Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cookies

My cousins Elee & Kelly whipped these delectable fall treats up the other day. They are light, sweetly spicy, and so dreamy! Also, besides the yummy treat for your taste buds these cookies make the aroma in your home so autumny! A definite bonus if you ask me.

PUMPKIN CREAM CHEESE COOKIES
2 C shortening
2 C sugar
1 can of pumpkin (15 oz.)
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
4 C flour
2 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
2 t cinnamon
1 t nutmeg
1/2 t allspice
1 t salt

Cream shortening and sugar together. Add pumpkin, egg, and vanilla to mixture and cream. In a separate bowl combine flour, powder, soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice & salt then stir. Add the dry mix to the cream mix a cup at a time until all is mixed together. Bake at 350 degrees for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Let sit on a baking rack to cool.

CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
4 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 C butter, softened to room temperature
1 t vanilla
2 C powdered sugar

Cream the cheese, butter & vanilla together. Gradually mix in the powdered sugar until you achieve the desired consistency. Spread atop the cooled cookies and serve.

Mom's Sugar Cookies

Gramma MAS had a few holiday traditions. Our favorite was her homemade sugar cookies. Well, my mom has kept that tradition alive. She altered Gramma's recipe a bit and it creates the most moist, light sugar cookies in the world. I can never get them quite right though... maybe she's holding out on a secret ingredient?

MOM'S SUGAR COOKIES
1/2 C butter, softened
1 C sugar
2 eggs
2 T heavy cream
1 t vanilla
2 1/2 C flour
1/2 t salt
1/4 t baking soda

Mix flour, salt and soda in a bowl. In a separate bowl cream butter, sugar, eggs, cream and vanilla. Combine the flour mixture with the creamed ingredients and mix well. Cover the dough and refrigerate for 2 hours. After the dough has chilled preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll the dough out onto a slightly oiled or floured surface until it is about 1/2 inch thick. Cut out the cookies with cookie cutters then place on a lightly sprayed baking sheet. Bake for 6-8 minutes or until barely golden on top and edges. Let the cookies sit on the sheet for a few minutes after you remove them from the oven. Transfer them to a wax paper lined cooling rack. Let the cookies sit for about 30 minutes before frosting them.

CREAMY COOKIE FROSTING
1 C powdered sugar
1/4 t salt
2 t vanilla
2+ T heavy cream
food coloring or coloring paste

Blend the sugar, salt, vanilla and cream on high until mixed. If you need to, add some more cream to achieve the desired consistency. Tint with coloring. Spread on cooled cookies. Enjoy!

Mountain Fuel Cookies

When Rob's mother, Ivie, worked at Mountain Fuel in Salt Lake City she acquired this recipe. The Phippens grew up enjoying these chocolate sensations and always called them the Mountain Fuel Cookies. They are truly delicious and easy to bake.

MOUNTAIN FUEL COOKIES
1 box of brownie or chocolate cake mix
1/3 C shortening
2 eggs

FROSTING
1 C powdered sugar
1/2 t vanillla
1 T milk

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Beat until well mixed. Scoop out spoonfuls of dough and roll into balls. Place, about 2 inches apart, on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes or until the bottom of the cookie is lightly browned. Place cookies on a wax paper lined cooling rack. While cookies are cooling prepare frosting. Combine all the frosting ingredients in a mixing bowl. Whip until mixed. You may need to add a bit more milk to get the right consistency. Once the cookies are cool you can make the "sandwiches". Place frosting in between 2 of the cookies making a cookie sandwich. Repeat until finished then serve.

*Note: A simple cream cheese or butter cream frosting is really good with the cookies too.

Date Pinwheel Cookies

Grandmother Scarlett loved baking these delectable treats for her grandchildren. My dad remembers running into her quaint house, passing her altogether, heading straight to her freezer and grabbing a cookie, then returning to give Grandmother a hug and a kiss, his mouth already full of date pinwheel goodness. Here is her authentic recipe, straight from our Alabama heritage to your kitchen!

DATE PINWHEEL COOKIE DOUGH:
1 C butter, softened
2 C brown sugar
3 eggs, well beaten
4 C flour, sifted
1/2 t salt
1 t baking soda

Cream the butter with a mixer. Add the brown sugar. Add eggs and mix well. Mix the flour, salt, and soda in a bowl. Pour the dry mix into the cream mix. Stir until well blended. Cover the dough and chill in the refrigerator, about 2 hours.

DATE FILLING:
2 1/4 C chopped dates
1 C water
1 C sugar
1 1/2 C chopped pecans

Cook the dates, sugar, and water in a saucepan over low heat until thickened. It usually takes about 10 minutes. Add the pecans then let cool.

When filling is cool dough is chilled take the dough and divide it in half. Roll each half out, on a lightly floured surface, until about a quarter inch thick. Spread half of the filling on each dough half. Roll up the dough, like a jelly roll or cinnamon roll loaf. Wrap the two rolls in wax paper and chill in the refrigerator. After about an hour or two, remove the dough from the refrigerator. Cut the rolls, with a sharp knife, to be about a quarter inch thick. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick spray then place cookies on it. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes until the top is golden brown. Remove cookies from sheet and place on a wax paper lined cooling rack. Serve after the cookies are cool to the touch.

250 Dollar Cookies

I'm sure most people have a version of this recipe. The story is that some lady asked how much it was to purchase the recipe for the cookies sold at a fancy department store's bakery. The baker quoted her a price of two fifty so she bought the recipe. When she received her credit card statement the charge for the recipe was not $2.50 but $250.00. She was outraged and tried to get her money back but the department store refused her request. In retaliation this woman made copies of the recipe and sent it out to everyone she knew. My friend Samantha gave this recipe to me while we were at Ricks College. It is still one of my favorite cookie recipes. Thanks lady who got mad and sent this recipe out, I have enjoyed it immensely.

$250 COOKIES

1 C butter, softened
1 C sugar
1 C brown sugar
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
2 C flour
2 C regular oats
1 1/2 t salt
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
4 oz. chocolate bar, grated
1 C chocolate chips
1 C walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Pour oats into a blender and blend to achieve a finer texture. Cream butter and sugars together. Add eggs and vanilla to creamed mix. In a separate bowl combine oats, flour, salt, soda, powder and stir. Slowly add the flour mix to the cream mix. Stir well until blended. Add chips, grated chocolate, and nuts. Stir well. Roll dough into balls and place 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet that was coated with non-stick spray. Bake for 10 minutes or until edges and top are golden brown.

Grandma's Banana Cookies

Grandma Mary Alice found this gem of a recipe in a Better Homes and Gardens magazine during the 1950's. The blissful bananas combined with nutmeg, cinnamon, and chocolate chips sounded scrumptious. She baked a batch that day and never stopped!

BANANA COOKIES

3 cups of flour
2 cups of sugar
1 and 1/2 cups shortening
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 and 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 eggs
2 and 1/2 cups ripe mashed bananas
3 cups oats
2 cups chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, salt, soda, nutmeg and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Add shortening to the mix and cut it in until it appears coarse, like cornmeal. Add eggs. Add bananas. Mix well. Add oats and mix. Stir in chips and nuts. Let the cookie dough sit for about ten minutes. Drop spoonfuls of dough onto a lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for around ten minutes. The edges and tops of the cookies should be golden brown. Let cool on wire racks covered with wax paper. Store in air tight container after cooled.