If you give a moose a muffin

I have to teach myself time and time again to take my time with recipes. Or maybe, next time, I'll skip the movie so that I'm not tempted to begin baking at 12 am on a Friday just so I can save time - and not rush - in the morning. Oooh well.

I get frantic when I think I've botched directions. The other day in the car I was convinced I passed a road I was looking for, and decided to try some other road - just in case the town changed road names and Google didn't know. After that unsuccessful attempt I just turned around completely, only to go back in my original direction and find the right street minutes later. A similar saga almost occurred this evening when I didn't look properly for ground ginger and fetched candied ginger hoping to concoct a successful substitution. After one more just in case perusal I found ginger hiding under mustard. Silly spices.

I'm heading to Connecticut early tomorrow morning for a pre-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving, hence the baking rush. I've been warned I will be treated with an assortment of pies, so although I've had my eye on several cake recipes - most involving ginger - I opted for a second cousin of cake: a famed muffin-like biscuit that my are a staple at Markowitz Thanksgivings.

I've never used such an array of measuring devices for a single recipe before, and I was so happy to be doing so in my mom's kitchen. She has a 2 tablespoon and teaspoon spoon, both of which came in very handy. She also has a pastry brush, beautiful whisks, and two real baking trays. At the moment I lack a single real one.

Mom's Thanksgiving Biscuits
adapted from Bon Appetit

biscuits
2 1/4 c flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 c canned pumpkin
1/4 c whipping cream
1/3 c (packed) light brown sugar
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp fresh lemon zest
1/2 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

glaze and garnish
16 - 20 walnut halves
2 tbsp whipping cream
2 tbsp honey

Preheat oven to 375°, with a rack in the center. Combine flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, salt and cardamom in medium bowl . Add butter and rub in with fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk pumpkin, cream, sugar, honey and lemon peel in another medium bowl. Add the pumpkin mixture and chopped nuts to dry ingredients and stir until incorporated.

Turn the dough out onto floured surface and knead gently until smooth, about 8 turns. Roll out the dough to 3/4-inch thickness. Using floured 2-inch-diameter cookie cutter, cut out rounds. Place biscuits on the baking sheet with a little space between.

Whisk the cream and honey left for the glaze in a small bowl and brush atop each biscuit. Garnish each with 1 walnut half. Bake for about 25 minutes, until the biscuits are light golden and a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Let biscuits cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. You can reheat by wrapping the biscuits in foul and warming in an oven at 350°F for 5 minutes or so.

Delicious as a breakfast or appetizer.