Pumpkin Spice Cookies with Cream Cheese Icing

We had family and friends in town this past weekend for Baylor Homecoming, so I took the opportunity as an excuse to try this delicious-looking cookie recipe I've been salivating over. I made some slight modifications- substituting whole wheat pastry flour for the plain old white stuff and Splenda brown sugar blend for the the dark brown sugar the recipe called for. But there didn't seem to be any way around the three full cups of powdered sugar and real butter that made up the filling. Until mom stepped in. She suggested cutting the recipe in half and using it as a light icing on the cookies instead of a filling. There's still real butter and powdered sugar in there, but it's all about portion control, my friends. And we all deserve a little treat now and then.  Bonus:  These cookies leave your entire house smelling amazing for day!

Pumpkin Spice Cookies with Cream Cheese Icing

For the Cookies:
3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbs ground cinammon
1 Tbs ground ginger
1/2 Tbs ground cloves
2 cups firmly packed Splenda brown sugar blend
1 cup olive oil
3 cups pumpkin puree, chilled
2 large eggs
1 running over* tsp vanilla extract


For the Cream Cheese Icing:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
4 oz reduced fat cream cheese, softened
1/2 running over* tsp vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare two baking sheets by lining with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together all dry ingredients and set aside. In another large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and oil until well combined, then add pumpkin puree, eggs, vanilla and whisk to combine. Sprinkle flour mixture over pumpkin mixture in increments and whisk until fully incorporated.

Use an ice cream scoop with a release mechanism to drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto prepared baking sheets about 1 inch apart. Bake about 17 minutes each until tops are just beginning to crack. Let cool completely on pan.

To make the icing, beat butter and cream cheese until smooth, then add powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until just smooth. You can ice the cookies once they're completely cool or serve plain with icing alongside and allow everyone to add as much or as little icing as they prefer.

* I'm a fan of the "running over" teaspoon or tablespoon, if you can't tell, especially when it comes to vanilla. I believe a recipe can almost always use a little extra hit of vanilla. But you can judge for yourself.