Food Blog

These are the gingerbread men published on Gapersblock’s cookie article. It’s adapted from this recipe. I’ve tweaked that recipe and added more than twice the amount of ginger and allspice, to give the little men some real snap. Next time I make these I might reduce the amount of molasses, and add some brown sugar as a replacement, to let the ginger shine through.

These cookies were particularly good, since I got the spices from The Spice House, right here in Evanston. The ginger is China Number One, which while sounding rather illegal, is excellent, powerful without being bitter or overwhelming. “The majority of ginger imported into this country comes from Cochin, India but it is inferior in quality to the top grade of Chinese ginger, known as China Number One. ” The allspice is Jamaican, with a great combination of peppery and clovey qualities.

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 T. ground ginger
1 T. ground allspice
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsulphured molasses
1 shot of bourbon
1 large egg yolk

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.

In a larger bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the molasses, bourbon, and then the egg yolk. Then, gradually beat in the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated.

Divide the dough into quarters, shape into logs and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. To speed things up you can put them in the freezer for about a half hour. Preheat the oven to 350.

Cut one of the pieces of dough in half and keep the remaining pieces refrigerated. On a generously floured surface, roll out the dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies using a cookie cutter. You can make your own out of cardboard, or shape with your hands. Resist the temptation to make them anatomically correct. Place the cookies about an inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for about 8 minutes, or until slightly firm.

Transfer the cookie sheets to wire racks. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 2 minutes. Then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely. Decorate with icing or just eat.