Old Fashioned Molasses Crinkles
August 10, 2007 by Marye Audet
Filed under Cookies
I have always loved good molasses cookies. The key word is, of course, good. They are hard to find. These are from epicurious with a few of my own tweaks…you will know them when you see them..
There is something about one of these with a cup of coffee that has me sitting in my aunt’s kitchen watching her get a meal for her farming family. Just about the time these would come out of the oven the milk truck would pull up to get the milk and the driver always had to get a couple of these *for the road*. That’s just how it was back then…These cookies are about red checked fabrics, and aprons, and wonderful smells.
You can sandwich these together with cream cheese in the middle..or ice cream..or pumpkin butter…or…
Cold milk or coffee are essential!
Molasses Crinkles
6 dozen
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger ( I use a full teaspoon)
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper or 1/4 tsp chipotle powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable shortening at room temperature
1/2 stick (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup grandmas molasses (NOT black strap or barbados!)
granulated sugar for sugaring tops of cookies
Whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, and salt in a bowl until combined.
Beat together shortening, butter, and brown sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes in a stand mixer (preferably fitted with paddle attachment) or 6 minutes with a handheld. Add egg and molasses, beating until combined. Reduce speed to low, then mix in flour mixture until combined.
Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 375°F.
Roll 1 heaping teaspoon of dough into a 1-inch ball with wet hands, then dip 1 end of ball in sanding sugar. Make more cookies in same manner, arranging them, sugared side up, 2 inches apart on 2 ungreased baking sheets.
Bake cookies, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until undersides are golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes total, then cool on sheets 1 minute. Transfer to racks to cool completely.
some better pictures would do a LOT for the recipe!
Sorry, I was having trouble channeling Ansel Adams and ended up with Samuel Adams and he hates molasses…better luck next time.
Ansel Adams or not, taking a picture of a cookie is not that hard. If your using a regular digital camera, read your manual about macro shooting, or take the picture from a further distance and crop out just the cookies.
Luck has nothing to do with it.
You know, I don’t think Ansel Adams ever took a picture of a cookie. Do you think it was because he was really into landscape and form or because he just really had a thing against cookies?
Thanks Me, I am quite sure you are one of the critical voices in my head. You are, after all, Me, and I have always had a hard time taking Me seriously.
You cannot eat a photograph, what do the cookies taste like?
are these cookies chewy or crispy?
Factseeker_ the fact is these cookies are certified, number one kick butt cookies, fer shur.
Cookie monster- yes they are. both. There are crisp topnotes followed by a chewy middle note, finishing with a perfect synergy of textures for the finish.I give it a 10. However, I have it on good authority that ansel adams did not like them.
I agree a better picture might help.
Thanks for the recipe, it sounds like it will be tasty.
Ansel Adams, didn’t have the fancy equipment we have today, like digital cameras and photoshop. If your hearing voices in your head, listen to the tips about taking pictures of cookies.
Honestly, the pictures are mouth-watering enough as is (wiping drool off keyboard).
Thanks so much for the recipe! I love molasses cookies, and I’ll definitely have to try this one out. And don’t listen to the comment trolls, sure, the pictures aren’t of the best quality, but this is about a recipe not the quality of a photo. The photos don’t show how to make the cookie, they’re just an added bonus!
I’m not a troll, I’m excited to try these cookies, I’m just saying that if the pictures were better, I’d be licking my screen.
Grandma’s molasses? Can you clear this up. I think I only have blackstrap.
Grandmas molasses is a brand name for an unsulfured molasses much milder and sweeter than blackstrap.
Thanks for the recipe. It’s one of my favorite cookies and I’m looking forward to trying it. P.S. the pictures are fine.
They look delicious. I plan on trying the recipe soon.
Lay off about the pictures. They look fine. Try baking the cookies and eating them to ease your bitter disposition.
Can these cookies (or the dough) be frozen? Thanks.
Katherine, both the cookies AND the dough freeze beautifully!
To really make it simple you can flash freeze the dough by putting it by the teaspoonful on a cookie sheet like you were going to bake them and then freezing firm. Once they are frozen, simply put them in a ziploc and store int he freezer. Take as many out as you need, put on a cookie sheet, bake as usual and there you go..fresh cookies and no mess.
I don’t know about other bakers…but I don’t judge a cookie by it’s picture.
I wanted to say thank you, Marye, for sharing your recipe. I just baked my first batch to send to a friend in Iraq for Christmas!
The one I tasted was pretty good!
Great! I am glad you liked them.
these are great cookies, I added some orange zest and orange juice to the recipe, everyone loved them and they made the house smell so good.
Brian- the orange addition sounds brilliant. I will try that next time.
I have a cookie exchange party this weekend and this might be the cookie! I am hoping to impress all my in-laws!!
Thanks for the recipe…and wish me luck.
Good luck, Riley!
You may want to add a thin icing on them just to guild the lily! You can tint it red or green.
Brian, how much orange zest, and how much orange juice did you add? Did you adjust measurements for anything else?
Thanks…but question: where/when do you put in the cayenne pepper? It’s in the list of ingredients, but not the ‘instructions.’ Thanks.
Just in with the dry ingredients, Riley, sorry!
dear god, what is wrong with people. I think the pictures are fine-except the last one…it’s a bit blurry. At any rate, I get a very good idea of what the cookie looks like from your pictures. Besides, who the hell cares EXACTLY what it looks like as long as it tastes good…they all end up in the same place anyway. Thanks for the recipe.
I care what they look like… the better looking the picture, the more likely I’ll make them. You honestly don’t believe that a picture can say a 1000 words? If you own technology, learn how to use it and don’t do it halfway.. would it be acceptable to halfway make these cookies? NO… so when publishing something, put as much effort into it as you would baking. Happy Holidays.
ME- first of all I edited your comment because I dislike swearing. Secondly…really..one of the pictures is great, one is good and one is not so great. sorry. I will try to do better next time. I can’t afford photoshop right now and I realize it would be helpful..I hope to get it soon.
These cookies are GREAT! A friend brought this to a cookie bake at my house- and now this is one of our favorites. Actually, came across this while searching for another recipe- but got hooked on the photo “debate”. I can bake & cook- but suck at photos, even with a nice digital camera that should be idiot proof- so had to laugh!!
Thank you Michele! I trust, pray and hope my images are more acceptable now.
It’s okay to edit my post, sorry for swearing, not sure what I said though. The main problem with the images probably can’t be fixed with photoshop, they just need to be retaken with the camera (could be an excuse to make some more too) When taking a picture close up, look for a macro mode on your camera, this will allow for a closer focal point, that should be enough, make sure the room is well lit, or you use a flash. Also if you don’t want to buy photoshop (and I don’t blame you there, it’s way too expensive for anyone not in the graphics business) use free software, http://www.getpaint.net/ paint.net is a good one, also the gimp http://www.gimp.org/ both are great replacements for photoshop and the best part they are FREE. I’m sorry for being so hard on your images, the article is good, but really posting such a great article with blurry pictures takes your article from and A+ to a B-
I just want to let everyoe know that from now on commentary on my images will be edited out or deleted.
Thanks.
ME, please just let it go. (Marye, please use your time, energy and motivation to bake and to continue posting and inspiring to eat better. A+)
Aww, I guess I struck a nerve. You really going to let the comments of one person affect you that much. WOW…all I can say is way to go “internets” If you can’t take some criticism, you shouldn’t share at all. What would you do if someone said I made your cookies and they tasted bad, or my dog ate them and died, or something. Stop posting at all? Really? Get over it already you can’t please everyone. But in all seriousness, you could make more cookies, take a good pictures of them and get even more praise about how good your cookies really are.
Marye, thank you for a good recipe! I changed it a bit but they are still good. I used whole wheat flour, less brown sugar, more molasses, and all butter instead of vegetable shortening. They are a much darker brown color than yours but that offsets nicely with the white sugar design. You’ve been a good sport at enduring the ridiculous criticisms which had nothing at all to do with the recipe and were very unhelpful to the ordinary reader.
God bless you,
c
Carla,
I am glad you liked them. How did the butter work? I dislike using vegetable shortening but I have found, for me, the texture is much better when using at least half shortening.
One thing I did when I made these cookies (well, not exactly these, I just used the original Epicurious recipe) was to roll them in turbinado sugar (aka sugar in the raw) before baking. The larger crystals of the sugar added a nice crunch (at least I thought so). You might want to try it next time for something a little different.
Great idea, Laura.
That is a good idea, Laura. The butter makes a soft cookie; I know the shortening gets them nice and crisp…I might try doing it with half coconut oil next time which can also have that effect on texture but is healthier than shortening.
how do you make them thicker…mine always turn out very thin and i’d like them to look like the picture
Gabrielle-
It is imperative that you use part shortening and part butter in this. All butter will make the cookies flat. You might try making sure they are good and chilled before shaping,a nd even chilling them again before baking. Without knowing if you are following the recipe exactly I don’t know what is wrong.
Was looking for Molasses Crinkles that my grandmother used to make in the ’40’s and ’50’s. Hot peppers were not used, but might try it. Didn’t know that using butter made them flatter… That’s how Grandma’s were-and chewy! Back then, she may even have used lard… Think I’ll skip all that fat and try with a new low fat spread. And I’ll try with some orange zest, too….yum!
Hello, I just stumbled across these recipes and these “look” fantastic, the only thing is the measurements that you use how much of an ingrediant is a cup? Or how much butter is stick? As a child of Europe we have to use metric grams and kilos or face a stiff telling off or even jail time.
Yikes! Marcus, I have no idea!
I think there are some websites that do the math, but I am not sure where they are. a cup is 8 ozs, but I don;t know how much that is metric. A stick of butter is 1/4 of a pound. sorry. :/
here’s a site that provides conversions: http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/convert/measurements.html
1 cup = 250 ml
1 stick of butter = 115 grams
thanks cookie monster!
Thank you all very much for your help, I’ll be trying these this week.
i love these cookies, just made them and they are getting great reviews from my husband and kids!! I didn’t have all spice so i subed pumpkin pie spice, i didn’t have cayenne pepper either so i put a dash of white pepper and a dash of nutmeg, delish!! Thanks for sharing your recipe!