25 Days of Christmas Cookies: Day 1 - Ginger Cookies

Ginger Cookies

Oh MAN were these good!

I really wanted to start off with some sort of spice cookie because the smells of cinnamon and ginger really remind me of the holidays. I found this recipe for "Big Soft Ginger Cookies" on allrecipes.com (which is where I get many of my recipes) and it is definitely a keeper.

These cookies are sooo ginger-y and flavorful and absolutely addicting. I made a batch before class this evening and left the plate on the counter. When I got home there was half a cookie left on the plate. Granted, I live with four starving college boys, but nonetheless, these cookies are winners.

One thing to keep in mind when making these though, is that the dough is pretty crumbly so it will take some work to form it into balls.

You can see what I mean in this picture:

Another thing to note is that in the directions it says to "flatten (the dough balls) slightly" but what it should say is  "flatten those suckers like pancakes". They essentially don't spread out at all, so if you place them on the sheet as balls, you will get delicious ginger balls.

Here's my first tray just as I put it in the oven. They were not flattened nearly enough.

Here is what my finished product looked like once I figured it out. (Sorry about the bad picture quality, my camera is out of commission so I had to take these with my cell phone)

Not quite as pretty as the photo from the website, but just as scrumptious I promise! I suggest eating them about ten minutes after they come out of the oven, while they're still warm but not scalding. They are so chewy and moist on the inside. Yum!

Here's the recipe!

Ingredients (for 2 dozen)

• 2 1/2 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 margarine (I used unsalted butter)
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon water (orange juice can also be used)
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 tablespoons white sugar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes (10 was perfect for my standard oven) in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.