Soft Pumpkin Cookies

Argh. I hate it when I can't find a source for something. I think that's a clear sign of academia taking over my brain. Now I can barely write a thank you note without wanting to add a "Reference" section to the bottom of it. All I can say is that I got this recipe from Abbi's preschool last year. Legend has it, one of the parent's from years past had provided this recipe to help accommodate her child's milk/dairy allergies. That's as about as referenced as things are going to get...

On one of my duty days, this was the activity. Me + 2 teachers + 16 kids needed to make these cookies. Ack! Even more painful was the fact that they had no measuring spoons. I searched the entire school and finally found a questionable set in another classroom. Afterward, I promptly went to the Dollarstore and gifted the preschool with their very own handy dandy set of measuring spoons & cups. So believe me, these cookies are fool proof. I had 16 four year olds as my assistants and a haphazard set of measuring spoons. Enough said.

Soft Pumpkin Cookies
2.5 Cups Flour of choice
1 Tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp. Baking Soda
2.5 Tsp. Baking powder
1/4 Tsp. Salt
1 C. Sugar
1/2 C. Margarine
1/4 C. Maple Syrup
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1 C. Pumpkin puree

1. Preheat over to 375°.
2. In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, cream together: sugar and margarine. Then gradually beat in maple syrup, vanilla, and pumpkin.
4. Beat in the flour mixture.
5. Drop onto lightly greased baking sheet. Bake for 8-12 minutes. Makes 48 cookies.

Another recipe I found online for Old Fashioned Soft Pumpkin Cookies had a glaze on top which looks rather delicious, and is super easy to make. Don't they look divine?
Glaze: Combine 2 cups sifted powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk, 1 tablespoon melted butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract in small bowl until smooth. Drizzle on top of cookies.

Holly's Pumpkin Cookie tips: I used 1.5 Cups White flour, and 1 Cup Whole Wheat flour. I also cut down on the sugar, using 1/2 Cup Brown, and 1/4 Cup White Sugar. I used my own pumpkin puree, but you could use canned pumpkin, making the color a deeper orange. After dropping cookies onto the baking sheet, flatten slightly, as they will rise significantly (which can extend the cooking time and dry them out).