Super Spicy Gingersnaps

Welcome to Cookiepalooza 2009! The week each December when the Ratskellar kitchen is totally overtaken by cookie baking, and as a result the blog is too! So if you’re scared by any of these things–sugar, butter, vanilla extract, baking powder–it’s probably best if you click away now!

Alright, I’m hoping some of you are still with me.

Up first in this year’s Cookiepalooza lineup, Gingersnaps. But first, a confession. I have an unspoken rule about baked goods. I don’t do store bought. Call me a baked good snob, but in my book, if it’s processed, it’s probably not worth it. It’s the only way I’ve been able to balance my desire to be healthy and my sweet tooth.

But there is one MAJOR exception to this rule–gingersnaps. Particularly the Whole Foods 365 Gingersnaps. You know the ones I’m talking about, orange bag, zip top? Well, they’re like my personalized addictive substance. I buy a bag, and I start with just a few, then a few more, and 24 hours later I’m wondering where the whole bag went. It’s danger in a resealable package.

So when I was putting together my master cookie list this year–one of my hardest tasks each year is to keep the list down to a manageable size–I had one goal. Find a gingersnap recipe that rivaled the Whole Foods ones. That I made from scratch, at home, with no scary ingredients. Bonus points if it didn’t taste like cardboard after 24 hours like some gingerbread recipes I know.

Ginger Spice Cookies
Adapted from Bon Appetit, March 2000 via Epicurious

I searched far and wide, but after pages and pages of Google hits, I decided to go with this recipe on Epicurious. Why? A couple of things. First, it used crystallized ginger pieces, which I knew were a key component of the Whole Foods cookie. Second, these cookies were not light on the spice–nothing with a whole teaspoon of cloves can be called mild–and I love me a spicy gingerbread! And third, the recipe has nearly 300 ratings on Epicurious, and 96 percent of them said they would make them again. That many foodies just cannot be wrong.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup chopped crystallized ginger
• 1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar*
• 1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup mild-flavored (light) molasses*

*I used light brown sugar and dark molasses, but everything seemed to turn out okay! So just use what you have on hand!

Directions:

Combine first 6 ingredients in medium bowl; whisk to blend. Mix in crystallized ginger. Using electric mixer, beat brown sugar and butter in large bowl until fluffy. Add egg and molasses and beat until blended. Add flour mixture and mix just until blended. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or overnight.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter 2 baking sheets. Spoon sugar in thick layer onto small plate. Using wet hands, form dough into 1 1/4-inch balls; roll in sugar to coat completely. Place balls on prepared sheets, spacing 2 inches apart.

Bake cookies until cracked on top but still soft to touch, about 12 minutes. Cool on sheets 1 minute. Carefully transfer to racks and cool. (Can be made 5 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.)

The result? Well although we only were able to sample one since the batch only made about 3 dozen cookies, and we’re saving those cookies for parties and such, we thought these were fantastic! WAAAY better than Whole Foods! And as a bonus, in Noel’s words they “made our house smell like Christmas.” Always a fantastic way to kick off the holiday baking!

Stay tuned for more Cookiepalooza posts!

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