Like Strawberry Wine...

Wow – these cookies pack a serious punch of flavor.  I know spice cookies are generally made more around the holidays, but when I saw this recipe on one of my favorite blogs (www.browneyedbaker.com) I knew they would be perfect for my troop shipment.  What is a more homey comforting thing than the aroma and taste of warm, sweet, earthy spices, particularly cinnamon?  When they were baking I definitely felt comforted, so hopefully as the guys are chowing down on them, they will too.   My suggestion, pop them in the microwave for just 10 seconds or so to get that smell wafting through the air….and a soft warm cookie ain’t bad either.

I’m thinking I might have to make these more summery as I definitely don’t think I can wait until next winter to make them again.  How so??  Make ‘em a little bigger and sandwich some homemade vanilla ice cream in between them – Y.U.M.

INGREDIENTS:

2¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1½ tsp ground cinnamon
1½ tsp ground ginger
½ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground black pepper
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup (1 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
⅓ cup granulated sugar
⅓ cup dark brown sugar
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ cup molasses

For Rolling:
½ cup granulated sugar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 375º F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice, pepper and salt; set aside.

3. Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and both sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium-low, add the egg yolk and vanilla, then increase the speed to medium and beat until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds. Again reduce the speed to medium-low and add the molasses, beating until fully incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping the sides of the bowl halfway through. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the dry ingredients, mixing until just incorporated, about 30 seconds. Use a rubber scraper to give it a final few mixes to ensure no flour remains.

4. Place the sugar for rolling in a small bowl. Using a tablespoon or small cookie scoop, scoop the dough and roll into a smooth ball, then toss in the sugar to coat and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough. Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, until the cookies are browned, still puffy and the edges have begun to set but the centers are still soft, about 11 minutes. Be sure not to over bake the cookies.  Otherwise - crunchy, not chewy - blah.

5. Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely. The cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

*A couple notes:

These cookies flatten out quite a bit as they cool, I’m wondering if adding the full egg and some baking powder may make them puff up a little more - I tend to like a thick chewy cookie.  Even thin though, these are really great – I may just play around a little next time J

She says to use a small cookie scoop and that it will yield about 24 cookies – well we must have different definitions of small, because I used my small scoop and got a little over 40 cookies!  Just a heads up.