M: Weekend and Fall Cookie Love!

Allow me to rave about my weekend just a little before getting to these scrumptious pumpkin chocolate chip cookies! First, as you all have read, Tosh was friggin hilarious and worth our little road trip to see him! But, my Saturday was also so much fun. I volunteered with my rescue Daisy's Place at Daniel Island Park Day for a bit in the morning, which ended up being one of the most beautiful days we've had here in Charleston! A pic of my ridiculously awesome friend Kelly and me (with our mascot):



The turnout was great and we may have even gotten a couple of adoptions out of the event! We are so excited =) Here is a picture of our little Rosey, who still needs her forever home!



And, this was our view as Bryan and I had a picnic style lunch outside at the park (have I mentioned how much I love living in Charleston?!):



After the event, Bryan and I took the rest of the day and walked around downtown and stopped at my favorite shops (of course they are both kitchen shops) Williams-Sonoma and Charleston Cooks. We also got some froyo along the way and a couple of coffees and just strolled along the beautiful streets of downtown Charleston:



We ended our day with a pre-dinner cocktail at one of the MANY restaurants of Charleston and then picked up Jimmy John's...yes...you heard it right...nothing fancy...nothing crazy...nothing that says "Hey we ate dinner in downtown Charleston"...nope...subs from Jimmy John's. And dinner outside in our screened in porch it was!

OK, onto these crazy good pumpkin butterscotch chip cookies that I found from Joy the Baker's blog. I've seen pumpkin cookie recipes everywhere lately so I'm sure there are others that are also fantastic, but this recipe looked so good and super easy so I gave it a go. These cookies turn out incredibly moist and cake-like. They are perfect for a dessert or even in the morning with a cup of coffee!

Stir flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, at medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Then add in oil, vanilla, and pumpkin at low speed until well blended. Mix in the flour mixture and then mix in chips of your choice (I used chocolate):



Scoop mounds of dough by the 1/4 cup onto a baking sheet, spacing 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake about 16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.



Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
(from Joy the Baker's Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup canola or corn oil

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup preferred chips (I used chocolate)

Position a rack in the middle of the oven . Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and butter the paper (I just sprayed the baking sheets with my baking spray with flour as I didn't have any parchment paper on hand).

Stir the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon together in a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs and sugar until smooth and lightened in color, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. On low speed, mix the oil, pumpkin, and vanilla until blended. Mix in the flour mixture to incorporate it. Mix in the chips.

Using an ice cream scoop with a 1/4-cup capacity, scoop mounds of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the cookies at least 2 1/2-inches apart. You could also simply use a 1/4-cup measuring cup if you don’t have a scoop. Use a thin metal spatula to smooth and flatten the rounds.

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the tops feel firm and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, about 16 minutes. Cool them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Dust the cooled cookies lightly with powdered sugar, if desired. The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Enjoy! And just cuz, here's a little more puppy love for ya (these are my crazy babies Ziggy and Marley) =)