Monday, December 20, 2010

Molasses cookies

















Molasses cookies! I haven't baked much with molasses, but when I was walking through the store and saw the gorgeous glass bottles of it I figured I needed to make some molasses cookies. Making these was certainly an experience, while I was mixing them there was this smell and I couldn't figure out if it was a spice or what, but I hated it. Smelled just like pumpkin puree to me, and it was driving me crazy, I figured the cookies would be atrocious. I was planning later trials and examining the spices and all sorts of things so I could figure out what reeked, then I finished the cookies. The smell diminished and eventually vanished after they were all done, and I got up the nerve to try one of the cookies. These were so moist and had a very rich flavor, very delicious.

When I was working on the recipe I wanted to make sure there was lots of molasses so that the taste was really bold, little did I know that molasses would be one of my least favorite scents of all time (right up there with pomagranates and sulphur). I don't know how the rest of you feel about molasses, but after the cookies cool down they taste fantastic and smell dissipates. (Even my grandfather liked them and he is sort of picky)

Ingredients:
1 stick butter (softened)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup molasses
2 1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
+1/2 cup sugar for coating the cookies

Directions:
  1. Beat the butter, heavy cream, 1 cup sugar and egg together until slightly fluffy
  2. Add in the molasses and coco and continue mixing (it will get this really awful looking texture, thats what it is supposed to do)
  3. Now is time for your spices and baking powder & soda (I don't like sifting it all together with the flour, so I just add it before and beat it in before the flour is added)
  4. Lastly the flour is mixed in.
  5. You'll need to chill the dough for while, I kept it in over night because I was tired and Nikolai was tired of baking, but an hour or two should work out just fine
  6. Once the dough is cold and firm you can preheat your oven to 375° F
  7. I used a 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie baller to make balls of dough then rolled them in sugar
  8. Place the cookies 2 or more inches apart on the cookie sheet and then use the bottom of a glass to squish them down a bit, I dipped the glass in sugar before pressing each cookie, it seemed to keep everything from sticking
  9. Bake for 8-10 minutes



I waited for days in anticipation of taking this picture,
then tormented Tim because I needed his help to take it.
(sorry Tim)





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