Ginger Molasses Cookies

We've been watching a lot of Fantastic Mr. Fox lately, and thought it'd be fun to make a special treat that my little one could doubly enjoy since it's referenced in the movie. Mrs. Bean's nutmeg ginger apple snaps seemed like they would be a hit. Alas, I was short on some of the required ingredients and ended up making a simpler version that still turned out quite 'fantastic'. 

They are irresistibly thin, yet still stay soft and very chewy, thanks to to the only sugars being molasses and brown sugar. Even with the heavy amount of ground and fresh ginger, they didn't taste overly gingery and combined perfectly with the rest of the autumnal flavors. The recipe makes a big batch of cookies, and while I was placing a stack of them in the freezer, I knew I'd definitely have to try making these into some dynamite ice cream sandwiches. For next time. 

This version I adapted from Mario Batali's recipe, which I will eventually attempt so we can try the real deal. In case you haven't seen the movie and are wondering how Mr. Batali came about creating this recipe (or even if you have, you may have missed it), Batali has a 'cameo' so to speak as Rabbit, who happened to be a dazzlingly fast chef in the film. 

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (3 sticks), softened to room temp

2 cups light brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses, preferably not an extra dark variety

2 large eggs

3 1/2 cups unbleached AP flour

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

2 tsp cinnamon

4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp kosher salt

pinch of ground allspice

3 Tbsp fresh ginger, grated

Preheat oven to 350*. In a standing mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 6 - 7 minutes, scraping down the bowl once or twice.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, ground ginger, nutmeg, soda, cinnamon, salt and allspice. Whisk together to combine.

Add molasses and eggs to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix on medium low until well combined. Add grated ginger. Adjust speed to low and slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until well combined, about 2 minutes.

If you want to appease any little ones hovering nearby, use pasteurized eggs so they can enjoy some of the delicious dough. Or live on the wild side and let them have just, um, a little.

Line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper or a silpat. Drop the dough in 1 Tbsp increments, about 6 per sheet to avoid them from running into one another. They spread a lot. You can bake on each sheet of parchment twice before they're spent, then use a fresh sheet. Bake one sheet at a time for 10 minutes, remove from the oven and let sit on the sheet for 1 minute to allow the cookies to set before transferring to a wire rack to cool.

If you don't feel like baking these all at once, simply cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and throw in the fridge (it'll keep for 2 days), just add 2 minutes onto the baking time if you're going to bake them straight from the fridge. The dough also freezes well for up to 6 weeks, the baked cookies up to 1 month.

recipe adapted from Mrs. Beans Famous Nutmeg Ginger Apple Snaps by Mario Batali