Molasses Cookies
Crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, molasses cookies with ginger and clove have an unmistakable taste and aroma. Our recipe is forward on the warm spices and finishes with a lingering molasses flavor.
The Appledore Cookbook by Maria Parloa was published in Boston in 1872 and contained the first known recipe for molasses cookies. Soon after, a flurry of inclusions by the founder of the Boston Cooking School, Fannie Farmer and others followed. Molasses, brown sugar, flour, ginger and saleratus (baking soda) were original. Butter has since replaced the original lard in most recipes along with additional spices.
Preparing the ingredients by hand is fast and easy when making a single dozen. Let the butter come to 65-70°F before creaming with the sugar. This recipe utilizes measures rather than weight so you may need to adjust the flour and sugar a bit.
Molasses helps to make the cookies soft and imparts a deep, rich flavor.
Sift the dry ingredients to ensure no one gets a large clump of dried spice, soda or flour.
While the original recipe is rolled into a sheet and cut, most modern variants (including ours) roll balls of dough in sugar. White refined sugar works in a pinch, but will partially melt into the cookie - especially if you save any for the next day. Turbinado will retain its structure and crunch and has a bit of molasses flavor to it. Bake on parchment paper for easy transfer to cooling racks and clean-up. Be sure not to over-bake, and adjust the time a bit as needed.
Molasses Cookies
Yield: 1 Dozen
Ingredients:
- 1/4 Cup Salted Butter
- 1/2 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
- 1 Egg White
- 1/4 Cup Molasses
- 1 1/4 Cup All Purpose Flour
- 1 1/4 Tsp Baking Soda
- 1 1/4 Tsp Ground Ginger
- 1/4 Tsp Ground Cloves
- 1/4 Tsp Ground Allspice
- Turbinado Sugar
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Add the butter and brown sugar to a mixing bowl and cream with a spatula. Add the egg white and molasses and beat together.
- Combine the remaining dry ingredients (except for the turbinado sugar) in a sieve and sift into the mixing bowl. Mix with the spatula until a uniform dough forms.
- Portion dough into twelve even balls and roll in turbinado sugar. Evenly space on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes. Transfer the parchment with cookies to a wire rack and cool for 20 minutes.
In the doldrums of winter these cookies match dark evenings (and mornings!), hot beverages and fires. They are popular around the holidays, but also help us to get through late winter when we are ready for change. This is an easy version of the recipe that comes together in a few minutes, heats the kitchen and fills the house with the scent of warm spices. We hope you give them a try.
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