The Best Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

CAUTION: These cookies are highly addictive!! Even my dad, who refuses to eat anything vegan and identifies highly with Ron Swanson [see Parks and Rec], cannot get enough of them even though he knows they are vegan! My omnivore family and coworkers always request that I bring these cookies too.

After baking these cookies year-after-year for Christmas presents and parties, I have a few tips to add!

• Using metal sheets helps make the cookies more cake-like which seems to be the most popular. Bake time will vary depending on sheet type
• One 15 oz can of pumpkin puree makes about 5-6 dozen cookies. Using a full can requires the recipe to be quadrupled.
• I use mini chips so there are more chocolate chips per cookie
• Substitute King Arthur’s Gluten Free measure for measure flour for a gluten free version!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 Tbsp applesauce
• 1/2 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice, or 1/8 tsp each of ginger, cloves, all-spice
• 1/2 cup vegan chocolate chips (Enjoy Life chips are allergen friendly. Also Stop and Shop’s organic semi-sweet chocolate chips are “accidentally” vegan)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Stir thoroughly pumpkin, sugar, oil, applesauce, and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, stir thoroughly flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and other spices.
4. Slowly pour flour mixture into pumpkin mixture and blend well.
5. Once all the flour mixture is blended, stir in the chocolate chips.
6. Scoop dough in 1-inch balls onto a lightly greased cookie sheet spaced 1 inch apart, they don’t expand too much.
7. Bake for about 12 minutes. I recommend testing a few cookies before to make sure you’ve got the right time for your oven. They should come out a bit cake-like.

Makes approximately one dozen cookies.

Enjoy!!