Pumpkin Currant Cookies
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A couple of weeks ago my friend Becky asked if I knew any good vegan baking recipes. Her daughter, who has just gone off to college, is starting a baking business in her dorm but most of the residents are vegans so - what to do? I had a few nut-based ideas but then Becky told me that nuts were also off the table because too many people were allergic to them. Geez, now I was stumped.
I recommended my favorite vegan blog, Vegan Yum Yum, and promised to go through my cookbooks in search of that magical trifecta: something baked, vegan and nut free. Not to mention scrumptiously suited to late night dorm room munching. This was going to be a challenge for my dairy-loving taste buds.
When I was a child my mother used to tell me that if you thought about something hard enough anything was possible, and this past Thursday she was proven correct (yet again) when the Cumberland House fairy delivered two copies of Olive Oil Baking to my doorstep. Coincidence? I must have been obsessing about vegan baking to an extraordinary degree, because how else would the perfect book - the one with dozens of dairy-free and even a few vegan recipes - find it’s way to me? Just like that, out of the blue. I swear my mind connected with the cookbook universe, bending the space-time continuum to my baking needs. It was all very Twilight Zone meets Food Network.
Even with Olive Oil Baking in hand I have to tell you - I was skeptical. Baking without dairy or nuts? Hmm. Then I began trying the recipes and, with a few adaptations (see recipe below for examples) created flavorful butter/milk/egg/nut free goodies like spiced raisin cake and dark chocolate zucchini brownies (this recipe was already vegan). Upon tasting, each one produced the same question, which wasn’t really a question: “Can you believe these are - insert missing ingredient here-?!” So now I’m convinced - delectable vegan baking is a definite reality, though I won’t be converting anytime soon. 
Luckily “Olive Oil Baking” isn’t a vegan book but an olive oil book, so I still have the likes of hazelnut sables, almond poppy seed muffins and lemon chiffon cake with blueberry sauce to keep me occupied.
With cool Autumn weather at my window one recipe in particular caught my eye, paying homage to my favorite Fall squash - pumpkin. The Pumpkin Currant Cookies pictured above are super yummy, not to mention healthy with their blend of whole wheat, wheat germ, brown sugar, currants and olive oil. I used walnuts when I made them the first time, then tried the recipe again sans nuts - either way these truffle sized morsels were compulsively munchable. This evening I decided to enjoy a few with a cup of mulled apple cider, which shares spices like cinnamon, ginger and cloves with the cookies. Excellent combination.
One more thing before the recipe: Since Cumberland House sent two books to me, and I obviously only need one, I’ve decided to give away the extra copy. If you would like to win it answer the following question in the comments section of this post and I’ll randomly select a winner on Saturday October 20th. Comments that don’t answer the question will not be entered into the book raffle.
Answer this question for a chance to win a free copy of this book: What is your favorite Autumn food?
Pumpkin Currant Cookies
Adapted from Olive Oil Baking by Lisa Sheldon.
Ingredients: Makes about 2 dozen large cookies or 3 dozen small cookies.
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- 2 tablespoons wheat germ
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 egg (Vegan sub: 1/2 a small, ripe banana, mashed. Or 1/4 cup apple sauce. You can also use a vegetarian egg substitute like Ener-g Egg Replacer.)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1 cup currants or raisins
- 1/2 cupped chopped walnuts (optional)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, combine the flours, wheat germ, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. In another bowl, blend the egg, vanilla, olive oil, pumpkin and brown sugar with a whisk. Add the dry ingredients and stir until combined. Stir in the currants or raisins, then the walnuts.
Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets. (I used a tablespoon.) Bake for 12 -15 minutes or until just the top is firm to the touch. Tranfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Other Posts You Might Like:- Pumpkin Butter Morning Glory Muffins
- Pumpkin Spice Latte & Pumpkin Muffins
- Spiced Pumpkin Pancakes
- Anita’s Molasses Spice Cookies
- Pumpkin Spice Latte II
99 Responses to “Pumpkin Currant Cookies”
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The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of a Donner Party Bride By Daniel James Brown
It's not often that a history book will compel me to set all my novels aside, but "The Indifferent Stars Above" certainly did. Within the first few pages I was spellbound. I had to know how Sarah, a young woman newly married to her childhood sweetheart, would end up on top of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the dead of winter, starving and forced to do unspeakable things in order to survive.
"The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga of a Donner Party Bride" tells the story of the Donner Party from the perspective of newlyweds Sarah Graves and Jay Fosdick. In April of 1846 the couple joined Sarah's family as they journeyed west from Illinois to the promised land of California. (Read the rest of this review...)
My favorite fall food, or more a favorite “cool weather” food, is a good Minestrone soup. It hits the spot on a cool evening.
Those look great!
Good ol’ pumpkin pie. Great Blog btw
my favorite autumn snack is apple cider and fresh doughnuts. yum!
Those cookies look so yummy! I wouldn’t mind trying one…or five! Especially with some of your mulled apple cider!
We don’t have an autumn here so I don’t know if I can join your raffle…although there are dishes I like that are considered “autumnal”…so if this counts my favorite fall dish is butternut squash soup (made with ham stock)!
My favorite Fall food is definitely roasted butternut squash soup. But I also love a good bowl of chili and some good cornbread all other “cold” times of the year.
In the autumn I crave Scallop Chowder. And Boeuf Bourguignon. And Spaghetti Carbonara.
i was looking for something just like this to bring in to a meeting. thanks ari!
Oh, these cookies are fabulous, and walnuts are my favorites! As for my favorite autumn food, it would have to be roasted butternut squash. Plain, with butter, with dates, with cinnamon and sugar, any way, I can’t get enough of it!
Hmmmm…my favorite autumnal food…such a difficult question..!
I must say pumpkin is my favorite of all. Just the other day I went to the store and I saw an entire rack of maple pumpkin butter set up! Mmmm… Its taste just fills me up with this warm nostalgic feeling; it must be the quintessential fruit associated with this season, what with Halloween and Thanksgiving and others! Plus it’s got that lovely orange color too, looks great in desserts and dishes.
Can’t wait to try these cookies, thanks for the oppurtunity and the recipe!
Those look so delicious! My favorite autumn food are baked apples, but specifically when cooked on a campfire. YUMMY!!!
Ari, this is a must-try! Thanks for the recipe.
Wow..and no eggs huh? I’ll have to try this, thanks for the idea!
my favorite fall food is italian prune plum crumble, the recipe from the new york times.
i love pumpkin too, i recently had leftover canned pumpkin which i threw in with my morning oatmeal, DELICIOUS.
My favorite autumn food is warm home made apple pie (with vanilla bean ice cream). Made from apples that were hand picked by me, I get a little crazy with the spices and make sure that the whole house smells like autumn: ground cloves, Jamaican allspice, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg are my fave 5!
My favorite autumn food is fried potatoes with mushrooms and onions
Roasted vegetable soup. The vegetables are roasted then pureed with chicken stock. It has just a hint of cayenne pepper to give it a little heat. Super tasty.
My favorite autumn food is sweet potatoes. You can use them in pies, pancakes, soups, roasted and… I bet you could substitute them for the pumpkin in this recipe if you feel so inclined.
Thanks for the recipe by the way. I am going to try them out this weekend, they look delicious!
Well, I just made these - they’re tasty, but a bit too cakey for me, I think. Were they very cakey for you, too, or did I just do something differently without realizing it when making them?
Kabocha (japanese pumpkin) beats any other squash out there. It’s sweet and delicious just steamed and eaten in wedges. In fact, it’s so good, it tastes like pumpkin pie! (you should all try it) the texture is like mashed potatoes or baked jams and the nutritional values are better then most superfoods. It’s some serious squashy goodness.