Martha’s Chewy Chocolate Ginger Cookies

This morning was a baking sort of morning. Some days are like that. (Okay, most days are like that.) The only problem this morning was I didn’t have any eggs. And how many things can you bake without eggs? Only one recipe I know off the top of my head: Marthat Stewart’s Chewy Chocolate Ginger Cookies. Amanda (who I affectionately call Pandy) and I have made these cookies together twice before, but I was certain that the batch I decided to bake this morning would fail miserably. We’re not too neurotic about following recipes precisely– actually, we rather like to experiment– so surely I couldn’t completely botch these cookies.

So I continued my effort, despite my fear and loneliness. If I had had to chop six ounces of baking chocolate myself, I probably would not have persisted. But I substituted some dark chocolate chips I had in my pantry instead. What a time saver! And it gave me enough fortitude to brave that awful smelling molasses by myself. (Let me tell you, Pandy and I really– really– dislike the smell of molasses.) 

Oh, didn’t they smell wonderful when they came out of the oven though! A nice, warm, spicy, Christmas-y smell. I don’t recall ever having ginger cookies around the holidays (or any time at  all, to be honest), but for some reason these seem like the quintessential Christmas cookie to me. 

Of course I couldn’t leave two dozen of these cookies in my apartment, especially considering my roommate Rebecca won’t be back for another week. I would honestly eat them all myself. What to do with them? I decided to bless my coworkers with these yummy little treats! And believe you me, they were most appreciated. I had several “these are the best cookies I’ve ever had!” and even a “wow, I wish you were my mother.” (Wasn’t quite sure how to take the latter comment, but it seemed complimentary enough.) I like these cookies well enough, but somehow they seem to seriously impress everyone else who tries them. I’m pretty sure I could get a marriage proposal out of these.

So, without further adieu, Martha Stewart’s Chewy Chocolate Ginger Cookies (From “Martha Stewart Cookies“):

1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger*
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder**
1 stick (1/4 pound) unsalted butter
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated*
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup molasses
1 teaspoon baking soda, dissolved in 1 1/2 teaspoon boiling water
6 oz semi-sweet baking chocolate, chopped***
1/4 cup sugar, for rolling cookies

In a bowl, sift together flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and cocoa. In another bowl, beat butter and fresh ginger on medium speed until lightened, about 4 minutes. Add brown sugar; beat until combined. Add molasses; beat until combined.

In a small bowl, dissolve baking soda in boiling water. Beat half of flour mixture into butter mixture. Beat in baking soda mixture, then remaining half of flour mixture. Mix in chocolate with spatula; turn onto plastic wrap. Pat out to about 1-inch thickness; seal with wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Roll dough into 1 1/2-inch balls and roll in granulated sugar. Place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Chill 20 minutes. Bake until surfaces just begin to crack, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let cool 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Cookies are best the day they are made, but can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature for up to 5 days. Yield: 2 dozen cookies.

*I don’t have fresh ginger, so I added a heaping 2 teaspoons of ground ginger in place of the recipe’s ground and fresh ginger indications.

**Pandy and I decided that one tablespoon isn’t quite enough, so we always use a heaping tablespoon. For this batch, I used Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa.

***Like I said, I really didn’t want to chop all that chocolate. I used about one cup of dark chocolate chips.