Pumpkin Cookies Galore for January’s Secret Recipe Club

Today is  Secret Recipe Club day!  Welcome to the first SRC reveal for Group C in 2014!

I was assigned Jamie’s blog, Our Eating Habits.    When I received the assignment from Debbi (Group C’s hostess), I was smack dab in the middle of roasting pumpkins.    I get the most bang for my buck out of pumpkins during the fall.  I buy them for decorations on our front steps for Halloween.  I don’t carve them and usually I can use them for Thanksgiving decorations as well if the weather cooperates and it doesn’t freeze.   Then, I roast them, puree them, and freeze up bags for later use.

Luckily for me, Jamie has some great pumpkin recipes on her site.   So much so, that I ended up making three of Jamie’s recipes for this post.    All of the results were met with rave reviews from my colleagues and The Hubs’ co-workers.

The first recipe I tried was a pumpkin-oatmeal cookie.   I used dark brown sugar, coconut oil and added a bit more oatmeal to Jamie’s original recipe.

Pumpkin Seed Oatmeal Cookies
Based on Pumpkin-Seed Cookies

3/4 c. dark brown sugar, packed
3/4 c. granulated sugar
1/2 c. coconut oil
1 large farm fresh egg
1 1/3 c. pumpkin puree
1 ¾ c. old-fashioned rolled oats, divided
1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 T. baking powder
3/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/4 t. ground allspice
1/4 t.  salt
3/4 c. dried cranberries
3/4 c. salted, roasted shelled pumpkin seeds

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Beat together the coconut oil and sugars until creamy. Beat in egg and pumpkin.

Place 1 cup of the oats oats in blender or food processor and process to a coarse powder. Add to pumpkin mixture.

Stir in remaining ¾ cup oats, flour, baking powder, salt and spices. Add pumpkin seeds and cranberries. Mix until well combined. Using a small cookie scoop, drop onto prepared baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes. Remove to wire cooling racks.

Hold onto your hats for this next one.   It is delicious and perhaps my favorite of the three recipes I made.   The only addition I made was to add some pecans to the topping of this dessert.

Pumpkin Shortbread Bars

For shortbread crust:
1/2 c. softened butter
1/3 c. white sugar
1/4 t. pure vanilla extract
1 c. all-purpose flour

For filling:
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
2 farm fresh eggs
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 c. pureed pumpkin
1 t. pure vanilla extract

For crumb topping:
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. white sugar
1/4 c. cold butter
1 c. pecans

Make the crust:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.   Using the whisk in a stand mixer, combine first four ingredients and press into the bottom of a 13×9 inch baking dish. Bake for 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Remove from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.

Make the filling:
Beat together the filling ingredients until smooth. Pour on to crust.

Make the topping:
In a food processor, process flour, sugar, butter and pecans until crumbly. Sprinkle on pumpkin mixture.

Bake for 30 minutes. Cool completely, and cut into bars.

These shortbread bars are delicious—not too sweet—with just the right spice.   I really liked the addition of the pecans to the topping.   I have to admit that I ate more than one of these for breakfast.

I also made the Pumpkin Gingersnaps which were absolutely delicious.   I didn’t change a thing to that spectacular recipe.  If you like a softer gingersnap, you must try this recipe.   Click here for Jamie’s original recipe.

After making all these treats plus some pumpkin soup  from this leftover Halloween/Thanksgiving decoration, I was pooped.   I really wanted to make Jamie’s  Streusel Topped Pumpkin Muffin  but I had to log it in my archives for a later date.

Thanks to our SRC hosts Jane,  Sarah, Suzanne, and the fabulous Group C host, Debbi.  They do a super fantastic job keeping us all organized, informed, and on track!   Thank you, ladies!  (For all my past SRC posts, click here. )