Pumpkin Snickerdoodles... Pure Fall Comfort

Fall has finally made her way into our San Diego weather, and as the morning temps dip into the chilly 60's locals relish the warmth of jeans and sweaters.  However by mid-morning San Diegans find themselves shedding those layers as the sun warms back to our normal 70's and life remains pretty much the same.

Many of us crave the comfort of that warm sweater or a snuggle with a loved one, and while the weather may not cooperate, a comforting cookie often does wonders for the soul.

Kona and Tavo

Cookies provide warmth and a moment of happiness even on hard days, and this week we desperately need that moment.  

Regular readers of Liv Life will remember our two Maltese pups, Kona and Tavo.  Littermates, these little guys have brought undying love into our lives for the past six year.

But last weekend we lost our precious little Tavo.  A severe allergy reaction led to incessant scratching around his neck and then moved into seizures.

With numerous vets and specialists shaking their heads saying the dreaded words, "I've never seen anything like this before, I really don't know what to do ...", they reached for every medicine in their arsenal.

Plowing through every allergy medication and then moving on to incredible doses of anti-seizure meds, little Tavo's symptoms never ceased and last Friday began to worsen.  And when he began letting out little whimpers of pain we knew the time had come to let him go.

The first real loss in Liv's life, Tavo's death has hit her, and all of us, hard.  With a huge hole in our hearts we've done our best to console Kona and keep him busy with lots of love and attention.  He seems to be adjusting, but our hearts still hurt with loss.

Cookies help momentarily though, and I'm putting these Pumpkin Snickerdoodles from Cooking Classy up there with some of the best cookies I've ever had.  Not in the mood to create, I followed her recipe exactly, only substituting Earth Balance Butter Alternative for the butter and adding a dash of nutmeg with the cinnamon sugar that the dough is rolled in before baking.

With a tender texture and warm Pumpkin Pie Spice flavors, the coating of cinnamon sugar pops a sweetness in your mouth that can't help but make you smile.  Pure comfort bringing a moment of happiness into any day - even the bad ones - we've found a new fall favorite.

Pumpkin SnickerdoodlesTraditional snickerdoodle texture melds with warm Pumpkin Pie flavors for melt in your mouth happiness!  I've found a new favorite cookie.

This recipe comes from Cooking Classy and I followed her recipe exactly with the exception of using Earth Balance Butter Alternative to make them dairy-free and then adding a touch of freshly ground nutmeg and a pinch of ginger to the cinnamon sugar that the dough is rolled in before baking.  Click on the orange words below for this fabulous recipe:

Click here for Pumpkin Snickerdoodle Recipe courtesy of  Cooking Classy

 In memory of our sweet Tavo (2009-2015).  We miss you little dog.