the cookie exchange.

I don't really have a sweet tooth. I don't love baking sweets and you will rarely see a recipe for a sweet treat on here. That said,
Matt's sister is having a cookie exchange today and Matt committed to making eight dozen cookies. Yesterday our place smelled dreamy, these cookies are really good, like really really good - they are like a combination of spicy and sweet, crispy and chewy with a slight peppery undertone.

The recipe is from America's Test Kitchen cookbook and Matt didn't change a thing. I packaged them up and wrote up labels with packaging from my favourite little neighbourhood store, Urban Source.

Molasses Spice Cookies

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus 1/2 cup for dipping
• 2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour 
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp ground allspice
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt 
• 1 1/2 sticks butter, softened but still cool
• 1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• large egg yolk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup molasses

Directions 

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Place 1/2 cup sugar for dipping in 8- or 9-inch cake pan.

2. Whisk flour, baking soda, spices, and salt in medium bowl until thoroughly combined; set aside.

3. In standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat butter with brown and granulated sugars at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium-low and add yolk and vanilla; increase speed to medium and beat until incorporated, about 20 seconds. Reduce speed to medium-low and add molasses; beat until fully incorporated, about 20 seconds, scraping bottom and sides of bowl once with rubber spatula. Reduce speed to lowest setting; add flour mixture and beat until just incorporated, about 30 seconds, scraping bowl down once. Give dough final stir with rubber spatula to ensure that no pockets of flour remain at bottom. Dough will be soft.

4. Using tablespoon measure, scoop heaping tablespoon of dough and roll between palms into 1 1/2-inch ball; drop ball into cake pan with sugar and repeat to form about 4 balls. Toss balls in sugar to coat and set on prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Repeat with remaining dough. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies are browned, still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (cookies will look raw between cracks and seem underdone), about 11 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking and lightly squashing the dough with the bottom of a cup. Do not over bake.

5. Cool cookies on baking sheet 5 minutes, then use wide metal spatula to transfer cookies to wire rack; cool cookies to room temperature and serve. (Can be stored at room temperature in airtight container or zipper-lock plastic bag up to 5 days.)

 

Matt did the following variation

Molasses Spice with Orange Essence

Add 1 tsp grated orange zest to the dough with the molasses. Process 2/3 cup sugar with 2 tsp grated orange zest in a food processor until fragrant, about ten seconds, then use got rolling in place of the plain granulated sugar in step 4.