PUMPKIN SHAPED COOKIES RECIPES

Steps:

• Combine warm milk, yeast, honey, and butter in a bowl; stir. Add salt and most of the flour, reserving the rest for dusting. Stir using a wooden spoon until a sticky dough forms.
• Dust a work surface with the leftover flour. Knead the dough until smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, adding more flour as needed. Form dough into a ball that springs back lightly when pressed.
• Transfer dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover with greased foil, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Meanwhile, cut kitchen string into 4 dozen 8- to 10-inch strands. Place strings in a bowl and toss with oil to coat; set aside.
• Press risen dough down on a work surface; reserve 3 to 4 tablespoons for forming "stems." Cut remaining dough in half and cut each half into 6 wedges. Roll each into a round ball by cupping your hand over the dough and pressing and rolling lightly in a circular motion for 10 to 15 seconds. Cover and let rest for 15 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line 2 baking sheets with silicone liners.
• Place 4 pieces of string on your work surface. Crisscross strings over a center point into a star formation. Place a dough ball, smooth side-down, onto the center point. Firmly tie each string into a knot over the center of the roll. Snip off excess string using scissors.
• Place tied roll onto a prepared baking sheet, knot side-down. Repeat with remaining strings and dough balls.
• Let rolls rise for about 30 minutes.
• Sift a little flour on top of rolls. Shape reserved dough into "stems" and place them on the sheet next to the rolls.
• Bake in the center of the preheated oven until lightly browned, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let cool until safe to handle, about 15 minutes. Cut strings off of each roll at the tops and peel down carefully and slowly to remove. Cut a small hole in the tops of each roll and press "stems" into each hole. Transfer pumpkin rolls to a serving platter.

Steps:

• For the Cookies, mix flour, pumpkin pie spice and salt in medium bowl. Set aside. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until well mixed. Add water and vanilla; mix well. Press dough into a thick flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 1 hour.
• For the Filling, mix all ingredients in medium bowl until well blended. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out dough to 1/8-inch thickness on lightly floured work surface. Cut out with 3-inch round or pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter. Set aside 1/2 of the dough rounds for the bottoms of the cookies. Score the top of remaining cookies with a small knife to make a pumpkin design or other desired designs.
• To assemble the cookies, place about 2 teaspoon filling on each of the cookie bottoms. Moisten edges of cookies. Top each with a cookie top. Press edges with tines of a fork to seal the cookie. Brush top of each cookie with beaten egg. Place 2 inches apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
• Bake 20 to 22 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets 1 minute. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.