Halloween Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Go Monster Ugly

 For this Halloween why not combine fun, nutrition, good cookies with "ugly" (like monsters) snacks instead of picture perfect.

 

Cookies are often meant to be pretty and symmetric, why not go “ugly” or "monster ugly" for change.

These Halloween pumpkin chocolate chip cookies are made with nutritious whole wheat flour and fresh pumpkin. A fun recipe to make for or during Halloween parties.

Please read the whole recipe first: Colouring method explained below

Halloween Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients

Wet ingredients

• 2 cups fresh (not canned) pumpkin (cooked, mashed thoroughly)
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup margarine or butter, softened a bit. (Not running all over the plate from micro waving.)
• 2 TBSP grated orange rind: the cookies will survive without this ingredient.
• Your spice rack may have a dried version of orange or lemon zest, 2 tsp.

Dry Ingredients:

• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup white flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ tsp. salt
• 2 cups chocolate chips (Can use less if adding dried fruits)
• Also consider raisins, currants, sliced almonds, tiny bits of dried fruit, purchased unsalted shelled pumpkin seeds, unsalted shelled sunflower seeds. All in small amounts.

Preparation

1. With electric mixer, mix sugar, pumpkin, margarine and orange rind. Check that there are no small lumps of pumpkin. (Wait, see below)
2. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl, stirring thoroughly.
3. Stir in dry ingredients with pumpkin mixture (see below)
4. Add chocolate chips and any other optional dried fruit, etc.
5. Put on ungreased cookie sheet. (Parchment works well)
6. 375 degrees F for 8 – 10 minutes.
7. These are soft cookies, cool on rack.

Very Important

Some varieties of pumpkin are very moist, squeeze out any extra moisture using a fine grained sieve/strainer. Strain small quantities at a time, pressing gently against the strainer. Pumpkin is high in water. If the pumpkin is too moist the cookie dough will be wet and sticky. The cookies will spread flat when cooked and become too breakable to easily use.

Making Coloured Dough:

Food dyes will react differently due to the texture and original colour of the pumpkin. I usually use kitchen or disposable gloves so that I’m not as “rainbow” as the cookies.

There are two ways to add the colour:

1) Separate the pumpkin, sugar, butter and orange rind into four parts, in four different bowls and add colouring to 3, leaving one plain. With this system: Mix together dry ingredients and then carefully divide into four parts ( 1 cup) before combining with the four different bowls of coloured pumpkin (wet ingredients).

OR

2) After the cookie dough has been mixed but before the chocolate chips or dried fruit, etc are added, divide the dough into any number of parts for colouring or for adding different fruits or nuts or flavourings.

There are complications with both systems, but both will work. The 1st method gives less indication of the final colour. The 2nd method requires more mixing for colour consistency, if you want that… but maybe not, these are meant to be ugly, right?

You’ll now have (at least) 4 different and interesting colours of batter. You might choose to add a defining ingredient to each colour. (ie: Raisins in the red, almonds in the green, etc.)

Experience has taught me that the chocolate chips are an important ingredient in these cookies.

Note: In these pictures I have used commercial food colouring. I feel that in small doses—these cookies once a year—that consumption will be safe. However, too much colouring will add a non-flavourful taste to your cookies. Types of food dyes and pumpkins will vary, you’ll have to experiment. There is no right or wrong use of food dyes in this recipe.

Those who feel strongly about the concerns of food colouring, consider highly concentrated juices available at your supermarket or health food store. Remember that you are adding liquid, and will need to compensate slightly by adding more flour. The juice will change the flavour of the cookies. Cranberry concentrate is quite tart.

Powdered stevia (not the extract) will add a green tone to dough but is exceptionally sweet. Alternately, coloured icing, which requires less food colouring, can be used with fun “smearing” on the cookies. (I mean by your kids, but you and your “adult” friends too)

Before adding chocolate chips or fruits, press downward on the dough with your fingers or spoon. The dough should be firm, minimally sticky, otherwise mix in more white flour.

To be safe, bake only 6 cookies. The cookie dough should spread only slightly. Otherwise stir in more white flour.

Preparing the “Ugly” (Ok, smile a little)

On the cookie sheets press together globs or bits of small pieces of any shape or combination of dough colours, to a total of a generous tablespoon. Lots of room for creativity.

Other notes:

• The coloured dough shown in the picture is only wet ingredients, from an extra large batch
• I’ve added papaya and Hershey’s kisses to some of mine.
• I sometimes cut back on the chocolate chips and/or the sugar.
• A “pinch or two” of cardamom adds a special flavour.

This recipe has long been a family favourite. (Both kids took the recipe when they left home) Without the “monster ugly” just follow the recipe. The cookies freeze well and travel nicely in care packs.

Enjoy. Ugly is in the eye of the beholder

Nutrition Facts about Pumpkin

Pumpkin is:

• Low in Saturated Fat, Sodium, and Cholesterol
• High in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Riboflavin, Potassium, Copper, Manganese, Thiamin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Pantothenic Acid, Iron, Magnesium and Phosphorus

Quirky fact:

Pumpkin is actually considered a fruit.