Gingersnaps

From: Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups AP flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
3 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup unsulphured molasses

Optional, for even more of a ginger kick: Add 1 to 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger (with the wet ingredients) or 1 to 2 tablespoons finely minced candied ginger (with the dry ingredients).

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars together until fluffy, about three minutes on medium. Add egg and molasses and beat until combined. Add dry ingredient and beat at low speed until just combined. Thoroughly scrape down bowl, ensuring ingredients are evenly mixed.

Transfer your cookie dough to plastic wrap. Chill in fridge for at least two hours, until firm.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll dough into 1-inch balls and spread at least two inches apart on baking sheets that have either been greased or lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, which is a long range. In the 10 to 12 range, the cookies will be softer. In the 13 to 15 range, a bit snappier. In both cases, you’ll want to leave them on their baking sheets for long enough that they’re firm enough to be transferred to a cooling rack with a spatula, anywhere from 2 to 5 minutes. Cool cookies completely before packing up.

Verdict:
Thumbs up! I am not a huge fan of gingersnaps, but my mom is, so I made these in honor of her! And she did enjoy them. :)  They were extremely simple to make, and you can even freeze the balls of dough up to 2 weeks and just bake them as you need them. Doesn't get much better than that.

The day before I made this recipe I realized I didn't have any allspice. I almost went and bought some, but the market with bulk bins was closed for the night. Then I realized how easy it is to make your own allspice:

2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ground cloves

I had whole cloves, but I just ground it all together with my mortar and pestle and it worked perfectly. No more purchasing allspice for this gal!