These cookies are a delicious cross between a snickerdoodle and a gingerbread!
They contain the warm, flavorful spices of ginger, cinnamon, clove and molasses found in gingerbread yet they’re soft, chewy and rolled in sugar in the same way as a classic snickerdoodle.
They are delicious no matter how they are eaten — warm, straight out of the oven, dunked into a steamy cup of coffee, or frozen straight out of the freezer with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle of caramel sauce.
I absolutely love these cookies and they’ve been in my family’s repertoire for at least 10 years. This recipe was shared with me by a fellow lifeguard-friend whom I was working with the summer after my Senior year of high school.
There was a group of us, all fresh out of high school or in our first years of college, who spent every summer together for 3 or 4 years, working as lifeguards at Hamlin Beach in upstate New York. We’d eat most meals together, workout together, train together, and always, party together.
It was only natural that we became the best of friends each summer after spending so much time together. But each year, once Autumn came about, we all departed on separate paths. Even now a days, we ‘keep in touch’ passively via Facebook. Watching one another graduate college, get married and start a family or move across the country. I am very lucky that Kevin (the lifeguard behind the recipe) shared his secret to these Ginger Spiced Cookies with me before we all lost touch.
It’s strange how we don’t even talk anymore but this cookie always reminds me of those summers and my friends at that time during my life. Isn’t it funny how food does that? How it brings you back to a specific moment in time? Making you pause, smile and watch as the memories play in your mind? I love it.
This recipe is one that makes close to 6 dozen so at the time, it was more than enough for a hungry group of lifeguards to share. The cookies don’t have any chocolate or caramels in them so they were safe for us to have about in the sun all day without the fear of melting.
Although I love the original cookie recipe just the way it is, I modified it a tad by adding candied ginger.
This single element makes it seem a bit more ‘grown up’ and mature — matching my current state of life. I love the added chew the finely diced candied ginger brings to the cookie along the small bite of gingery heat that’s hidden inside.
Although the recipe states to roll the dough into round balls then into sugar, you can definitely skip this step if you’re in a rush or don’t feel like any extra effort. They’re still just as delicious even without the sugar coating!
This Ginger Spiced Cookie is one that I will continue to make for years to come, eventually sharing with my own family, and each time, I’ll reflect on those amazing, fun summers spent with my lifeguard friends on the shores of Lake Ontario.
Do you have any foods that bring back a special memory?
Where have some of your favorite recipes come from?
- 4½ cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon cloves
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups butter flavored shortening
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup molasses
- ½ cup finely diced, candied ginger (optional)
- ½ cup granulated or course sugar, for rolling
- In a medium sized bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt.
- Set aside
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together the shortening and 2 cups of sugar until fluffy.
- Add in the eggs and molasses and beat well.
- Add in one third of the flour mixture and mix on low to combine.
- Continue until all flour is added and thoroughly combined.
- Stir in the candied ginger pieces until dispersed throughout.
- Shape the dough into 1 inch balls and roll in the remaining ½ cup of sugar until fully coated.
- Place the cookie dough on an un-greased cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.
- Bake at 350*F for 12-14 minute or until cookies are light brown and slightly puffed.
- Do not over bake or the cookies will lose their chewy quality.
- Let the cookies stand on tray for 2 minute before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
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