It's this time of year again to plan for the annual cookie swap. My go-to cookie has always been the
red velvet cookies, but this year I wanted to try something different: molasses crinkle cookies.
Dad gifted me with a quart of molasses over a year ago. This one isn't typical, though. He actually had a hand in making it! At a friend's farm, he enjoyed learning how to extract juice from sugar cane stalks and then boiling it to the point that water dissipates and the syrup remains. What a unique experience! Mom even commissioned the artist Aurora Bull, who also happens to be the owner of this farm, to capture this experience as a gift for Dad.
So more than a year passes, and I realize that I'm hoarding this jar of molasses. Crazy. It was meant to be enjoyed! That's when I thought I would "pay it forward" and use it for this year's cookie swap. When I was telling Keely about my plan, she immediately grabbed a little recipe card from her kitchen counter and said, "You should make these. Dad loves them!" It turns out that she had them after dinner one night at
Josephine, a wonderful restaurant in downtown Nashville. Evidently, Josephine serves "Grandma Hartman's Molasses Cookies" to its patrons and even hands out recipe cards if interested. Sounds like my kind of restaurant!
My initial plan was to use Aurora's recipe. It turns out that they're very similar. The main differences are that Josephine's recipe uses regular sugar instead of brown sugar as well as butter instead of shortening. I chose to use the ingredient list from Josephine knowing this will make for one happy husband. :)
The perfect cookie with a cup of coffee!
Molasses Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1 egg
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Directions:
Cream butter and sugar. Add molasses and egg, beat lightly. Mix in dry ingredients. Chill dough for 1 hour. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll in sugar and place on cookie sheet, 2" apart. Flatten each with the bottom of a glass. Sprinkle raw sugar on top (optional). Bake at 350 degrees for 6 minutes. Makes approximately 2-1/2 dozen cookies.
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| Roll 1" dough balls in sugar and place on cookie sheet. |
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| Flatten each dough ball with the bottom of a glass. |
