Smoky Ginger Snaps

Perusing the Penticton Farmer’s Market with my friend Karen and my sister in law Nena a few weeks ago, we came across a stall claiming to have ‘the best ever’ ginger cookies.

That was it, I was in. Flour and sugar be damned, I love me a ginger cookie.

These particular cookies were good. “But”, I exclaimed – in my outside voice – “not as good as the ones I make. Mine have a magic ingredient”

Bacon.

Well, not bacon exactly, but bacon grease. Smoky, delicious, oh so prolly not good for you, bacon grease. Here’s the deal. You are making a cookie. These are not something you should be eating all the time anyway so who cares if they are a bit indulgent – isn’t that the whole point?

Basically, you are just substituting your butter or margarine (also not so good for you) with reserved bacon fat. I keep a pyrex custard cup in the fridge for this purpose exclusively. Any time I make bacon, I pour the fat from the pan into this little dish and when it is full I know I have about 3/4 of a cup. Time to make cookies.

I don’t really bake cookies since the kids have grown but I am feeling a bit nostalgic as I listen to all of the ‘back to school’ ads. Though I definitely do not miss school lunches, parent teacher interviews and the back to school bills, I was feeling enough of a pull to mix up a batch of cookies. Besides, I told Karen these were the best, so now I have to put my cookie where my mouth is!

So, out came the KitchenAid stand mixture. The ingredients come together very easily with this mighty mixer, totally worth the money for those who bake. When the kids were young it held a prominent place on my counter top. Now it has been replaced by my Vitamix, which I use daily.

Once mixed, the dough is rolled in sugar, placed onto a cookie sheet and then pressed lightly to flatten.

12 minutes or so later, you’ve got a nicely spiced, and wonderfully flavourful ginger cookie worth bragging about.

These are a crisp and crunchy cookie, a true ginger with ‘snap’. I over did some of mine just a tad today – being a bit out of practice. Nolan told me they were a bit crisper than usual and it’s because I left them in for just a minute too long. He likes them with just a bit of chewiness. To me it makes no difference though and several were scarfed down shortly after I photographed them.

Now if I could just find a recipe for a soft, cake-like ginger cookie. I love those too but have yet to find a recipe that I loved.

If anyone has one, I’d love to get it!

Ginger Cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Author: www.miasdailydish.com

A crisp, smoky ginger cookie worth bragging about.

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Ingredients

• 1 C sugar plus extra for rolling
• 3/4 C bacon fat strained (or not)
• 4 Tbsp dark molasses
• 1 large egg
• 2 C all purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp powdered ginger
• 1 tsp ground cloves

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350°
2. In a stand mixer, beat bacon fat and sugar until creamed
3. Add molasses and egg and beat until incorporated
4. Add all other ingredients and mix until mixed thoroughly and dough comes together, it will be a stiff dough
5. Gently roll dough into balls about the size of a walnut, do not compress
6. Place a bit of sugar into a small bowl, roll each cookie into the sugar to coat then place on a cookie sheet, space about 2" apart, around 12 to a sheet
7. Gently press the centre of the cookie with two fingers to flatten slightly
8. Bake for 10-12 minutes until just golden around the edges and beginning to crack a bit. They should not be dark brown
9. Remove from oven, let sit for just a minute or two then transfer to a wire rack to cool

Recipe Notes

Store these cookies in an airtight container if you prefer them to retain a bit of chewiness. If you like them crispy, they can be left out in the open. They won't last long.

Adapted from Martha Stewart