When October hits, I’m one of those people that run out to get everything ready for fall, including pumpkin, pumpkin, and MORE PUMPKIN. I decorated for Halloween at the end of September. Pumpkin spice latte? Yes. Pumpkins on the front porch? Yes. Bowls full of fall-colored Hershey’s kisses, Reese’s pumpkins, caramel apple suckers, and Pumpkin Spice kisses?! YES. Hershey’s sent me a BOX full of candy and I was in HEAVEN.

Before the bowls of candy disappear (they are going quickly around here, haha), I decided to get creative and make something fun. You know those kiss cookies popular around Christmas? I was going to make those with the Pumpkin Spice kisses in the middle… then thought the cookie should be Pumpkin Spice flavored… and then I turned it all upside-down and decided to chop up the kisses and mix them in the dough….

Chunky Pumpkin Spice Cookies

I pulled up a ton of recipes for Pumpkin Spice Cookies and decided on using mostly bits from this one, removed some stuff, added things in, didn’t measure a whole bunch… haha. So if you want something totally accurate, check her site! My recipe is below and my cookies are DELICIOUS. I’ll be honest and say I didn’t think I’d like my own cookies… but I’ve eaten…. too many to tell you 😉

I decided to chop up the Pumpkin Spice Kisses and add them into the cookie dough… just like the chips in chocolate chip cookies. You could use a knife and cutting board for the same purpose, but I threw them in my little food processor to get the job done.

Mmmm, the whole house smelled like PUMPKINS! The cookies were great straight out of the oven, but I wanted to add a little something light and sweet. This icing was perfect. I used the “glaze” recipe from the same site, but used Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of her last 3 ingredients (cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice). Mine wasn’t so glaze-y, but I also didn’t sift my powdered sugar or set the finished cookies in the refrigerator. #BusyMomBaking.

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks of butter (1 cup)
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of packed brown sugar
• 1 heaping cup of pumpkin
• 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla
• 1 egg
• 2 cups of flour
• 1/2 cup of oats or granola
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice
• About 1 bag of Hershey’s Pumpkin Spice Kisses

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray your cooking sheet with non-stick spray.

In a large mixing bowl (I use my KitchenAid stand), combine the butter and sugars. Add in the pumpkin, vanilla, and egg until blended.

Slowly add in the dry ingredients: flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin pie spice. Mix.

Chop your bag of Pumpkin Spice Kisses (I used a food processor–and I say “about” 1 bag because we had already eaten some, ha) and STIR the pieces into your batter.

Place spoonfuls of batter onto your baking sheet (about the size of ping pong balls) and bake for about 15 minutes.

Let cool and add your icing on top! YUM. I had some Sweet Caramel Sprinkle (from Pampered Chef) so I added a little bit of that on top, too, to make it extra fancy.

It made about 3 dozen cookies. My nephew was over when I made them, he took two, and I had to send a plate home with him! My husband asked if he could take some to work. I think it’s safe to say they’re a big hit around here 😉 Get more fun Halloween and fall themed ideas from Celebrate with Hershey’s: crafts, costumes, recipes, videos, and more.

~This post was written on behalf of a campaign with Global Influence and product was provided to me by Hershey’s. All photos and opinions are my own!