Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies
I’ve been trying to make as many desserts from this cookbook I borrowed from my boss before I have to give it back – but hopefully Santa will return it to me for future baking
This past week I made the sugar-topped molasses spice cookies, mainly because they looked delicious, seemed easy, and I had extra molasses in the cabinet from the Bohemian wedding cake I made a few weeks ago.
I highly recommend these cookies for anyone who likes a cookie with a kick. I was intrigued by the use of pepper in them, which I’ve never used in a cookie before, but an a big fan of now! These cookies are almost like a gingerbread cookie, only more crunchy and spicy. They’re great for dunking in milk or with a giant mug of hot cocoa.
Ohhhh winter….
Before I give the recipe though, I want to give all you wonderful bakers out there that might actually make these cookies a few tips.
- Last minute, I realized I didn’t have allspice, so handy-dandy Google allowed me to look up a substitute (which I use a lot when I don’t have a certain ingredient on hand). Instead of allspice, I used a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice.
- Freeze the dough for as long as possible, and work quickly when you take it out. I found that the warmer the dough and my hands got, the more easily the dough stuck to the palms of my hands.
- Don’t flatten them too thin; they spread while baking. My cookies came out a bit too crunchy (but keeping them in an air-tight container keeps them soft, so if this happens to you, stick them in a container and keep a lid on it).
- The recipe says to use the bottom of a glass to flatten them. This works if you have a glass with a big enough bottom, but unfortunately the bottom of my drinking glasses were tiny. So I used the bottom of my plastic measuring cup. I recommend glass because it sticks less, but if you have to use plastic, make sure you have enough sugar on the bottom to keep from sticking.
- 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- pinch cracked or coarsely ground black pepper
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup molasses (not blackstrap)
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup sugar, for rolling