Ginger Cookies

As much as I wish it were so, I have not yet completed the breakfast portion of the recipe book. I wish it were true so fervently that yesterday when I went to what I thought was an Easter Brunch so early I was certain it was going to be just eggs and more eggs, I nearly wept with joy to discover they had lunch food. I was so happy I honestly think I scared the servers, who may never have seen someone so moved to have an enchilada at 10AM before. Obviously all these breakfasts-for-dinners are getting to me.

Luckily for me, Josh had a potluck baby shower to attend at work today, which gave me opportunity to jump ahead to the cookie section--providing the joy of not only getting a break from breakfast recipes, but also cutting down the likelihood that I will give us both diabetes during the desserts section by getting at least one of those recipes out of the way now. I went for my (Great) Aunt Ina's Ginger Cookies because I had all but one of the ingredients already in the house, minimizing the shopping Josh was going to have to do at 7 on a Sunday night.

It turns out that in addition to having ginger hair, my Aunt Ina also had in her possession a pretty fierce recipe for ginger snaps. Who knew? Evidently, all her grandchildren knew, because this recipe came by way of my cousin, her granddaughter, Debbie, who claims they were called 'Grandma Cookies' in her family. Well, then.

Other pluses: they are very easy to make, and even I couldn't screw them up. In fact, they came out looking AND tasting like ginger snaps. Now I have a simple recipe to make myself cookies before road trips to prevent car barfing. Not that I have that problem. But sometimes it's fun to be a hypochondriac.

Three snaps up

Ina Gordon's Ginger Cookies

1 cup sugar
2 cups sifted flour
2 tsp baking soda (happily, without any moths that like to infest our pantry)
3 tsp ginger (the powdery spice version, not, like, shaving the root)
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2/3 cup oil
1 egg
4 tbsp molasses (ah, the missing grocery store item, how you mock me)
bowl of sugar (to roll cookie dough in)

Mix all the ingredients.
Roll each cookie dough ball in sugar (make cookie balls, not flat).
Put each ball onto dry cookie sheets. Inform a worried Josh that yes, it's true, you're not supposed to grease the sheets. Pause for readers to come up with all their own 'grease the sheets' jokes.

Bake for 12 minutes @ 350 (preheat oven). Leave Josh supervising the 12 minute baking while you watch Deadwood extras. Realize it has been at least 15 minutes and you have heard nothing upstairs. Call upstairs. Have him go, 'Oh shit!' and then run into the kitchen. Heave sigh of relief that cookies came out just fine.

Deborah note: Cookies are crunchy, not soft--They are delicious.

Heather note: Even though they look like balls of dough when they go in, they flatten out in the oven when they bake. So don't make the balls too big (a la moi). Yes, it's true. This is one situation where big balls are bad. There. I said it.