PUMPKIN PECAN COOKIES

Makes about 30 cookies

Toasted pecans are the foundation of this spiced oat cookie, sprinkled with cinnamon and cloves and scented with orange juice and zest. These cookies are tough to resist fresh from the oven...so don't. Dig in when they're warm, or store them for snacking later.

Ingredients:

2 cups pecans, toasted and cooled
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 cup puréed pumpkin
1 tablespoon orange zest (from 2 small oranges)
3/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (from 3 small oranges)
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup chopped, pitted dates

Method:

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Put pecans and oats in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until a fine meal forms, about 25 times. Add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and cloves and pulse another 20 times to combine all the ingredients. Transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Add pumpkin, orange zest, orange juice, vanilla extract and dates to the food processor. Blend until a smooth puree forms, scraping the sides down occasionally, about 1 minute. Form a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Scrape the pumpkin mixture into the well and fold all the ingredients together with a large spatula.

Scoop little heaps (about 2 tablespoons) of batter onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 1/2 inches apart. Flatten the batter slightly. Bake 20 minutes, until the bottoms are just browned. Remove to a cooling rack and cool slightly before serving. Store in an airtight container.

Nutritional Info:
PER SERVING:Serving size: 1 cookie, 100 calories (50 from fat), 6g total fat, 0.5g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 80mg sodium, 11g carbohydrate (2g dietary fiber, 5g sugar), 2g protein