Pumpkin Rocks

I'm making a pumpkin treat a day for the entire month of October! I recognize it's a somewhat ridiculous venture – many, many people have implied as much – but, what with my major obsession with pumpkin and all, I figured it could be fun. (I'll assess this thought again on November 1st.)

For October 1st, I made my mom's Pumpkin Rocks. (I imagine they're named as such because, well, pumpkin rocks!) My mom has made these cookies since I was a little girl, and they're everything fall to me. They make me think of crunchy leaves underfoot, crisp cool days, my birthday... The cookies themselves are moist and fluffy, studded with juicy raisins and crunchy nuts (pecans in this case, as I had no walnuts on hand). They, of course, are full of pumpkin spices – cinnamon and nutmeg and cloves – and a couple generous cups of tasty pumpkin, too.

It seemed a natural choice to kick things off, don't you think?

Mom's Pumpkin Rocks
Yield: 48 large cookies

2 1/2 cups sifted, all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1 stick unsalted butter

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed

2 eggs

2 cups canned pumpkin (one 15-ounce can)

1 cup raisins

2 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 375ºF and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and allspice. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter. Beat in both sugars. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat well. Beat in the pumpkin. The batter will look curdled - it's okay. Beat in the sifted dry ingredients slowly. With a spoon, stir in the raisins and walnuts. Drop rounded teaspoons of dough onto cookie sheets, about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake about 16 minutes, or until lightly browned and spring back if gently pressed.