With a flavor reminiscent of ginger snaps, these soft cookies have been a hit since I first made them during my senior year in college. At the time I was looking to expand on the variety of cookies I made and this recipe first caught my eye because it contained dark corn syrup, molasses and milk—three ingredients I had never before used for cookies. Molasses and corn syrup were strangers to my pantry so I went to the store to pick them up.
The softness of these cookies is a delightful surprise to those that assume they are ginger snaps.
Preheat oven to 350°F
1 cup butter
1 1/3 cups sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup molasses
3 tablespoon dark corn syrup
2 tablespoon milk
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
Cream butter, sugar and egg. Add wet ingredients, then dry. Roll into 1 1/2 inch diameter balls, then roll in sugar and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 14 minutes. Cool 1-2 minutes then remove to racks to cool completely. Makes approximately 40 cookies.
Yes, add all the flour, it does eventually mix in. Worth noting is the fact that these cookies do not brown, and if you overbake them, they will be dry. Sometimes I will bake a single cookie to determine the best time for the size of ball I am rolling. Then, after the time is up, I quickly open the oven door and perform a quick sacrificial slice of the cookie. A little darkness is good, if all of the dark, moist center is gone cookies will be too dry. The cookies will continue to dry out on the cookie sheets, and even flatten a little.
If you make the balls smaller than 1 1/2 inches in diameter, they may not flatten as much during baking. I sometimes roll them big ( 1 3/4" diameter) and get 27 cookies from a recipe and they bake for up to 16 minutes.
