Ginger Spice Cookies

We didn't do a lot yesterday, mostly hung around the house watching tv and sitting in front of the fireplace.  We were still stuffed from the huge Thanksgiving dinner that my mother-in-law cooked the night before.  The table was loaded with turkey and gravy, sausage stuffing, brussels sprouts, green beans almondine, roasted leeks and carrots, salad, two kinds of cranberry sauce, bread and butter.  And just when we thought the table might collapse under the weight of all that deliciousness, my mother-in-law walked into the dining room carrying a bowl of mashed potatoes.  And not a little bowl, but a huge bowl with enough potatoes piled high to feed a small army. Oh and I forgot to mention that all this came after champagne, red wine and a generous selection of hors d'oeuvres, including a knockout edamame hummus that is definitely a contender for the best hummus I've ever tasted. And then we finished off with apple pie and homemade ice cream.

Thus, yesterday was spent recovering from the excess of Thanksgiving and family togetherness but I still wanted to cook something fun for the kids so I baked these cookies.  I've been trying to perfect a recipe for thin, chewy spice cookies for a while now and I think I've finally got it.  There's enough ginger to be pronounced but not so much that you can't taste the molasses or other spices.  These are pretty darn good.  I hope you try them.

GINGER SPICE COOKIES
printer friendly recipe

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsulphured molasses
1 egg
1 1/2 cups white flour
1/2 cup sorghum flour (buy it here)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon dried orange peel
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Cream together the butter, 1/2 cup of the sugar and the molasses.

Beat in the egg until well combined.

Sift together all the remaining dry ingredients, except for the remaining sugar.

Add half of the dry ingredient to the butter mixture and stir well.  Repeat with the other half.

Chill in the fridge for two hours.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Roll tablespoons of dough into small balls.  Roll each cookie dough ball in the remaining sugar until coated.

Place the cookie dough balls on a nonstick baking sheet about two inches apart.

Use the bottom of a glass to gently flatten each ball into a small circle, about 1/3 inch thick.

Bake for 8-10 minutes until deep golden brown.

Cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 2 dozen cookies.