Cookie Friday: Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies

I hope your Friday was as awesome as mine. This blog is totally the content I would’ve stretched over like six posts squeezed into one! Why? Kevin surprised me (and scared me half to death) by coming home from work super early! Yay. So, of course, we celebrated by eating Pepperjack Sun Chips, and I ignored my blogging responsibilities.

Hello, pumpkin-themed Cookie Friday!

Pumpkin Butterscotch Cookies (via Joy the Baker)

Ingredients

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 butterscotch chips

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.

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 cimpletely.

Kevin even wore orange today to stick with my theme! I loved that the recipe was really simple because I was rushing around like crazy today (haha. I can laugh at myself. I know I’m childless and unemployed, but still!). They were soft, but not in my favorite way. I tried to explain this to Kevin, but they were more “soft & poofy.” I prefer “soft & chewy.”  I’ve noticed that the former texture often appears in “healthy” cookies. Just my thoughts! I also added more butterscotch chips than the recipe called for. Mainly so I wouldn’t eat the leftovers straight out of the bag!

Today was the last day of my self-imposed Cooking Light 1 List, 5 Meals Challenge! On the menu was Curried Couscous with Broccoli and Feta. Pictured above is Kevin’s plate with a Honeycrisp apple and PB&J pita on the side. Kevin’s a feta fan so he got extra. I’m a boring broccoli fan so I had more broccoli (and no pb – lol.) I accidentally made a ridiculous amount of couscous because I didn’t realize how much it was going to grow! The kitchen science skills are just embarrassing me at this point. I should probably take a class in that. Or better yet, a webinar.

Earlier this week, I made another amazing pumpkin creation using this recipe for Oatmeal Pumpkin Bars on CleanGreenSimple.  My version was definitely not as “clean” (I definitely used some sugar), but they tasted fantastic! For some reason, I also used some leftover almonds in the crust. I get like that when I have something random in the pantry I want to use before I spill it because I did a lazy job opening the bag!

Does this jacket make me look like a pumpkin?

It’s the Flounced Pintuck Parka from Anthro. I really kinda loved it, but I just couldn’t commit. I told Kevin that if I already had a coat, I would get it. I obviously am going to need an entire rainbow of coats now that I’m not living in a tropical climate any more. This shot doesn’t really do justice to the faux fur hood.

This evening we had to go check out another apartment complex (SNOOZE) so afterwards we rewarded ourselves with pizza. We chose Pasquini’s based on the fact that an online reviewer said they got hot breadsticks as soon as they arrived at their table. I really hate it when pizza places don’t have breadsticks (is that a Chicago pizza thing?) so that won my heart. Sorry to say that I was not a fan of the food. I’m not super picky when it comes to pizza, but it definitely was not a favorite. It seemed “dry” to me. We ordered a whole wheat crust with sausage & green peppers. I mean, we ate an entire pizza so not like it was disgusting, just I’d prefer Papa John’s. I say that with love. Our waitress was lovely.

We had to explore the shopping possibilities in our possible new neighborhood so we hung out for a little bit at a nearby mall. These glittery Uggs reminded me of my real life friend, Joanie, and my internet friend, Maren. This is not an endorsement. Lol. But I do like the (way out of my price range) Plaid & Flannel Leather Boots.

Seriously, did you like that orange jacket? Totally on the fence. Lol.

Glitter shoes/boots? Cute ballet flats or flip-flops would probably be as far as I’d venture.