Ginger Snaps

Ingredients:

This recipe for ginger snaps is one of the oldest in my family. It, along with the much-less-used dandelion wine and sauerkraut from scratch recipes, have been with my mother's side since at least the 1840s, and we feel it's safe to assume they came over the Pacific with our ancestors. The only Christmas we haven't made ginger snaps was the year my grandfather died. They were his favorite. Since then, we haven't missed a year.

Ingredients for ginger snap cookies recipe:

Wet:

- 3/4 cup shortening
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup molasses

Dry:

- 2 cups flour
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves

Pre-heat oven to 350F .

Step 1:

Procedure will be familiar to anyone who does a lot of baking. Measure out the shortening (protip: put 1/4 cup water in a 1-cup measure, then add shortening until the measure is filled. Drain, and you have your 3/4 cup shortening)

Step 2:

Cream the shortening and sugar.

Step 3:

Add the egg and molasses.

Step 4:

Combine.

Step 5:

Sift together all dry ingredients.

Step 6:

Then add to the blender. We generally just put it all in at once, some prefer to add in thirds. Mix until combined, do not over mix.

Step 7:

Set up your cookie making station like so:

Step 8:

That little bowl in the middle has some sugar in it. Spoon up some dough, roll it in your hands until round, then dip a third of it in sugar.

Step 9:

Fill a cookie sheet with the sugary balls.

Step 10:

I generally use a two-tier setup when baking these. Start on the bottom rack, rotate to the top (middle of the oven) rack when ready, start new sheet on bottom rack again.

Step 11:

Cookies are ready to move to the top shelf when they've started to crack slightly.

Step 12:

Remove from oven before they are really "done." If you wait until their tops start to fall in, you've over baked and they won't be as good. Ready cookies have well-set cracks and are still slightly domed.

Remove from oven and place on cooling rack.

Step 13:

Enjoy your Ginger Snap cookies. And be sure to share your ginger snaps and the recipe.