It’s pumpkin season. Today, Pittsburgh is a cool 60 degrees with rain, and the tops of the trees are tinged orange and brown. Fall, my favorite of the seasons, is here.

Last week’s pumpkin ginger cookies left me with about a cup of unused pumpkin, and there were so many possibilities for its use. Tomorrow I’ll be baking another pumpkin-themed treat, but today, because Mike was able to come home early from work, I decided to whip up a batch of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies for him. These differ slightly from pumpkin chocolate chip cookies i, in that they have a combination of semisweet and bittersweet chocolate chips and no nuts.

Incidentally, pumpkin is quite good for you. It contains vitamins A and C, magnesium, iron, and potassium and is low in both fat and cholesterol. Granted, mixing it with sugar and chocolate chips changes things, but let’s focus on the positives, eh?

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 15 ounces pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugars.

Add pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla; mix well.

Slowly add flour mixture and beat until well combined.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Using a two-inch cookie scoop, drop scoops of dough about two inches apart on the baking sheet.

Bake 17 minutes, until edges are lightly browned.

Cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet, then cool completely on a wire rack.

This time of year, I wonder about the first colonial woman who, at a loss for traditional British baking ingredients, thought to cut up a pumpkin, roast it, scrape out its flesh, and mix it with sugar and spices for pumpkin pie. Whoever she was, I applaud her ingenuity. Without her, we might not have canned pumpkin. And without canned pumpkin, we probably wouldn’t have pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.

As these baked, I told Mike that someone should make a pumpkin chocolate chip cookie-scented candle, because they filled our house with a sweet, spicy aroma that was not unlike something you’d inhale at the Yankee Candle shop. Fortunately, these cookies taste as good as they smell.

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 15 ounces pumpkin
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugars.

Add pumpkin, eggs, and vanilla; mix well.

Slowly add flour mixture and beat until well combined.

Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Using a two-inch cookie scoop, drop scoops of dough about two inches apart on the baking sheet.

Bake 18 minutes, until edges are lightly browned.

Cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet, then cool completely on a wire rack.