Brown Butter Pumpkin Cookies

Directions

1. Place oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Meanwhile, melt the butter and cook the squash over medium heat until the butter turns golden brown and smells nutty, about 11 minutes. The butter should look extra foamy.
3. Place the squash into a small bowl to cool and pour the brown butter into a large bowl. Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar to the large bowl with the brown butter, and whisk until the sugars are completely coated by the butter.
4. Add the egg yolks, pumpkin puree, and vanilla to the sugar bowl and mix until incorporated.
5. In a separate bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin spice). Using a spatula, fold the dry ingredients into the wet batter until well combined. Fold in the cooked squash at the very end, and place the mixed batter in the freezer for 10 minutes so that the batter can firm up.
6. In the meantime, line 2 sheet trays with parchment paper. Using a 1 1/3-ounce ice cream scooper (2 1/2 tablespoons), scoop 8 balls of dough onto each sheet tray and place in the fridge for 25 minutes. You can wrap the leftover dough in the fridge for another time or finish portioning out the rest on a third sheet tray.
7. If you want to use the optional toppings, roll the cookie dough in a small bowl of turbinado sugar and sprinkle with flaky sea salt prior to baking.
8. Bake the cookies for 9 minutes. Smack the tray on the counter to flatten the cookies, and return to the oven to bake for a remaining 2 minutes. Remove the tray from the oven, and smack the tray once more. Let the cookies cool on the sheet tray for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling. Enjoy!