FROM THE KITCHEN: Relax with 3-ingredient cookies
There are two food items that I think typify fall: pumpkin and cinnamon. Any season, when I bust either of these ingredients out, I just think of fall.
I have always loved fall and hated it as well. Unfortunately, I detest the cold. I love the sun, shorts and being outside. Hiking and camping are not as accessible during the winter and require specialized equipment. All that in consideration, I love being able to wear a sweater, to eat pumpkin pie and enjoy the holidays. Once October hits, it’s the three big holidays all in a row, and I just love that. The holidays are an excuse to eat delicious food that may not necessarily be very good for you. One of my favorite fall treats are pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. I love the ones my mom would buy from Walmart that are so moist and completely delicious. What I really love about pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, and pumpkin anything really, is that I can eat them for breakfast and get away with it because they have pumpkin in them.
These cookies are soft and delicious. I have told people jokingly that the recipe is a secret family recipe, but in reality my roommate found the recipe in August on Pinterest, made a batch, and there’s really been no going back since – our house has had these cookies about five times since then.
The beauty of these pumpkin chocolate chip cookies is that they are so simple, I don’t think anyone can mess them up. They are superbly affordable to make – not to mention delicious.
Ingredients:
1 box spice cake mix
1 14 ounce can of pumpkin pie filling
chocolate chips
That’s it. Nothing more.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.
Dump the cake mix in a large bowl and use a whisk or a fork – a poor man’s whisk – to get rid of the large chunks of cake mix. The smoother the mix is before you pour in the pumpkin, the better. Next, open the can of pumpkin pie filling and mix it together with the cake mix. There may, even if you’ve done your very best, still be flour chunks. If you have beaters, now would be a great time to bust them out. If you don’t, don’t worry: Just keep mixing. Sometimes if you let the mixture sit for about fifteen minutes, it’s easier to mix up.
Once you’ve got a smooth mixture, add in the chocolate chips. A tip to make this recipe more affordable: At Smith’s, the off-brand chocolate chips are cheaper and taste better than the brand ones. If you get the milk chocolate chips, you will want to use the whole bag but only need about half.
If you forget the chocolate chips like I did the first time I made these and you have Nutella on hand, just top a warm cookie with Nutella and you’re good to go.
Place six to nine large spoonfuls of dough onto a pre-greased cookie sheet. Depending on how large your cookies are, you’ll cook them somewhere between 11 and 15 minutes. You’ll know the cookies are done when the outside edges get a little crispy.
One of
the other great things about these cookies is that the cookie dough is totally fair game to eat and not feel guilty about. My mother would always get mad when my sister and I stole cookie dough because she was convinced we’d get salmonella from the eggs. I never did, but since these cookies don’t have eggs at all, I love eating the cookie dough as I eat, and I don’t feel guilty or worried at all.
You can also use the mixture to make muffins. Just take a muffin pan, grease it and fill each cup to about half full. Cook for the same amount of time, and you have delicious muffins.
Every fall my mom makes a drink called wassail, which is really just apple cider on steroids. Seriously. My family keeps a big pot of it warm on the stove, and just drink it the whole holiday season.
Ingredients:
1 large orange, sliced thinly
3 cinnamon sticks (found in the spice aisle)
Nutmeg
Cloves (fresh shaved is best, if you don’t have it, that’s OK)
1 gallon apple cider
You can make this drink multiple times with the ingredients listed above.
You’ll want a large saucepan for the apple cider. Fill the pot to about halfway. Place one or two cinnamon sticks in the pot, with about two teaspoons nutmeg and cloves. Next, slice about half of your orange into thin slices. Combine with your apple cider in your pot, and bring to a medium-low heat on the stove. Soon, your cider will have a bit of a kick and be ready to drink all season long.
This drink is something good to make with a group of people, such as roommates or friends. Have everyone bring one or two ingredients, combine them and play games, catch up or have pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and relax.
Try out my recipes. If you love them – or hate them – let me know.
– april.ashland@aggiemail.usu.edu
@AprilAsh2012