These delicious ginger spice cookies will make your tongue tingle and are tons of fun to decorate.
Directions for: Ginger Spice Cookies
Ingredients
Cookies1-inch knob peeled fresh ginger or 2 Tbsp prepared ginger juice
3 cups all-purpose flour
tsp baking soda
tsp fine salt
1 Tbsp ground ginger
tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground allspice
tsp freshly and finely ground black pepper
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature and cut into pieces
1 cup superfine sugar
cup molasses, preferably sorghum
Icingcup water
3 Tbsp egg white powder
2 cups confectioners' sugar
Food coloring, sprinkles, candies or colored sugars as desired
Directions
Cookies1. Puree the ginger in a mini food processor with 2 tablespoons water. Squeeze and strain juice through cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer. Discard the ginger pulp. Reserve the juice.
2. Sift the flour, baking soda, salt and spices into a medium bowl, then whisk in the pepper; set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar with a handheld mixer until light and fluffy, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add the molasses and ginger juice and beat until evenly incorporated, about 2 minutes. (Stir together with a spatula if needed.) Gradually blend the dry ingredients on low speed into the butter mixture until you have a crumbly mixture. Bring the dough together by hand pressing and kneading lightly until moist, but not tacky. Divide into 2 equal portions, press into disks about 1/2-inch thick. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.
4. Position racks evenly in the oven and preheat to 350F.
5. Dust the dough and a work surface with flour. Roll the dough about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out cookies into desired shapes. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake until the cookies are a rich tawny brown, about 18 to 20 minutes. Cool on a rack.
Icing1. Whisk the water and egg white powder in a medium bowl until foamy and smooth. Gradually whisk in the confectioners' sugar to make a smooth icing. For multiple colors divide the icing into batches and add a food coloring as desired. Spread or pipe the icing onto the cookies. Finish with sprinkles, or candies. Let rest on a rack until the icing sets, about 30 minutes.
Tips and Substitutions
For a chewier cookie, roll them 1/3 to 1/2-inch thick and bake for 16 to 20 minutes.
Source and Credits
Copyright (c) 2004 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved.
Courtesy of Food Network Kitchen
See more: Bake, Dessert, Eggs/Dairy, Kid-Friendly, Snack, Winter