Pumpkin Pie Kisses~A Rerun

 This is a re-posting of a recipe I did some time ago, you can tell by the one photo format that this recipe was first posted at least a year ago.  I wanted to share it again because the Hershey's Kisses featured in this recipe are typically only available in September or October and I don't want any of you to miss them. 

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I found these Pumpkin Spice Hershey Kisses at the store while looking for ideas for cookies for Kyle's soccer team. I immediately decided to make some sort of blossom kiss type cookie, but I knew that the traditional peanut butter cookie base would not cut it. While searching for something to use as the base to these cookies I found an amazing Brown Sugar Cookie recipe in the America's Test Kitchen Family Baking cookbook. The result was a cookie to rival any pumpkin pie!

1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
24 Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses, unwrapped

1. Adjust the oven rack the middle position and preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Whisk together the 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar together in a shallow bowl.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside for later.
3. Melt 10 tablespoons of the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, swirling the pan constantly until the melted butter is a dark golden brown that gives of a nutty aroma, this should take about 3 to 5 minutes. Carefully transfer the butter to a heatproof bowl and add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter stirring until they are also melted. Set aside for 15 minutes until cooled completely.
4. Stir the remaining 1 3/4 cups brown sugar and the salt into the cooled butter until evenly combined. Stir in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and mix until completely incorporated. Stir in the flour mixture until just combined.
5. Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll the dough into balls with your hands wet and then roll them in the sugar mixture. Place them on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
6. Baking one sheet at a time bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes. Remove them from the oven and immediately press an unwrapped Pumpkin Spice Hershey kiss into the middle of each still soft cookie. Allow the cookies to cool for about 3 minutes on the cookie sheet until moving them to a wire rack. Be careful will begin to melt just a bit.

Holiday Cut-Out Cookies

The cookies pictured below may be of Halloween shapes, but that is just because I was too lazy to photograph them again at Christmas time.  You can use whatever cookie cutter you desire to make these cookies.  They are easy to make and great for the Santa.

I always make these cookies for Halloween and for Christmas. As I have not done my holiday baking just yet, I only have the photo from Halloween. This recipe is from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook.

Cookies
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cups superfine sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces and softened
2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Beat the butter into the flour mixture, one piece at a time, using and electric mixer on medium-low speed, then continue to beat until the mixture is crumbly and slightly wet. Beat in the cream cheese and the vanilla until the dough just comes begins to form large clumps.
2. Knead the dough in the large bowl by hand a few times until it forms a large, cohesive mass. Turn the dough out onto a clean counter, divide it in half, and pat into two 4-inch disks. Wrap disks tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until they begin to firm up, 20 to 30 minutes. (FYI: you can make you dough ahead and keep it in the frig for 3 days or you can freeze it for up to 2 weeks--if you freeze it allow the dough to defrost in the frig)
3. Adjust the oven rack to the lower middle position and preheat the oven to 375°. Line the bottom of two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Working with one disk at a time, roll out the dough to a 1/8 inch thickness on a clean surface. I have granite counter tops, but if you do not have a good smooth cool surface you might want to invest in a roll mat. Use cookie cutters to cut out your desired shapes. Press the cookie cutters into the dough and remove the excess dough from around the cutters before removing the cutters. Then, using a spatula move the cut out cookies from the counter to your parchment paper lined cookie sheets. Place each cookie 1-inch apart.
4. Bake the cookies until a light golden brown, about 10 minutes, rotating the cookie sheet half way through the baking time.
5. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 2 minutes and then transfer them using a spatula to a wire rack. Cool cookies completely before icing them.
   
   

Glaze
3 tablespoons whole milk
1 tablespoons cream cheese
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

1. Whisk 2 tablespoons of the milk and the cream cheese together until smooth. Add the confectioners' sugar and whisk until smooth, adding the remaining milk as needed until the glaze is thin enough to spread easily. You can divide the glaze amoung separate bowls and add food coloring as desired. I use Wilton gel food color for dying cookie icing.
2. Decorate the cookies with the glaze and with sprinkles. Allow the glazed cookies to dry completely before touching them or they will be covered with finger prints

Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

Here is another great recipe from the archives.  This is a classic recipe perfect for sharing or saving for Santa. 

For the Cookie
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoons salt
For the Coating
1/3 cup sugar
For the Garnish
48 kisses(unwrapped)

1. Cream the butter. Add the peanut butter and sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla, beat until combined. Then add in the milk and beat until combined.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the sugar mixture to the flour mixture and mix until well combined. Cover and chill the batter for about 1 hour.
3. Move the oven racks to the center of your oven and preheat you oven to 375°. Line a couple of cookie sheets with parchment paper.
4. Roll the batter into 1 inch balls and coat with sugar. Place each ball of dough on your prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart.
5. Bake for 8-10 minutes.
6. Immediately upon removing from the oven, place an unwrapped kiss in the center of each cookie and press down.
7. Allow to cool on a wire rack and enjoy your holiday baking.

Brown Sugar Cookies

Here is another cookie recipe from the archives.  These have got to be some of the most delicious cookies I have ever baked.  I have made them both with light brown sugar and dark brown sugar, it all depends on how you want the final cookie to look. 

These are the cookies I used at the base for my Pumpkin Pie Cookies. I assure you that they are just as delicious without the kiss in the middle.

1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups, plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Adjust the oven rack the middle position and preheat the oven to 350°. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside. Whisk together the 1/4 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar together in a shallow bowl.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside for later.
3. Melt 10 tablespoons of the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, swirling the pan constantly until the melted butter is a dark golden brown that gives of a nutty aroma, this should take about 3 to 5 minutes. Carefully transfer the butter to a heatproof bowl and add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter stirring until they are also melted. Set aside for 15 minutes until cooled completely.
4. Stir the remaining 1 3/4 cups brown sugar and the salt into the cooled butter until evenly combined. Stir in the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and mix until completely incorporated. Stir in the flour mixture until just combined.
5. Working with 2 tablespoons of dough at a time, roll the dough into balls with your hands wet and then roll them in the sugar mixture. Place them on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
6. Baking one sheet at a time bake the cookies for 12 to 14 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool for about 3 minutes on the cookie sheet until moving them to a wire rack.
   

Pepperming Kiss Chocolate Cookies

Hello all, Sorry I have not posted lately.  I have been dealing with a bad case of vertigo.  For those who have never experienced vertigo, it causes one to be too dizzy for most day-to-day activities.   BUt I thought this might be a good time to pull out some cookies recipes from the archives and let you have a chance to see them again just in time to do some holiday baking.

The base for these cookies is the Chocolate CrissCross Cookie, which is a Hersey's recipe and of course the kisses above are also a Hershey's product. I assure you that these two fact are purely coincidental. I am not blogging for Hershey, nor are they compensating me in any way. However, Hershey if you wish to compensate me don't hesitate to drop me a line. I also need to note that these particular kisses are seasonal and therefore will not be available all that long in the stores.

1 cups unsalted butter, softened

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup Hershey's cocoa

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Hershey's' Peppermint Kisses, unwrapped

1. Heat the oven to 350° and cover two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Beat the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla; beat well. In a separate bowl, combine with a whisk the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Gradually (and slowly if using an kind of motorized mixer) add the flour mixture into the butter mixture; beating until well combined.
3. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls. Place on the parchment paper lined baking sheets, about 1 inch apart. Flatten the balls with the bottom of a measuring cup or a glass that has been dipped in water (to prevent sticking).
4. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes or until cookies are set. Immediately upon removing the cookies from the oven, top them with the kiss. Cool slightly on the baking sheet and remove to a wire rack to cool completely.