I have a hard time giving Pioneer Woman credit for these, because 15 years ago my sister-in-law, Jen Blackham, gave me the gingersnap recipe her family had been making for years and gingersnaps have been part of my family's Christmas tradition ever since. The Pioneer Woman recipe is identical, except for the addition of cardamom. I'm not sure if the cardamom adds much, so if you don't have it, don't go spend the $8 on it. (Or if you live close, give me a call! I have two bottles.)
Now PW doesn't say to refrigerate her dough, but I'll tell you that if you don't you will have a very flat cookie. Which isn't necessarily a disaster--we used our first batch of flat cookies with pumpkin icecream to make icecream sandwiches and they were delicious. But I prefer my gingersnaps slightly undercooked and a little puffy. So I refrigerate before baking, and then take them out of the oven just after they start to crack.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Sugar
- ¾ cups Crisco (vegetable Shortening)
- ¼ cups Molasses
- 1 whole Egg
- 2 cups Flour
- 1 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoons Ground Cloves
- 1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
- ¼ teaspoons Ground Cardamom
- ¼ teaspoons Salt
- 2-½ teaspoons Baking Soda
Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix sugar, shortening, molasses, and egg together until well combined. Dump in dry ingredients, stirring dry ingredients together lightly. Mix together until dough is combined.
Refrigerate for 2-3 hours, or overnight.
In your hands roll dough into walnut-sized balls, then generously coat each ball with sugar. Place balls on a baking sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, allowing to bake for about a minute after cookies begin to crack.
Remove cookies from baking sheet and allow to cool…although these are delicious while still warm.
