April 8, 2010

Gingerbread Cookies

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem


About 4 years ago, I bought a jar of molassas for some home made oatmeal cream pies. I think I used about 1/3 of a cup before I put back in the pantry, forgetting all about it. Since then, it's moved across country with me and only yesterday I decided to throw it out. Until I looked at the expiration date stamped on the top; it was good until the end of this year! Now the guilt consumed me and I decided I needed to use it right away. Being too lazy to Google molasses related recipes, I just made the recipe that was printed on the bottle for gingerbread cookies, and that's when my love for all things gingerbread began.



I remember being forced to make gingerbread houses in elementary schools, but don't recall ever eating one. And the boxes of gingersnaps my mother used to buy were certainly not my favorite. So I just assumed I wouldn't like it and this would instead be a nice treat for the kids. In the end, we all were fighting over the last cookie! The dough came together very nicely and quickly. I didn't freeze/chill the dough as written in the recipe and it still turned out well. I left out the cloves because I couldn't be bothered to ground some up and was worried it'd be too strong for the kids. They're not very sweet or too gingery, but just enough spice in them to make them stand out amongst the usual cookies. I kept a 1/3 of the batch in the freezer to bake off in case some unexpected company ever drops by, I can't wait to serve these with some hot tea.






Grandma's Molasses Gingerbread Cookies

1 stick butter (8 Tablespoons)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup Grandma's molasses
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves ( I left this out)

Cream together butter, sugar, and molasses. Mix in egg. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Chill dough for 2 hours. Sprinkle flat surface with flour and roll dough to preferred thickness (thick for chewy, thin for crunchy). Cut dough with cookie cutter, place on baking sheet, and bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Cool and decorate, if desired.

7 comments:

  1. Assalaamu alaikum

    Can't believe you only made ONE post while I was away! LOL

    These look really good masha'Allah - I am assuming molasses is what we call treacle in the UK. I used golden syrup when I made gingerbread but I bet yours were even better! One thing that I want that I have been searching and searching for here in KSA is the gingerbread man cutter so I can make REAL gingybread men for the kids! When I was in the UK last summer I forgot to look there, duh!

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  2. lol, sorry! After reading your comment I immediately added a new post :) What exactly is golden syrup...is it like maple syrup? I'll be on the lookout for some gingerbread men cutters for you insha'allah!

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  3. No, golden syrup is a sugar/water syrup but for some reason it tastes extra nice and is golden in colour. Bought my first bottle of maple syrup a couple of weeks ago actually and I'm hooked - it's expensive though!

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  4. We exclusively use maple syrup for pancakes/waffles. Can't switch back to the artificial stuff once you've had the real stuff!

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  5. I don't think ive ever ate ginger bread cookies! You like em? =)

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  6. It's definitely a unique flavor and something, in my opinion, you should try at least once. I liked them :)

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Tell me what you think! As always, feedback and reviews are appreciated...happy cooking!