Molasses Spice Cookies

Molasses cookies are the Witches' husband's favorite cookie ever. His Grandma used to make the BEST molasses cookies!! Last holiday season I was searching for a newer version of the molasses cookie, something to dress up the standard spicy treat. I stumbled across this recipe from a blog, but after over 365 days of NOT posting this post (because I forgot to take photos of the cookies, D'oh!) I have completely forgotten which blog it came from. And for that I apologize. The Kitchen Witch did do a google search to see if I could find it to give proper credit where it's due...alas I was unsuccessful in locating the original source. Sorry about that!

Back to the cookies! These molasses spice cookies start off the same as Grandma's, but they take a turn at Spicy Town with the addition of cardamom and black pepper. Yes, I said black pepper. In a baked good. It's tasty, too! A generous 2 teaspoons of ground ginger helps reinforce that these are indeed spice cookies and they pack a wallop! But behind that spicy bite is a mellow sweetness and a delightful chewiness to the cookie. The molasses really make these a crispy outside, chewy inside cookie, which makes me a very happy Witch indeed!

These cookies are not a favorite of the Little Witch, she thinks they're too spicy. I tend to agree with her, they are spicy, but I like that. They are spicy, not necessarily 'hot' but spicy and not overly sweet, and therefore tend to not be a preferred cookie of the kids. And that's ok in this Witches' opinion. After all the cloying sweet Holiday treats, it's nice to have a bit of spice and subtle sweetness. And best of all, Santa loves these cookies! I hope you enjoy them.

Happy Yule to you and yours!

Molasses Spice Cookies makes 3 dozen, 2 cookies per serving
Source: Unknown; inspired by a blogger with good taste!
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup molasses (not blackstrap)
2 tbsp honey
1 large egg
2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cardamom (7 pods ground)
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
sugar, for rolling

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a work bowl of a stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in molasses, honey and egg until smooth.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, spices and salt.

Working by hand, or with a mixer on low speed, stir flour mixture into molasses mixture.

Roll dough into 1-inch balls and roll each ball in extra sugar before placing on baking sheet.

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are set but not browned.

Cool for 5-10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Nutrition Facts calculated at SparkPeople recipe calculator
Amount Per Serving
Calories 177.8
Total Fat 5.6 g
Saturated Fat 3.3 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.3 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.6 g
Cholesterol 24.1 mg
Sodium 211.1 mg
Potassium 91.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate 30.5 g
Dietary Fiber 0.4 g
Sugars 17.3 g
Protein 2