Taylor's Table -Pumpkins! Part 2

We've had a plethora of pumpkin dishes around here! Below, I've typed out a couple of more pumpkin filled recipes. Enjoy!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

(Makes 6-7 dozen, cut recipe in half for more manageable amount.)

* 2 cups butter, softened

* 2/3 cup sucanat (or brown sugar)

* 16 oz. can pumpkin puree or 2 cups

* 2 eggs

* 2 tsp vanilla

* 4 cups flour (2 cups whole wheat pastry flour, 2 cups whole wheat)

* 3 tsp cinnamon

* 2 tsp baking powder

* 1 tsp baking soda

* 1/2 tsp nutmeg

* 1/2 tsp allspice

* 1 tsp salt

* 2 cups chocolate chips

* 1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350F. Cream fat and sweetener. Add pumpkin, eggs, vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour and next six dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add to batter; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.

Drop rounded teaspoonfuls two inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350F for 18-20 minutes (check at 15 minutes! The original recipe said 12-15 minutes but they needed to cook much longer in my oven).

These don't spread out much and loose their crunch easily but are very tasty! Any suggestions for keeping whole wheat cookies crunchy?

* Adapted from a recipe at kitchenstewardship.com

Creamy Southwestern Pumpkin Soup

(These flavors are not the norm for pumpkin recipes but very delicious! Give it a try!)

* 2 Tbs butter

* 1 large onion, chopped

* 1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped

* 2 cloves garlic, minced

* 5 cups chicken broth

* 1 large baking potato, peeled and chopped

* 1 1/4 tsp salt

* 1/2 tsp chili powder

* 1/2 tsp chili powder

* 15 oz can pumpkin puree

* 1/4 cup fresh chopped cilantro

* 2 cups milk

* sour cream (optional)

Melt butter in Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, jalapeno pepper and garlic; saute 15 minutes. Add chicken broth and next 4 ingredients; cook, stirring often 30 minutes or until potato is tender. Remove from heat and let cool slightly (about 5-10 minutes). Use an immersion blender to puree all the ingredients of the soup. (If you don't have an immersion blender, you should get one! It saves so much time and cleanup!!!!! But if you don't heres' what to do - Process potato mixture, pumpkin and cilantro, in batches in a food processor or blender until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides. Return to Dutch oven); stir in milk and simmer 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated, if needed. Garnish with sour cream if desired.

* Makes 10 cups (enough for lots of leftovers!)