Gingersnap Cookies

It’s not too late in the Christmas season to post another cookie recipe, is it? This recipe is one my son made last year and recently I decided to make it myself because I remember the smell and taste of the cookies. It was a very sweet memory.

With these cookies, the dough is frozen so you can make as few or as little as you want at a time. Hey, make them all at once and … no, no, no temperance is key here.

Ingredients

• 8 ounces unsalted butter (that would be 2 sticks)
• 1 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 smalls eggs (at room temperature)
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Allow the butter to warm at room temperature (or soften in microwave)
2. In an electric mixer, cream the butter until soft
3. Add the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy
4. Add the vanilla and the eggs then beat until fluffy (fluffy seems to be the theme here)
5. Add the molasses (making sure you get every bit of it out of the measuring cup) and beat until everything is well combined
6. Combine the dry ingredients together, sift them,  then add them to the mixture
7. On low speed, mix everything together until it is just combined
8. LIne a 9″x5″ loaf pan with plastic so that some of the plastic hangs over all 4 sides
9. Transfer the dough into the bottom of this pan and pack it down into the bottom of the pan (I used wax paper on the top then pressed my hand down on it)
10. Try to make the dough as level as possible
11. Cover the dough with the plastic overhangs
12. Freeze the dough until its very firm, preferably overnight
13. When ready to use, unwrap and remove the dough from the pan
14. Slice the dough into thin slices, no more than 1/8″ thick (just eyeball it)
15. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and place the slices of dough on it being careful not to place them too close to each other
16. Bake at 350 degrees until the edges turn dark brown, about 12 minutes. For softer cookies, bake for approximately 10 minutes. Keep in mind that every oven is different, eh?

That’s it! So simple, so good, so yummy, so … well, you get the point.

(Notice that some slices came out a wee bit thicker than others. Aim for perfection when slicing but don’t stress if you miss the mark. They’re only cookies, after all.

Fresh out of the oven, small glass of milk in hand … delicious!

Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy!

(Note: Not sure exactly where this recipe came from as many “stories” abound. I do know that they were served at the Chez Panisse restaurant at one time.)