G is for ginger cookie



Have I ever mentioned that I love ginger? M knows this well; I steal his pickled ginger whenever we go out for sushi (though he does steal my miso soup, so it's all good in the end), and I almost always have a stash of ginger candy or crystalized ginger somewhere, hidden from view but within arm's reach.  And of course at home, there is my mom's amazing ginger chai, as spicy as it is hot, sweet, milky and very comforting.

For some reason, though, ginger never comes to mind when I get the itch to bake; it gets pushed aside by chocolate, oats, nuts, fruits, which is a real shame, because ginger is incredibly versatile and fantastically flavorful when used in the right context. Today, ginger just felt like right, perhaps in the wake of my recent grapplings with the infamous GMAT. I decided to make ginger cookies using a recipe that yields treats that are very similar in heat and pungency to our Christmas family favorites. This cookie has a lot of ginger in various forms (powered, fresh, candied), so approach with caution (gingerly, perhaps?) if you are not a true fan. The spice can definitely be toned down by omitting the crystallized ginger, but you will lose a bit when it comes to the interplay of textures. These cookies are chewy, soft, sweet without being cloying, pleasingly full-flavored and go extremely well with a mug of steaming hot coffee post exam, pre-sleep deprivation crash.

Ginger molasses cookies
From 'Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-your-mouth Cookies' by Alice Medrich

Ingredients
- 2 cups al-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick or 1/2 cup) butter, melted and still warm
- 1/4 cup unsulfured (not blackstrap) molasses (mild or full-flavored; I used fancy)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp fresh grated ginger
- 3/4 cup ginger chips or diced crystalized ginger
- 1/4-1/2 cup of granulated sugar or demerera sugar, for rolling

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line 2 baking trays with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, all spice and salt together.

3. In another bowl, combine warm butter, molasses, sugars, egg and fresh ginger and mix thoroughly. Add flour mixture and ginger chips or crystalized ginger, and stir until incorporated (dough will be soft).

4. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and roll in sugar; place balls about 2 inches apart on lined baking sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cookies puff up and crack on the surface, and then begin to deflate a bit in the oven. Rotate the pans halfway to ensure even baking.

5. Remove and let cool for a few minutes on the pan, then transfer to a baking rack to cool completely.



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