tooth. Yes, vegetable cookies…

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Winter squash can be kept for a long time in cool storage, so buying cases of squash in the fall and storing them will stretch your food budget and stock your pantry with nutritious goodness. Squashes and pumpkins are an important part of a local-centered diet, especially for those of us in places with a short growing season. They grow pretty happily in most areas but need room to sprawl, so plan your planting accordingly. This year I dug up a patch of lawn and planted squash there and they loved it. I just mowed around them and mulched them with the grass clippings.

This incredible recipe will have you eating tons of pumpkin long before the traditional Thanksgiving pies.

Amazing Pumpkin Spice Cookies

• 1/2 cup coconut oil (or butter)
• 3/4 cup unrefined sugar (or maple syrup or honey)
• 1 cup cooked pumpkin (cut in half, scoop out seeds, place cut side down on baking sheet and bake at 350 until soft. Peel and mash or blend the pumpkin.)
• 2 eggs (or egg replacer equivalent)
• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Mix all ingredients together and chill in refrigerator for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 325, drop spoonfuls onto greased cookie sheets and bake for 8 to 10 minutes.

Try substituting sweet potatoes or butternut squash for the pie pumpkin for a different taste, or bake in a loaf pan.

You’ll freak out, they’re so tasty.

>> Related: Ten Ways to Eat Local, Seasonal Food All Year

Image: the_girl on Flickr under Creative Commons

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