Hi ghosties and goblins, witches and warlocks!!! I’m just going to express how excited I am for FALL and the fun “holiday” that falls in the middle (end?) of it…Halloween! A few weeks ago, we took my nephews and my sister to pick out pumpkins just for this occasion. We had a blast! The kids pointed out things and “found” about 1,000 different pumpkins they wanted. We took some pictures and it was a PERFECT day to go. Only problem is, we haven’t carved ours yet! We have two perfectly shaped carving pumpkins sitting on the kitchen floor. I’d like to dedicate a full day to do fall/pumpkin related things but Archie insists it won’t take that long (Oh only an hour!)…But what about the fun parts!? Scooping out the guts (throwing them at each other…), acting like a little girl when it comes to carving a scary dangerous angle, separating and washing the seeds to roast (yum!)…I guess what I really wanna do is take a whole day to make memories, since its our first Halloween as newlyweds. Am I wrong to want it this way? How about your thoughts? After the “Great Pumpkin Hunt”, we stopped at a local farm and picked out some pumpkins to break down and can for next year. I enlisted the boys’ help to pick out a yummy looking jarrahdale. For those of you who haven’t seen or heard of them, they’re a blue-green pumpkin, but when you cut them open, you’ll see BRIGHT orange flesh. They are so sweet and I looove cooking and baking with them. We always buy a few in the fall and can them for later. Nothing better than your own pumpkin I think. Of course, home-canning isn’t USDA approved because, well, its government. Nah, its actually not “recommended” or “safe” because if you do it wrong, you’re on your own for that. Freezing is however safe, so if you’ve got the space, cook it and freeze it instead. Anyway, I think I’ll be making some pumpkin and apple thumbprints later this evening, here’s the recipe!
Combine butter, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. Reduce speed to low; add flour. Beat, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Cover; refrigerate at least 1 hour.
Heat oven to 350°F. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Make indentation in center of each cookie with thumb (edges may crack slightly). Fill each indentation with about 1/4 teaspoon jam.
Bake for 14 to 18 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Let stand 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire cooling rack. Cool completely.
Make the glaze and drizzle it over!
Happy baking!
