Pumpkin Whoopie Pies & RAK Roundup

Christmas displays are already out in many of the big box stores. Christmas music can be heard on some radio stations. Just excuse me while I continue to enjoy my pumpkin and apple recipes... IT'S STILL FALL! We still have about two weeks before Thanksgiving. Let's pump the brakes. Enjoy Fall before rushing into the hustle and bustle of the holiday season!

Now that I've stepped off my soap box, I introduce to you this little gem, Pumpkin Whoopie Pies.

I asked my neighbors if they enjoyed whoopie pies. They looked at me as if I was growing a third arm. They had never heard of whoopie pies. WHAT?! Life is not complete without having a least one whoopie pie. That settled it, I had to make these.  If not for me, for my neighbors... *ahem*

Pumpkin Cookie

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp ground ginger (I'm not the worlds biggest ginger lover, so I used 1/2 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp ground cloves
2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350.
Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mat; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; set aside.
In another large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and oil until well combined.
Add pumpkin puree to brown sugar mix, and whisk until combined.
Add eggs and vanilla and whisk until well combined.
Sprinkle flour mixture over pumpkin mixture and whisk until fully incorporated.

Using a small ice cream scoop with a release mechanism, drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 1 inch apart.
Transfer to oven and bake until cookies are just starting to crack on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of each cookie comes out clean, about 15 minutes.
Let cool completely on baking sheet.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Filling

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
4 Tbsp heavy cream
2 pounds powdered sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt

In a large bowl, beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth and fluffy.
Add pumpkin puree, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, and beat just until combined.
Slowly add powdered sugar, a cup at a time and beat to combine.
Once the mixture starts to get very stiff and hard to beat, add the heavy cream and beat well.
Slowly add the rest of the powdered sugar and beat for 4-5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
Spread mixture on to the cooled pumpkin cookies. I put the frosting in a zip lock, snipped one end, and filled the cookies that way. If you have piping bag that works, too!
Sandwich cookies together, pressing slightly to spread the filling to the edges.
Store refrigerated in an airtight container until ready to serve.

Yields 15-20 sandwiches

I thoroughly enjoyed these, as did my neighbors. My neighbor is a pumpkin pie lover, and she said these reminded her of that, so score for me!

My next go around with these I'll add more cream cheese filling to the cookies. I had so much cream cheese left over, I didn't want all that goodness go to waste. What to do, what to do. Cinnamon graham cracker + slather of pumpkin cream cheese = WIN!

In lieu of pumpkin pie bring these to your Turkey Day celebration and watch as they are gobbled up.

Enjoy!

Source: Lemon Sugar

*****

Be Kind. Be Generous. Be Thankful.
Random Acts of Kindness (RAK) Roundup

Saturday, November 3
I had a blast participating in the Color Run, in San Diego. Proceeds from the event benefited Big Brothers and Big Sisters. What better way to help a charity/organization than going out, getting a good run in, and getting splashed with color along the way?!

Sunday, November 4
Things were pretty busy around our place, but a few minutes on freerice.com, and I was able to donate 2,000 grains of rice to the World Food Programme. To earn rice simply answer trivia questions correctly and 10 grains of rice is donated per correct answer. Easy peasy!

Monday, November 5
There were a few dollar bills that had been hiding in my wallet for who knows how long; long enough for me not to miss or need them. I stuffed solo bills into envelopes and attached the envelopes to random items in the dollar bin at Target. Some unsuspecting person/persons is going to have their dollar indulgence pre-paid.




Tuesday, November 6
There were a few coaches in high school that left big impacts on my life. I took a minute to write each of them a thank you for leaving such great impressions.

Wednesday, November 7
It didn't take long to discover how expensive little ones are on the budget. Going through a stack of coupons I noticed I had a good number of "checks" from certain formula manufactures. I knew I wasn't going to use the "checks," and I didn't want them to go to waste. Surely someone could use them. While running errands at different stores that carry formula I attached the coupons to the formula containers. Hopefully someones grocery bill is a little lighter.

Thursday, November 8
There have been a few times I've been out and about with the little man and realized I didn't have baby wipes. Never, ever a good situation. And, toting a little one can be exhausting. So, I put together a mini care package complete with: an unopened travel package of baby wipes, a bottle of water, a granola bar, a few bite sized candy bars, and a little note explaining the contents. The package was left in the nursing room in a store dedicated to all things baby.



Friday, November 9
I want to share so badly with you today's RAK, but I can't. I will explain next Friday. Stay tuned. :)