Saturday, November 24, 2012

Venus 6:10 am

The planet Venus is shining in the dining room window through the leaf denuded tree barnches in the yard.  A bright 'star' among the spideery black branches. Breath-taking.

Saturday, November 03, 2012

Spiced Pumpkin-Raisin Cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup Minute Oats
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
3/4 cup raw sugar, plus additional for sprinkling 1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree 1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon Maple Extract
2/3 cup raisins   Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, oats, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and allspice. Stir to blend well. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, pumpkin puree, oil, syrup and Maple Extract; whisk to blend. Using a flexible rubber spatula, gradually stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture. Stir in the raisins.

For each cookie, drop 1 generous tablespoon of batter onto the prepared baking sheet, spacing the mounds about 1 inch apart (or use a mini ice cream scoop). Sprinkle each cookie with a bit more raw sugar.

Bake the cookies until brown and a bit firm to the touch, 17 to 20 minutes. Using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to a rack and cool completely