Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodles

This is a great recipe for when you only have 1/2 cup of pumpkin left over after making some other tasty concoction. I basically just took Betty Crocker's recipe for Pumpkin Cookies, added a bit more flour, and rolled in a cinnamon-sugar-clove-nutmeg mixture.

 They turned out great, with that perfect hint of pumpkin pie (I'm sure you could add more pumpkin if you wanted the flavor to come out more). They are kind of hard to photograph, and I wasn't sure which picture was better, so I included both. Also, if you really have a sweet tooth (or just happen to have a little extra Cream Cheese Frosting that needs to be used up), you can always sandwich the frosting between two cookies. Talk about scrumptious!

Ingredients:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter (or margarine), softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup pumpkin
2 eggs
2 1/2 - 3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
(or 4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice)

Directions:
1)Heat oven to 375°F. In large bowl, beat 2/3 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, 3/4 cup butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla with electric mixer on medium speed, scraping bowl occasionally, until well blended. Beat in pumpkin and eggs until well mixed. On low speed, beat in 3 cups flour, baking soda, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and salt. Gradually beat in remaining flour until a nice dough consistency is reached (firm enough to hold its shape).


2)In small bowl, mix 1/3 cup sugar and pumpkin pie spices. Shape dough into 1 1/4-inch balls and roll in sugar mixture; place about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets.


3)Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheets.


Tips:
When rolling the dough, I spray my hands with cooking spray so that the dough won't stick to me. It's kind of gross, but it works like a charm. I also like to line my cookie sheet with aluminum foil because it makes it easier to work with just one sheet. As soon as I take the cookies out of the oven, I slide the entire piece of foil onto cooling racks. I can then put a new piece of foil on the cookie sheet (being careful of the hot metal) and start up the next batch. It also keeps the cookie sheet pretty much clean, making clean up a lot easier.