When it’s raining outside or you just want to cozy up next to the fireplace with your sweetie and a cup of coffee, these are a perfect treat. These cookies are more “grown-up” in flavor — both the molasses and cocoa give bitter notes that play off the spiciness of the fresh ginger — the cookies are tiny in size by design to complement their intensity. We also recommend nibbling these alongside sips of any adult beverage that has a bitter forward profile, like a Sazerac, Negroni, Boulevardier, or our Loony Manhattan.
Recipe by Allison Roman – New York Times Cooking Magazine
What You Need
- ½ cup (115 grams) unsalted butter (1 stick)
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (optional)
- 1 ½ cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (45 grams) cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ⅓ cup (65 grams) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (120 milliliters) molasses
- 1 large egg
- Demerara or granulated sugar, for decoration
How to Make It
- Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Melt butter in a small pot over medium heat and add ginger, if using. Remove from heat and let sit a few minutes while you prepare everything else.
- In a large bowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ground ginger, and salt.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar, molasses, egg and ginger butter. Using a spatula, slowly mix into dry ingredients, mixing until no dry spots remain.
- Using your hands, roll small balls of dough about the size of a quarter (dough will be soft — if it is too soft for you to handle, pop into the fridge for a few minutes to firm up). Roll the balls in the sanding sugar and place on the prepared baking sheets about 1-inch apart.
- Bake until just puffed and baked through 6 to 8 minutes. Let cool completely before eating.
