CHEWY MOLASSES COOKIES

Warmly spiced, sweet and chewy; these cookies are perfect for ANY cookie exchange. Molasses cookies are the quintessential Christmas cookie.

 

3/4 cup butter (room temperature)
1 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 egg
1/4 cup molasses
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the room temperature butter, brown sugar, egg and molasses; mix until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary.

Add the flour, baking soda, salt and spices and mix well.  Cover and chill the dough for about an hour.

Roll the dough into balls about the size of a small walnut and roll them in granulated sugar (important step). Place them on an ungreased cookie sheet (about 2" apart) and flatten them just a little (I use the flat end of a drinking glass dipped in sugar). 

Bake at 375° for 8 minutes (the tops will have a wonderful crackle look). Be careful not to over bake them. 

The cookie batter (inside of the crinkle/cracks of the baked cookie) will still look a little "wet" after 8 minutes in the oven, but they will be perfectly baked and chewy when they cool off.  If you like a crisp cookie instead of a chewy cookie, leave them in the oven for another minute or so.

To keep these cookies soft and chewy, store them in a Ziploc bag or any Tupperware that has a tight fitting lid. These cookies freeze (and ship) very well and they smell heavenly when you open the cookie jar!!!