pumpkin pie thumbprint cookies
You can't teach an old dog new tricks, I am that old dog. Maybe I am just stuck in that comfortable place we call habit. I realize that my baking is like an old record - fig thumbprint cookies, mint + chocolate thumbprints, and pumpkin pie thumbprints. It is hard to say no to a salty shortbread cookie topped with icing that melts in your mouth. Thumbprints are my special occasion cookie, my for no reason treat, and my bake to get in the holiday spirit sweet.
The occasion that prompted the making of the pumpkin pie thumbprint cookie encompassed all of the above. My buddy Lindsey came over to bake cookies and watch Harry Potter, such a combination can effortlessly transform a lackluster November evening into Holiday dizziness. We were on a rampage - Resulting in approximately 180 cookies.
Cookie Recipe:
1} 1 cup of softened salted butter
2} 1/2 cup of sugar
3} 2 cups of flour
4} 1/2 teaspoon of salt
In a mixer with the paddle attachment, mix the sugar and butter on med-high until almost whipped. Then add flour and salt and mix on low until the concoction becomes a dough. Flatten dough into a disc approximately 1/2 inch thick, then wrap in plastic and set it in the refrigerator for an hour. Or if you are impatient - like me - put it in the freezer for 40 minutes.
Heat oven to 325. Form dough into balls about 1 tablespoon in size. Leave a thumb indention too. Bake for 10 minutes, then pull out the cookies and repress your thumb into them because they will rise. Place them back in the oven for another 10 minutes. Total baking time 20 minutes.
Icing Recipe:
This is really a trial and error element of the cookies.
1} 1 1/4 cups of powdered sugar
2} 1-2 tablespoons of milk
3} 1-2 tablespoons of canned pumpkin pie mix
4} 2 dashes of nutmeg
5} 1 dash of cinnamon
Whisk the icing ingredients together in a bowl. Add ingredients until the flavor is to your liking. If the icing is too runny then add more powdered sugar. After piping the icing, the hardest trial is at hand. You must wait 8 to 10 hours for the icing to harden before consuming the cookies. If you can’t wait to try one, stick it in the freezer or refrigerator for around 30 minutes.
