Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 egg

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup white sugar

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp milk

1 TB vanilla

1 11oz bag chocolate chips

Directions: Combine pumpkin, sugar, vegetable oil, and egg in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and salt. Dissolve the baking soda with the milk and stir into the wet ingredients. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture and mix well. Stir for about one minute. Add vanilla and chocolate chips and stir until combined. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop cookies on by the spoonful. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

Comment: A huge Thanksgiving 2015 hit! Thanks to Ashley Nicole Reynolds for the recipe.-Elizabeth

The Best Everyday Chocolate Chip Cookie

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt

15 tablespoons salted butter

1 cup + 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar, packed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1 cup dark chocolate chips

1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Directions: 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees (F). Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. In a medium sized bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, and sea salt; set aside.

Place 8 tablespoons of butter in a small sauce pan over medium-high heat and cook for about 2 minutes - stirring almost constantly - until the butter has browned. Remove from heat and stir in remaining 7 tablespoons of butter; whisk until completely smooth. Place the bowl in the refrigerator or freezer and bring the butter back to room temperature. *You'll know the butter is at room temperature when you press a finger into the top and it makes a slight indentation.

Once the butter is at room temperature...

Add the sugars and the vanilla to the browned butter and whisk until light and fluffy; about 2 minutes (you may use a standmixer/ handheld mixer to help if you have one). Add the eggs and beat quickly - for only about 30 seconds - until they're just combined. Let the mixture rest for 5 minutes, then beat the eggs for another 30 seconds. Gently fold in the flour mixture with a wooden spoon, stirring only until the flour begins to disappear. Fold in all chocolate chips.

Roll 3 tablespoon sized balls of dough between your palms to form a ball (they should be big; almost a 1/4 cup), then place on prepared sheet (make sure to leave enough room in between each cookie for inevitable spreading). Continue this process until all the dough has been rolled. Place baking sheets in preheated oven and bake for 11-14 minutes, or until golden at the edges but still soft in the middle. Let cookies cool for 5 minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire wrack to cool completely.

Comment: One of the best chocolate chip cookie recipes I've ever made. My writer's class all demanded the recipe. If you freeze the dough overnight, they plump up even better in the oven the next day. -Elizabeth

Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup (250 grams) creamy almond butter
2/3 cup (150 grams) sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (60 grams) miniature chocolate chips

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the almond butter and sugar. Mix in the egg, vanilla, baking soda, and salt until evenly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Drop cookies by the tablespoon onto a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for at least 5-10 minutes before moving to a cooling rack to cool completely (the cookies will be very fragile and need to set-up before they can be moved).

Comment: Gluten free and so easy when you don't have a lot of ingredients on hand but want a hearty chocolate chip cookie.

Spritz (Butter) Cookies

3 ½ cups flour      1 tsp. baking powder

1 ½ cups margarine      1 cup sugar

1 egg      1 tsp. vanilla

½ tsp. almond extract

Directions: Sift together flour and baking powder. Beat margarine for 30 seconds;

add sugar and beat until fluffy. Add egg, vanilla, and almond extract; beat well.

Gradually add dry ingredients to beaten mixture, beating until well combined. Do

not chill. Force dough through a cookie press onto an ungreased cookie sheet. If

desired, sprinkle with colored sugars or ground almonds. Bake at 400 degrees for 7-

8 minutes. Cool.

Comment: A Christmas tradition! You can color the dough as well.

Peanut Butter Softies

1 ½ cups flour      ¾ tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. baking powder      ¼ tsp. salt

½ cup margarine      ½ cup peanut butter

¼ cup brown sugar      3 T. sugar

2 T. corn syrup      1 egg

½ cup peanuts, chopped

Directions: Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In

mixer bowl on medium speed, beat together margarine, sugars, corn syrup, egg, and

peanut butter. Mix thoroughly until smooth and creamy. On low speed, slowly add

flour mixture until well combined.

Drop by heaping tablespoon onto greased cookie sheet. Flatten cookies with bottom

of a glass that has been dipped in flour (Do not dip in sugar or cookies will crisp as

they bake.) Lightly press finely chopped peanuts onto tops of cookies, if desired.

Bake at 375 degrees for 6-8 minutes or until cookies are set. Because of the small

amount of sugar, these cookies do not brown like others do. Be careful not to over-

bake.

Comment: A great option – add chocolate pieces to mixture for a Reese’s Cup-type

cookie.