Tasty Tuesday – Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Brownie Cookies

September 30, 2014 by Jennifer

Hello!

It’s Tasty Tuesday and I have a fabulous Fall recipe to share with you! Whoop!!

Make sure you head over to Lena’s page and check out all the other Tasty Tuesday yumminess! 🙂

I decided it was high time I jumped on the pumpkin bandwagon because it really seems like Fall is here to stay. I figured we would have somewhat of an Indian Summer and have warm weather through October but…..according to the meteorologists, these temps are going up any time soon.

Of course, how much can you really count on a meteorologist but still…….I’m doing it because I want some pumpkin stuff!

I’ve been dreaming of brownie cookies lately – as well as of running. Anxious much? – and I decided I needed to incorporate pumpkin somehow.

I’ve made a couple of pumpkin brownie recipes and I’ve made pumpkin chocolate chip cookies so it seemed that the logical next step was pumpkin brownie cookies!

I’m really stoked these turned out so well on my first shot!

They are soft, chewy, pillowy, chocolatey, pumpkin spice-y, and delicious.

Thing 2 said they were really chocolatey but … really, what’s wrong with that?!

You would think they would be dense but they’re not. It’s gotta be the pumpkin that makes it like little pillows.

Little pillows of chocolatey goodness.

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Brownie Cookies
makes approximately 18 cookies

1 cup white whole wheat flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup cocoa powder
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
½ cup mini chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray.

2. In small bowl, whisk together dry ingredients – flour through nutmeg.

3. In large mixer bowl, mix pumpkin, sugar, and vanilla until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Slowly mix in dry ingredients until incorporated. Fold in chocolate chips.

4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets. These will not spread so don’t worry about them running into each other.

5. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Let cool on cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes before removing to cooling rack.

6. NOM them down!!

Talk to me: Do you dream about cookies? Do you love Fall? What’s your favorite season?

– jennifer

BIG news and some weekend shenanigans!

September 15, 2014 by Jennifer

Hello, hello!

First things first – I have BIG NEWS!!!!

I found out on Friday that I’ve been selected as one of the new FitFluential Ambassadors!!!

I’m so excited!!! I got the email while I was still at work and I totally let out a Whoop! and did a happy dance at my desk. EEEPPP!!!

Okay, back to calm….. 😉

Normally, I’d be telling you Sunday food prep stories today but I’m mixing it up a little!

Cuz I didn’t food prep.

I wasn’t home to.

I went to visit my G-ma. 🙂

one day, I will learn to take a decent selfie.

She’s 94 (and a half!) and most definitely the coolest lady on the planet.

She lives with my folks a couple hours north of me and I try to get up there whenever I can. Travelling wears her out and my folks are pretty busy so it’s easier for me to go to her.

We talk, we share stories, sometimes we just sit in silence – it’s all good. Being near her makes me happy. I especially love kissing the top of her head. Her hair is so soft!

While I’m there, I get to cuddle with these two love bugs! #bonus

Another bonus about going “home” (I still think of that as home even though I haven’t lived there in 25 years and it’s not really home – home is where my sailor is.) is that they have a Potbelly Sandwich Shop nearby!

The last time I had a Potbelly sandwich was last year when we went to Chicago for Thing 1’s boot camp graduation!

So, don’t you go judging me for that dozen bag of cookies. I was WAY overdue for one of their cookies.

Besides, I actually only ate one (even though they’re like CRACK) because I got them for G-ma since she didn’t go with us.

The Potbelly’s happens to be pretty much next door to the Wegmans, which I don’t have near me either.

One is scheduled to open in Norfolk in 2015, though!

I love going to Wegmans! I can find things there that I can’t find down here. Mom always tells me she’d be happy to send me a care package if I tell her what I want. 🙂

Good gravy, I love that pecan butter!!! And, even though I recently found Chia Bars down here, I had to grab some anyway. The apple cinnamon flavor is the bomb!

Now, those Epic bars. I’ve never tried them before – actually never seen them before either – but they sounded interesting. There was this guy in that aisle browsing other bars, etc and he told me he’s tried them and they’re not bad. He said he prefers the lamb but, yeah, I’m not trying that one.

(and don’t sit there judging me for not eating lamb because of Lambchop and cute lambs but still eating meat – I know where beef and bison and chicken and bacon come from, I just try not to think about it. Otherwise I’d never eat. :/)

Anyway, he said they’re not tough like jerky and they kinda have a granola bar texture/consistency to them.

I was going to try them anyway but it was nice to get someone else’s opinion, too. 🙂

Then, we got back to Mom’s house and, after a bit, I went to grab something out of my purse and I discovered these!

First of all, I am a SLAVE to the mellowcreme pumpkin. I both dread and love halloween because of those pumpkins. I will eat them until my teeth hurt and then I will eat more. I cannot help myself.

So, I had seen these in the store and purposefully avoided them.

Imagine my surprise when I found this container in my purse!

The first thing I thought was, “OMG, did I steal these?! I didn’t even TOUCH them!!!”

Maybe I had an out-of-body experience and stuffed a container in my purse?

Or…..maybe Thing 2 and her boyfriend (who came along with me) had bought a container and sneaked it in my purse when I wasn’t looking.

Ha! Got a pretty good laugh about that.

But, now I’m stuck with a full container of those silly pumpkins and they are just DEMANDING to be eaten.

My teeth will probably fall out.

What?! Can’t remember the last time I saw gas for less than $3.00/gallon!!!

Talk to me: What did you do this weekend? What holiday food do you secretly love and count the days until you can eat it all up dread?

– jennifer

Recipe Round-up – what’s on my “to be made and gobbled up” list

July 22, 2014 by Jennifer

Hello!

Happy Tuesday!!

So, my friend Lena over at Lean Lena does a Tasty Tuesday linkup party on her blog.

It’s about darned time I joined in! 🙂

(And, it’s about time you headed over there to check it out! Who knows what sort of yumminess you’ll find? Like Cheesecake Cupcakes. Ahem, need I say more? I’ll wait.) 😉

I’ve seen some pretty amazing recipes come into my in-box these past few weeks and I want to share the ones that are on my “to be made and gobbled up” list. Maybe you’ll put them on your “to make” list, too! 🙂

First things first.

This.