Divine Pumpkin Cookies

Good food, best shared. Here is a sweet recipe for the season shared by Mary Beth Stromberg, owner of a lovely Tuscan bed and breakfast near Nipomo, California. Pam Cowan and I had the pleasure of staying with Mary Beth, and carrying a picnic basket with hot coffee and these Pumpkin cookies, (really sort of like mookies because they are rather muffin-like), to the Remnants of the Past Show, a daylong journey into beautiful things and days gone by. They added just the right amount of homemade sweetness to get us through meeting our customers and friends.

Pumpkin Cookies (Mookies!)

2 ½ cups of flour

½ tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

1 cup butter [softened]

1 cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1 egg

13/4 cups pure pumpkin [available in a can]

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 tsp grated orange peel

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup chocolate chips [or caramel chips]

Combine flour, baking soda and salt in bowl

Combine butter, white sugar, brown sugar in large bowl, beat until creamy. Add egg, pumpkin, orange juice and orange peel. Beat until combined. Gradually add flour mixture. Beat until combined. Stir in nuts and chocolate chips.

Drop dough from rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheet.

Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees for 12 minutes, until edges are set.

Allow to cool.

Line your basket with a pretty tea towel, add a thermos of coffee and enjoy!

Yum and yeah Mary Beth!