MOLASSES-SPICE COOKIES

MANY MOLASSES-SPICE COOKIES ARE REALLY gingersnaps. They are hard and dry and not nearly sweet enough. We wanted to create an oversized cookie that was especially soft and chewy. We also wanted the cookie to have a strong molasses flavor with a good hit of sweetness. We started by testing the sweetener since we figured that the molasses would be the key to the puzzle.

We quickly found that too much molasses will impart a bitter quality to the cookies. Cookies made with a lot of molasses may be soft and chewy, but they won't taste very good. We tried cutting back on the amount of molasses but the cookies were too bland. Brown sugar, which is made with a small amount of molasses, proved to be the answer. Unlike straight molasses, brown sugar has no harsh flavors. After several tests, we settled on the following formula as the ideal compromise between sweetness and good molasses flavor—one half cup each of dark brown sugar and granulated sugar along with one third cup of molasses.

We found that using a fair amount of sweetener helped make the cookies soft and chewy. The other trick was to underbake the cookies a bit. Even with all this sweetener, these cookies can become hard if overbaked. Since the color of the cookies is so dark, err on the side of underbaking.

Molasses-spice cookies need to have a good spice flavor as well. Cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and allspice are the usual choices in most recipes. We especially like the flavor of the cinnamon and ginger in these cookies. The cloves are good, but they can dominate if used too freely. We settled on ³/₄ teaspoon as the right amount. Allspice is more problematic. In small amounts, this spice can sharpen the molasses flavor without seeming obtrusive, but we found that adding more than ¹/₄ teaspoon made the cookies harsh and even bitter.