#25 Ginger Sugar Cookies 1965

I keep seasonings on two lazy Susans next to the measuring cups. Among them are all the spices in these cookies--cinnamon, ginger and cloves. The label "Fall Spices" graces that particular shelf.

Sparkling sugar topping on left, granulated on right.

I usually think about this type of cookie later in the year when I'm breaking out the wool sweaters and the leaves start to fall. When I made these--just a couple of weeks ago--summer hadn't started. These cookies were welcome.

Everyone has a favorite ginger cookie and these are some of the best of their type. I love everything in them. Beyond the spices, the other flavors blend without overpowering each other. Who can go wrong with a little brown sugar and molasses?

The instructions say to bake them for 7-8 minutes, a little less for a chewy cookie, my personal favorite. If you want a crisp cookie, add 2 minutes to the cooking time. Easy.

The recipe calls for dipping the tops in sugar just before baking. I wondered if my sparkling sugar would seem incongruous with the downright hominess of these cookies. The way the Italian statuary looked out of place on my cousin's fruit farm. I made some with each sugar, but I needn't have worried. These cookies can dress up or dress down. Again, easy.

Just one note about these cookies. The tops seem to split apart, or "crack," all by themselves. (I've been known to do the same.) They don't need a sprinkling of water to help them.

The recipe is here (bottom of the page), and here.

Comments

#33 Almond Bolas (Portuguese Almond Cookies) 1975

Three almond balls ( bolas ) in a row. "This one is good," my sister-in-law Jill told me. She tried not to express too much surprise, but I have regaled her with too many tales of failed cookies. And forced her to eat a few duds. I was glad this one made the grade. I liked it, too. You might think I am a hopeless romantic to fall for another almond cookie. (Italy, almond cookies. Almond cookies, Italy.) The fact is every country that can grow almonds has its special recipes for almond cookies. Portugal is no exception. The ground blanched almonds combine with dry bread crumbs, then the usual sugar, egg whites and almond extract. The dry bread crumbs are key. When the cookies are fresh from the oven, the bread crumbs add a perfect crunch to their rustic, nutty texture. Holes in the center ready for filling. These cookies don't "drop." You roll them in a ball ( bola ) and press a hole in the center, as for jelly-filled thumbprint cookies. Egg yolk ...

#21 Cornetti 1989

First, the texture. These crescent-shaped darlings came closest to the crisp-outside, soft-inside of the almond cookies I've been craving. The difference with these is their distinct orange flavor, from chopped, candied orange peel, and the cup of white cornmeal that adds a gritty crunch to each bite. Cornetti, dusted with powdered sugar. These firm, hearty cookies, with a ground almond base, are my first real almond cookie success. They are not the same as any cookie I tasted in Italy; I have yet to duplicate those bakery cookies. These stand on their own, apart from the rest, and they are every bit as good. After one minute in boiling water, almonds are ready to have skins removed. Blanching almonds. Orange peels simmering in sugar syrup. The bad news is the labor required, especially if you begin with almonds that have their skins. Although an easy process of blanching in hot water allows the skins to be removed for an all-white dough, by the time I was done, ...

#17 Brazil Nut Crescents 1958

Light as a feather, these cookies showcase the Brazil nut. After my fiasco of many ingredients (the Oatmeal Molasses Cookies seem so last month), I wondered if only four ingredients would be enough to make a decent attempt at a cookie. I creamed the butter, added sugar, flour and finely chopped Brazil nuts, as instructed. I kneaded the dough on a floured surface a bit, and formed my 2-inch cylinder of dough. The ridged crescent shapes emerge when you cut off each slice. As you cut, each round compresses into more of an oval or square. Help it shape by giving it a pat on top. Then, poke a finger sideways into the middle of each slice, and pull the ends toward you to form the crescents. Cookie rounds flatten as you slice them. I expected a firm cookie, like the Mexican Wedding Cakes I've made. But these are lighter. When I bit in, they crumbled like an abandoned sand castle. OK, edible sand castle. I wondered how they had stayed together until then. The texture difference c...

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