Delicious Pumpkin Cookies

For recipes that call for cooked pumpkin, save your pumpkin scraps from the carving, cut them
from their rinds and steam or boil until they are soft. 

     1/2 cup butter 
     1 1/2 cup sugar.....cream butter and sugar together, then add egg and blend well. 
     1 egg 
     1 cup cooked pumpkin 
     1 teaspoon vanilla.....blend in pumpkin and vanilla. 
     2 1/2 cups flour.....blend together dry ingredients: flour, powder, soda, salt and spices, and
     add to pumpkin mixture. 
     1 t. baking powder 
     1 t. baking soda 
     1 t. nutmeg 
     1/2 t. salt 
     1 t. cinnamon 
     1/2 c. walnuts.....stir in nuts and chips, and drop by spoonfuls onto baking sheet. 
     1 cup chocolate chips Bake at 350 degrees for fifteen minutes, cool and eat! 

                              Pumpkin Soup

     4 pounds of peeled pumpkin, chopped 
     2 onions, chopped 
     2 apples, chopped 
     2 cups chicken or vegetable stock 
     1 teaspoon nutmeg or 3 t. curry powder 
     1 t. salt 
     2 cups water...place pumpkin, apples, onion, stock, nutmeg and salt in the water in a heavy
     saucepan and bring to the boil. Cover and simmer 40 minutes until pumpkin is tender. Puree
     in a blender or processor. 
     2 1/2 cups milk...Return to pan and add milk and pepper. 
     freshly ground pepper 
     garnish with cilantro if curry is used 

                               Popcorn Balls

These are fun to make and fun to give--wrap them in orange tinted cellophane or clear wrap and tie
with a ribbon. This makes about 18 three inch balls. Unless you have a really large pot, make these
in two batches. 

     1/2 cup solid margarine 
     2-10oz packages of large, white marshmallows 
     orange paste food coloring...melt margarine in a large pot. Add marshmallows, turning to
     cover with oil well, and cooking slowly to melt completely. Stir in tiny amounts of food
     coloring with a toothpick until the color appeals to you. When completely melted, remove
     from heat. 
     20 cups popped, fresh plain or colored popcorn (don't use microwave corn) 
     1 cup candy corn (optional)...stir in popcorn and candy, covering well with melted
     marshmallow until marshmallow turns to stringy threads. Let sit a few minutes. 
     extra butter...butter all popcorn ball-maker's hands liberally, and begin to pack mixture into
     balls. Adults mind that the mixture can still be quite hot, so put aside a pan in which to set
     balls down if children find them too hot. Let balls thoroughly cool, then wrap them up!