The Perfect Pumpkin

It must be the perfect pumpkin. I search my kitchen for just the right utensils. Ah, there it is, smooth and sharp on one side and has a great handle for making sure the cut is just right. The pumpkin has an oblong shape with a jaunty thick stem sticking out to the side. It will be just perfect for making sure it has a wide mouth, triangle eyes, and a silly round nose.

Once everything is ready, I set to work. I begin with the cutting. One must be careful during this process because you don’t want to make a cut too thick or too shallow, but just perfect. Oh, it is beautiful! Soon the kitchen full of wonderful smells, but I must admit my kitchen does get messy from all my preparations. I clean up all around as I await the outcome of my handiwork. They are perfect! I set them aside and wait a half an hour.

Next, I consider the deep orange color that is a must with my perfect pumpkin. It mustn’t be pale but a mixture of red and yellow with a hint of brown to make it that rich orange color of a ripe pumpkin. I spread the perfect orange frosting on the cookies. When I am sure the frosting is dry, that’s when I begin to pipe on the black frosting to decorate the pumpkin shaped cookies. I outline a wide mouth with a snaggle tooth here and there; next, I place the two triangle eyes above the mouth; and finally just underneath that a round nose. Then I mix a green to set off the pumpkin stem. Once everything is dry I take a bite! Yum! I allow the sweet taste to mix with the mild crunchiness of the cookie. Ooh so good! The perfect pumpkin!

Below is the recipe I found from In Katrina’s Kitchen to make the best sugar cookies to cut out. Enjoy!

Best Sugar Cookie Recipe

Yield: 3 dozen cookies

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 6-8 minutes

Total Time: 38 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup unsalted butter
• 1 Cup granulated white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 egg
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3 cups all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. In the bowl of your mixer cream butter and sugar until smooth, at least 3 minutes
3. Beat in extracts and egg.
4. In a separate bowl combine baking powder with flour and add a little at a time to the wet ingredients. The dough will be very stiff. If it becomes too stiff for your mixer turn out the dough onto a counter top surface. Wet your hands and finish off kneading the dough by hand.
5. DO NOT CHILL THE DOUGH. Divide into workable batches, roll out onto a floured surface and cut. You want these cookies to be on the thicker side (closer to 1/4 inch rather than 1/8).
6. Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. Let cool on the cookie sheet until firm enough to transfer to a cooling rack.

Notes:

• If you must chill the dough just leave it on the counter top for 10 minutes before rolling or work the dough with your hands for a few minutes.
• You can omit the almond extract if you do not have it available, however, the taste is really fantastic with the hint of almond.
• Keep in mind that the recipe yield will vary according to how thick you roll your cookies and how large or small your cutters are.
• Bake for 6 minutes to test. They should be soft. Leave them on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to cool completely. If you reach 7-8 minutes and the edges turn brown your cookie will be crisper.

Original recipe © In Katrina’s Kitchen