Well, here it is! I’ve been talking it up, but I finally got it all finished. Loads of time left to ship it all out to locations across the nation. I’m not sure if I should be embarrassed or not, but it took me 9 hours to fluff, fold, mix, spread, refrigerate, roll out, dip and package all these cookies. I’m not sure if Christmas baking really is all that easier than heading out to overcrowded malls during the seasonal crush. Maybe it would have been easier just to max out my credit cards like everyone else. Perhaps, next year, I will just make marshmallows and package up some homemade hot chocolate for gifts. There really was a lot of thought and effort put into these baked goods and I truly hope everyone likes them as much as I do.
Also, I just want all the family to know that I didn’t get to have any left for myself either, except for a few eggnog shortbread cookies. I know, boo hoo. Oh well, next year I will double the recipes!
Today I will feature my Molasses spice or chewy gingerbread cookies. They are a favourite of mine, and I hope they can become one of yours too. It’s taken me a few years to perfect the right amount of chocolate and spices, but I think I nailed it this time. Come back in a day or two for the Eggnog Shortbread and Mocha Candy Cane Cake Balls.
Chewy Gingerbread Cookies
yield: 2-3 dozen
3 cups all purpose flour
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup unsulphured molasses
2 tsp baking soda dissolved in 1 Tbsp of boiling water
1/3 cup sugar
1. Sift flour, cocoa and spices into large bowl.
2. In bowl of electric mixer (with whisk attachment), add butter and brown sugar. Beat until fluffy.
3. Slowly add in molasses, and continue to beat until incorporated.
4. In batches, beat in flour, alternating with baking soda/water mix.
5. Shape dough into large disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours.
6. Preheat oven to 325°F.
7. Shape dough into small balls (1/2″ to 1″). Place 2 inches apart on baking sheet lined in parchment paper.
8. Refrigerate 10-15 minutes.
9. Roll balls in 1/4 cup sugar, flatten with palms slightly and bake for 12-15 minutes.
10. Let cool for a few minutes on cookie sheet, then transfer to cooling rack. Cool completely before eating.
Look! Your house can look this good too after 9 hours of baking!
I just made gingerbread cookies yesterday. I love em.
.-= Janis´s last blog ..Why do I feel compelled to bake? =-.
Yea, next time double it up! GOSH! I mean COME ON!?!
Thanks for doing all the work for our gifts Mrs! They are GREAT!
I am a gingerbread freak! Thanks!
My kitchen looked even worse about 9 hours of baking! Love the cookies 🙂
.-= Nicole´s last blog ..Peppermint Bark! =-.
mmm, yummy. chewy cookies are the best and these look awesome. extra points for using molasses. people don’t use enough anymore. i demand more molasses!
.-= Brie´s last blog ..Sweet Potato Bread =-.
Yum. These cookies look so soft and warm.
These look positively dreamy…
.-= Alexandra´s last blog ..Cranberry White Choco Chip Oatmeal Bites =-.
We were just talking about how much we loved these cookies at work. Thanks for the recipe!
.-= Kristi Rimkus´s last blog ..Pretty Aspen Snowflake Potato Chip Cookies =-.
What a fabulous picture. I loved the whisk. The cookies look great too, I just don’t get enough molasses
.-= deana@lostpastremembered´s last blog ..Lemon Buttermilk Rum Punch =-.
Just took a batch of crispy ginger cookies out of the oven! I love chewy ginger cookies too…yours sound wonderful and different with the addition of cardamom and cocoa. Nice blog!
.-= Jennifer´s last blog ..Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie =-.
I love this kind of cookie! Great photos!
.-= Jane´s last blog ..Sausage Vegetable Medley =-.
These look crazy good. Look at that color when they’re mixing and I’m sure the smell was amazing too. Nice work here. I loved reading this. The cardamom is a nice addition.
I so want to make these cookies, but I have no Cardamom any suggestions?? Could I use a little all spice or just up the other spice a little bit?? Thanks for any suggestions
Just leave it right out or replace with a little more of each of the other spices. Merry Christmas!
Thanks for the reply…I love your blog have an amazing Christmas and an even better New Year 🙂
I just made the batter but was confused about dissolving 2TBSP of soda in 1TBSP of water. This didn’t work at all. You can’t dissolve 2x something in 1x of liquid. Is this a typo? Instead I reversed the numbers 1TBSP of soda in 2TBSP of water. I hope that works…so far it looks ok… Thanks 🙂
Recipe sounds delicious!
Sorry about that, it’s actually 2tsp of baking soda dissolved in 1 tbsp of water.
Ah, that makes more sense! Thanks. My batch still turned out to be fabulous. Thanks for sharing the recipe! Definately one I’ll be making next year too.
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