pumpkin cookies with brown butter icing.

Normally I like to come up with my own recipes, but I got the recipe for these delicious treats from the ultimate expert in tasty cookies, Martha Stewart. They are soft, moist and amazing.

Cookies:

2 3/4 c. all purpose flour (I use whole wheat flour)

1 t. baking powder

1 t. baking soda

1 1/4 t. coarse salt

1 1/2 t. ground cinnamon

1 1/4 t. ground ginger

3/4 t. ground nutmeg

3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

2 1/4 c. packed light brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 c. (14 oz) canned solid-pack pumpkin

3/4 c. evaporated milk

1 t. pure vanilla extract

Icing: (I normally cut this recipe in half.)

4 c. confectioners' sugar, sifted

10 T (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter

1/4 c. plus 1 T evaporated milk

2 t. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg in a medium bowl; set aside. Mix together butter and brown sugar on medium speed until pale and fluffly, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs. Reduce speed to low. Add pumpkin, evaporated milk and vanilla; mix until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add flour mixture; mix until combined.

Transfer 1 1/2 cups batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2" plain tip (such as Ateco #806). Pipe 1 1/2 inch rounds onto parchment- lined baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until tops spring back, about 12 minutes. Cool on sheets on wire racks for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks; let cool completely.

For the icing, put confectioners' sugar in a large bowl; set aside. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Immediately add butter to confectioners' sugar, scraping any browned bites from sides and bottom of the pan. Add evaporated milk and vanilla; stir until smooth. Spread about 1 teaspoon icing onto each cookie. If icing stiffens, stir in more evaporated milk, a little at a time. Cookies can be stored in single layers in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days (if they last that long).

xx.

val