Spiced Gingersnap Cookies

12 Days of Cookies: Day 10

I love baking gingersnap cookies; they make my whole house smell like Christmas. These spicy, crunchy treats happen to be my favorite cookie and when I decided to do this project I knew I needed to include them in the mix. These cookies have so much flavor and the spice mix I used packs quite a punch.

Molasses is what contributes to the majority of the color in gingersnaps. It also happens to be one of the three sweeteners I used in this recipe; aside from the molasses you will see that I used both brown and granulated sugar. The sweeteners in this recipe is what helps balance out the spices. You will not want to use blackstrap molasses for this recipe as it is much too bitter. Blackstrap molasses pairs much better with savory foods – like pulled pork or baked beans. When you’re shopping make sure you pick up the jar that has “unsulphured” on it.

Ginger is the front runner of all the spices used in this recipe. I used fresh ginger as it happens to have more potency than dried ground ginger (you can substitute 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground ginger if you don’t have any fresh). Ginger is suggested to have many health benefits; however, I can very much attest to its usefulness with nausea. I had terrible morning sickness with both my daughters and ginger really helped take the edge off.

I love my gingersnaps very spicy. This recipe uses cinnamon, cloves, cayenne pepper, and ground black pepper. If you want to make these less spicy you can omit the cayenne and black pepper. If you use dried ground ginger, rather than fresh, it will also help cut down on the heat.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter – softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup unsulphured molasses
• 1 egg
• 2 t fresh ground ginger
• 1 t vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 2 t baking soda
• 1 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 t ground black pepper
• 1/4 t ground cloves
• 1/4 t cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar – set aside

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking pan with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper and set aside.
2. Cream together butter, sugars, molasses, ginger, egg and vanilla extract until smooth.
3. In a separate bowl sift together flour, cinnamon, cloves, salt and peppers.
4. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet mixture scraping down the sides of the bowl often.
5. Roll cookies into 1 1/2 tablespoon sized balls, roll in granulated sugar, and place on baking pan approximately three inches apart.
6. Use a flat bottomed cup to press the cookies down evenly flat.
7. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until crackling appears on the top and the cookies start to brown around the edges.
8. Allow cookies to cool on baking pan for five minutes before transferring to cooling racks.
9. Store in an airtight container for up to one week or place in freezer.

This recipe yields approximately five dozen cookies depending upon size.