Pumpkin Cookies (but not like that!)

When I told my friends I made pumpkin cookies, they were surprised because I don't really like pumpkin. I didn't even think about it like that! These are pumpkin shaped cookies and they were so fun to make. We were planning to go to a ward Halloween party, but we ended up not going, so these were just fun to have around and share with friends.

Last year I made mini cupcakes for halloween and decorated them like mummies, pumpkins, and spider webs. So I already had the pumpkin idea in my mind, and they were super simple! I used this brownie roll-out cookies recipe from Smitten Kitchen because I don't like crispy sugar cookies, but I wanted them to still hold their shape- and these looked so rich and chewy!

We don't have any cookie cutters, so I used a cup and then squished the circle a bit to be an oval. For the stem, I just cut rectangles and stuck them onto the ovals. I was worried the two pieces wouldn't hold together after baking, but they were great!

I love doing pumpkin frosting because it just takes a knife to make the line marks. However, I don't love that you can see the ridges from the butter knife I used, so I'd change that if I did them again. Also, my husband doesn't think a regular buttercream frosting goes well with these brownie cookies (he's probably right- although, give me any kind of cookie and any frosting and I'll be happy!). This frosting would be great on a regular sugar cookie instead! I'd also like to try flooding the icing on the cookies, which would make a cool pumpkin lines design. Next year for sure!