Holiday Cookie Season & My All Time Fave Cookie ~ Ginger Molasses

Holiday Cookie Season is here!

I know.. we all have a zillion cookies recipes forced on us every holiday season and I had vowed never to to do so but.. two things happened last week that made me change my mind.

First, I saw that my friend Lora over at CakeDutchess.com was doing a #cookielove link up and I couldn’t resist. Lora has a heart as sweet as the desserts she makes and as big as the entire holiday season — I mean, who wouldn’t want to join her holiday cheer cookie love?

Adding to my holiday cookie love, I attended the 2nd Anuual NYCookieSwap this past Sunday. Last year’s event brought 20 of us together but this year, the party grew to 70+! Hosted by the amazing team of Gail, Maggy, Ken and Jackie, this year’s event took place at Hill Country in NYC (AMAZING FOOD – go there asap) courtesy of the smart and talented Elizabeth Carmel and was a fundraising event for Cookies for Kids Cancers. Let’s see.. Amazing cause, incredible cookies, yummy BBQ and a room full of food loving folk. That’s my kind of party. It was so great to meet and chat with old friends as well as many new ones, too. For more round ups and pix of the #NYCookieSwap check out these posts: justcooknyc.com threemanycooks.com  jackiegordon.com HungryRabbitNYC

Oh and the icing on the cake.. I won a brand new Gorgeous 7 quart KitchenAid mixer – Thank you KitchenAidUSA ! My trusted KitchenAid stand mixer has 25 + years on it (it even has the “Hobart” label on it) and she’s slowing down so I’m delighted to be welcoming a new, improved and bigger KitchenAid “gal” into my kitchen! As soon as the new baby comes, I’ll do a post to introduce you to both of my girls.

Here’s a pic of the cookies I brought to the #NYCookieSwap.

Caramel Macadamia- Coconut Shortbread.

The recipe is in my upcoming book so I can’t share now but will do so as soon as possible. Promise.

Back to the cookie du jour… Sparkling Ginger Molasses. That’s them up above on the cookie sheet.

This recipe is one that I’ve been making for years and it even graced the cover of the first, hardcover edition of my book The Weekend Baker.  The flavor is astonishingly good – big, bold double ginger (my fave) – and the texture is perfect- slightly crispy on the outside with a soft, chewy middle. My son Alex and my brother Tim both claim these sparkly gems as their seasonal fave and I sure hope you like ’em too.

I’ll let you in on a few tips..

1. I’ve been known to triple this recipe. You can to as long as your stand mixer is big enough.

2. I’ve also been know to shape the dough into balls, roll ’em in sugar and freeze ’em until I need ’em. This cuts down on time if I’m making  many batches say, for my gal pal’s local cookie exchange.

3. You can swap in the same amount of unsalted butter for the shortening – the texture will change slightly but they ‘ll still be delicious.

4. Unless you like a crisper cookie, resist the urge to over- bake ’em.

5. The flavor improves and develops after baking, making the gems a great make ahead cookie.

Lastly, this cookie has great #BakeTogether options! Feel free to play around with the recipe and post #baketogether style. Check HERE if you want some info on #Baketogether or drop me a line and I’ll fill you in.

Wishing you all a very happy and healthy HOliday Season – Cheers!

Abby

Sparkling Double Ginger Molasses Cookies
Makes 3 dozen cookies.

2 1/4 cups (10 ounces) all purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon table salt
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup solid shortening
1 2/3 cups (11 5/8 ounces) granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/4 cup molasses ( I use Grandma’s unsulphured)
1/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger

Heat the oven to 350°F. Have ready 3 baking sheets lined with parchment or silpat liners. Put 2/3 cup (4 5/8 ounces) sugar in a small bowl and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt until well blended.

In another large bowl, beat the butter, shortening and 1 cup (7 ounces) of the sugar with an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and molasses and beat on medium speed until well blended. Add the dry ingredients and the crystallized ginger and mix on low speed until just blended.

Using a mini scoop, shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Roll each ball in the remaining sugar and set 2-inches apart on parchment lined baking sheets.

Bake, one sheet at a time, until the cookies are puffed and lightly browned around the edges, 12 to 14 minutes. Move the sheet to a cooling rack and let the cookies sit for 5 minutes before transferring them to another rack to cool completely.[/print_this]

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