Happy October and Big Fat Spice Cake Cookies

Happy October!  I so enjoy October. I love all stuff Autumn, the rich colors, the crisp air, apple and pumpkin flavors, hearty cooking, the start of all the holidays to come, bonfires, popcorn and movies, cozy blankets, and big harvest moons.

The Harvest moon was beautiful the other night.  Here it is as it rose above the trees.

Gary got some nice pictures, I'll need to get out my telescope for the next full moon.

I also seem to get a big organizing bug around the start of every October, as I take down my summer decorations, and swap them for my Halloween chachkies that I have collected over the years, it is a natural time to pare down what I don't need.  I love to use eBay to sell off the items that no longer fit our tastes and things the kids no longer use, and use the proceeds to help pay for the holidays.  So that is what I have been very busy doing this week.  Sorting through things can get messy, especially when a young curious Labrador thinks all the things you are sorting through make wonderful toys to play keep away with!

Saturday we had a mini little outing, I had been drooling over some very nicely priced rural properties, and when I saw that one of them was an A-Frame style home, I just had to go take a peek.  My husband is a Realtor, so he found a few other rural vacant properties in our school district, that he also thought might be interesting, so we all got in our van and went for a drive.  It is a goal of ours to get back on a couple of acres.

We looked at the A-Frame house first.  It was fascinating, it needed a lot of work, but it was a fun house.  I just love that it is nestled in the woods, and, as a child of the 70's, have loved A-frame houses since the Fisher Price Little People Family A Frame House. :)

Here is the Fisher Price A Frame I grew up loving, they need to reproduce this toy!

Source: zindo.com via Colette on Pinterest

We had fun exploring the property and by the end of it me and my daughter were deciding were to put goats, chickens, and a garden.  The house is on the small side though, so it would be a tough sell to the boys.

We looked at a couple other promising houses as well, nice properties, and all had potential.  It was really motivating to me to keep my budget in line, as well as be more motivated with my decluttering project.

Since today is the first day of October, I wanted to bake a nice treat.  I am very fond of one of our favorite ways to make cookies- The Big Fat Cookie recipe my mom found when I was a child. Then I made a variation for Valentines Day- Big Fat Cherry Chip Cookies, so I decided to make a variation for fall using A Spice Cake mix.  I love the combination of the spice flavor along with the chocolate chips.  I think this cookie might also be good baked with no chocolate chips and then frosted with a nice buttercream, I will have to try that variation next time.

Here is my recipe for Big Fat Spice Cookies

Pre-heat oven to 375 F. 

Set aside half a bag of chocolate chips

Mix one box of Spice cake mix

with 1/2 cup of water

and two eggs.

Stir until well combined.  Drop by rounded Tablespoon full on parchment lined baking sheets (or well greased if you don't have parchment paper).  Then sprinkle the top of the cookie with chocolate chips.  Bake for 8-10 minutes, until no impression is left when you touch cookie lightly or until edges start to be a nice golden brown.  Cool, then enjoy.  They make a nice fluffy cookie, a lot like the top of a cupcake.  Recipe only makes a few more than a dozen, enough for a family of four to enjoy, but when I make them for a crowd I like to double or triple the recipe.  Fun, easy recipe!

What is your favorite part of October?