Ginger Molasses Cookies

These Ginger Molasses cookies are better than Starbucks!*

Isn't Christmas baking the best?

You get to use as much cinnamon, ground cloves, pumpkin, ginger, icing and cranberries as you want in these few winter months!

And then you get to hibernate inside, under blankets, on the couch watching Christmas movies (preferably Love Actually or The Holiday) and eat Christmas baking all day long! Or you could go for a walk in the snow and burn off some of these wonderful Christmas calories just in time to start thinking of January's new year resolution of eating less sugar and going to the gym.

Ahh, lucky for us it's still December!

These ginger molasses cookies are wonderfully chewy and sweet with a little bit of spice. It is important that you shape the dough into no bigger than walnut sized balls. These cookies flatten and spread - so unless you're looking for one giant cookie keep them small. You'll also probably find that you need a few more tablespoons of sugar to roll the shaped dough into but you can always add that as you go along. Otherwise, I wouldn't change a thing about this recipe.

These are quick to put together, fast to bake and don't last long around the house; at least they didn't in ours! Hope you're making your Christmas sweet!

*Proudly said by my loving and supportive husband ;-)

Big Soft Ginger Cookies
From: Allrecipes

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup margarine, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
1/4 cup molasses
2 tablespoons white sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet, and flatten slightly.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.