In the past, my column has been known as “Cupcakes with Cassidy.” This year however, I wanted to expand on that. I thought to myself, why limit myself to just cupcakes when there are a plethora of other baked delights that are oh-so-yummy. With this said, I will now be including brownies, cookies, pies, and various other desserts.

As it finally starts to feel like fall, my inner basic teenage girl is obsessing over Starbucks’ Pumpkin Spice Latte. These cookies have the warmth and comfort often found in that white and green cup of pumpkin goodness.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies:
Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 cups (12-ounce bag) milk chocolate chips, not semisweet
Nonstick cooking spray or parchment paper

Directions

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick spray or line them with parchment paper.

Using a mixer, beat the butter until smooth. Beat in the white and brown sugars, a little at a time, until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then mix in the vanilla and pumpkin puree. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Slowly beat the flour mixture into the batter by thirds. Stir in the chips. Scoop the cookie dough by heaping tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the cookies are browned around the edges. Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let them rest for two minutes. Take the cookies off with a spatula and cool them on wire racks.

Recipe courtesy of food blogger Lauren Fernandez. Fernandez’s recipe can be found here.

Emily Cassidy is the Promotions Chief and News Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.