Molasses Spice Cookies

This past weekend my husband and I were invited to stay with friends at their cabin on Higgins Lake.  We jumped at the chance and shipped our baby girl (black lab – Bella) off to Grandma’s house for her own mini vacation while we escaped to a relaxing getaway. 

Of course my mind immediately started to wander, daydreaming about what type of goodies we could bring.  With the temperature expected to be a bit cooler, and a hint of Fall in the air, I thought cookies would be the perfect weekend companion.  But what type of cookie?

Whenever I bake cookies, I’m always looking for new recipes.  I typically search my favorite food sites and sort through those that have the best reviews.  The below recipe happens to be one of those.  I must admit I’ve never sought out a molasses cookie recipe, since I’m more of a chocolate and peanut butter girl, but when I saw all of the spices I knew I had to try these! 

If you’re not familiar with molasses, it’s very sweet (made from processing sugar cane) and is extremely dark.  Imagine an almost black pancake syrup.  I know, not the prettiest picture, but don’t let this stop you from making these.  While in the oven, the molasses works its magic, transforming these into soft, chewy cookies with an irresistible amount of spice.   If you like gingerbread cookies, you will LOVE these.   I’m already planning to serve these over the holidays as they’d be perfect for a Christmas party or cookie exchange.  Enjoy!

Molasses Spice Cookies
Adapted from Recipe #63981, food.com
Yields: 25-35 cookies (depending upon size)
Prep Time:  1 hour 10 mins (includes 1 hour of chilling dough)
Total Time: 1 hour 40 mins.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup shortening
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup molasses
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• Sugar in the Raw (for coating)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl cream the shortening and brown sugar.
2. Add the egg and molasses.  Mix well.
3. In a medium bowl combine all dry ingredients (except Sugar in the Raw); stir to combine well.   Slowly add dry mixture into the large bowl with egg and sugar mixture.  Mix well.
4. Cover and chill dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
5. Pre-heat oven to 350F
6. Remove dough and roll into medium sized balls (slightly smaller than a golf ball). Sprinkle a plate with Sugar in the Raw, and roll dough balls through the sugar, evenly coating the outside of each ball.
7. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet.
8. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Let cookies remain on cookie sheet for a few minutes before removing with a spatula.

Ginger Cookies

This past week I was craving something besides chocolate.  Imagine that.  It all started a few weeks ago when my husband and I went to the best sandwich shop in Ann Arbor.  If you’ve never been to Zingerman’s you must go.  It’s life changing.  They have much more than just sandwiches (fresh cheeses, salads, olive oils, vinegars, even homemade chocolate marshmallows!) and the best part is that they’re always offering samples!  When you go to Zingerman’s expect to wait in line because they’re so popular.  But honestly, who can complain when they offer some of the most amazing samples to taste while in line?   That’s how this craving all began. 

 

I tried a sample of one of their Spice Cookies.  WOW.  Absolutely, utterly, amazing!  A thick, dark, soft, and richly spiced cookie.  Imagine a gingerbread cookie on crack.  That’s how good these were. 

Of course only a few days later I desperately wanted another spice cookie.  I decided I should try looking for a similar recipe and make a batch at home!  I didn’t get my hopes of, however, because I knew any recipe I found would not be able to compete with Zingerman’s.

Finally I settled on the recipe below.  Big and soft?  Check!  Spices?  Check!  Molasses?  Sure!  The only ingredient I didn’t have was molasses.  I’ve never cooked with molasses.  I didn’t even know where to find it at the store, but eventually spotted it in the baking aisle near the sugar.  While I was there I also decided to buy thick, crystallized sugar for coating the cookies instead of regular white sugar.  That’s when I found Sugar In TheRaw.  It’s cane sugar that’s cut in the tropics and is brown in color.  It’s perfect for this recipe as it has just the right sweetness and provides a nice crunchy coating for the cookies.  I highly recommend using it to add a nice sweet texture on the outside.  

The recipe below is simply put together like any other cookie recipe.  Did the cookies taste like Zingerman’s spice cookies?  No, but I knew they wouldn’t.  They were still really good.  They had a nice soft texture and a flavorful blend of spices.  My husband really enjoyed these and before we knew it, we had polished off the whole batch in a matter of a few days. 

Ginger Cookies
Adapted from Big Soft Ginger Cookies by AMY1028, allrecipes.com
Servings:  28-30 cookies
Prep Time: 1 hour 15 mins. (includes 1 hour of chilling dough)
Total Time:  1 hour 4 5mins.

 

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1/4 cup molasses
• Sugar In The Raw (for coating)

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F.  In a medium bowl combine all dry ingredients: flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.  Sift thoroughly. 
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, orange juice, and molasses.
3. Gradually add the dry ingredients into the molasses mixture.  Note: The dough will be very sticky, so it’s important to chill it.  Chill dough in fridge for 1 hour. 
4. Remove dough and shape into walnut sized balls.  Sprinkle Sugar In The Raw on a plate and roll dough balls over sugar until coated.   
5. Place dough balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Lightly press top of dough balls to slightly flatten.
6. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack and cooling completely. Store in an airtight container.