Gingersnap Kiss Cookies

My mom has a thing for libraries. Ever since I can remember, the library has been presented to me as a much-frequented and much-adored building of worship. Whenever we traveled to another town, my mom gravitated toward the local library. Whenever there was a rainy day during my childhood (or a sunny one, or a snowy one, or a partly-cloudy one) my brother and I were often toted along toward…you guessed it…the library.

I guess all that library-loved rubbed off onto me, because I was an avid reader from an early age. During our library visits my mom would find five-year-old me hidden away at the end of an aisle, legs splayed out in front of me as I flipped through book after book after book. Some of my most favorite children’s books were the Laura Ingalls Wilder stories. I can still remember their colorful gingham covers, the paperbacks soft and smooth on my small lap. I read all about Laura and her family living in the big woods of Wisconsin, moving to the wide-open prairie, and having all sorts of pioneer adventures. I was enthralled with the idea of riding in a covered wagon, churning butter by hand, and having only one bath a week! And of course, I loved their good old bulldog, Jack.

Christmas in the Big Woods was possibly my most treasured Laura Ingalls Wilder book. I was as much a Christmas fanatic as a book fanatic, and I must have read that story a thousand times. The doll I received as a Christmas present in 1999 was named Charlotte after Laura’s own Christmas doll. I remember being disappointed that my candy canes weren’t straight and rectangular like the old-fashioned “peppermint sticks” in the book, and I used my own thimble to trace “frost pictures” on the window just like Laura and her sister, Mary. I was also entranced with the idea of the molasses candy depicted in the book. “Pa” would bring in a giant tub of snow from outside, and the girls would heat up molasses and pour it onto the cold snow to make beautiful, edible shapes. Since then, molasses has been a very “pioneer-y” ingredient to me.

These soft gingersnap cookies seem just like something Laura and Mary would have made. They’re simple, lightly-spiced, not-too-sweet, and full of rich flavor from the key ingredient (molasses). Being me, I couldn’t resist kicking them up a notch by adding a Hershey’s hug to each cookie, and I’m glad that I did. The milk and white chocolate pair wonderfully with the warm spices, and I could never say no to pretty swirls. I made these cookies before Christmas, but they’d be great at any time of the year! You’ll feel just like Laura Ingalls Wilder as you bake them…and whether or not that’s a good thing, I can’t quite say. But it sure was for me. 🙂

Gingersnap Kiss Cookies

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

3/4 cup butter or shortening (I like to use 1/2 cup butter and 1/4 cup shortening)

1 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 cup molasses

1 large egg

2 & 1/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

Granulated sugar, for sprinkling

3 dozen Hershey’s hugs (or kisses), unwrapped

Directions:

In a large bowl, cream together the butter (or shortening) and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the molasses and egg, scraping down the sides as needed.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet, mixing just until combined. Cover the dough and chill for at least an hour.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets; set aside. Roll the dough into tablespoon-sized balls and coat with granulated sugar. Place 3 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes or until the tops are set. Immediately press an unwrapped candy into the center of each cookie. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the sheets before transferring to a wire rack.

(Recipe adapted from Red Checkered Picnics)

Whole Wheat Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

Is anyone else out there in utter shock that it’s already August? The sun is setting just a bit later every night, the first ripe blackberries of the season are appearing on the wild bushes all over my island, and yesterday I came home from a two-day trip to find my vegetable crisper overflowing with zucchini. It’s common knowledge that this is the time of year when every garden-owner is up to their ears in zucchini. Although my family doesn’t have a garden of our own we happen to be the lucky neighbors of a fantastic (and generous) gardener who likes to share. And who happens to be up in her ears in zucchini, of course. Works for me!

While I love zucchini in many of its savory forms, including stuffed zucchini, grilled zucchini, roasted zucchini, you name it, I am of course partial to using it in my baking. It adds so much moisture, texture, vitamins and nutrients to baked goods without making them taste like a salad, and it’s so easy to use. Just pull out your cheese grater (or food processor) and shred away. Shredded zucchini can be frozen for later use, which is a definite plus for those overwhelmed zucchini-growers, but my zucchini stock never makes it that far. Not with my baking addiction being as it is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First up on the zucchini list were Whole Wheat Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins. Usually when I make muffins (with a few exceptions, of course) I like to make them relatively healthy so that I can feel just a bit less guilty while serving them for breakfast. So naturally, there’s nearly a cup of chocolate chips in this recipe. Hah. But aside from the much-needed dose of dark chocolate (which I totally condone, even at breakfast), these are nearly guilt-free. They contain NO butter or oil, instead relying on applesauce, eggs, and zucchini to keep them moist and hold them together. There’s only 1/3 cup of refined sugar in the whole batch, and the nutritional content is boosted further with the addition of whole wheat flour and, of course, zucchini. Orange zest and cinnamon serve to give the muffins wonderful flavor in a healthy way, and while these are plenty sweet they taste like real food, not like the sugary cupcakey muffins that so many of us are used to.

If you need a way to use up a bit of zucchini, definitely add these to your list. I mean, who wouldn’t want to eat zucchini in the form of a tender, flavorful, considerably healthy muffin containing a hint of fresh orange zest and warm cinnamon? And did I mention that every bite contains rich dark chocolate? That alone should have you running to the kitchen right now!

Whole Wheat Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

Makes about 12 standard-size muffins or a 9″x5″ loaf*

2 cups white whole wheat flour (or 1 cup all-purpose and 1 cup whole wheat)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/3 cup brown sugar, lightly packed

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

1/3 cup honey or molasses (I used a mixture of both)

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce (or vegetable oil)

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups shredded, unpeeled zucchini (from about 1 medium zucchini)

3/4 cup dark chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or spray well with baking spray.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon. Set aside.

Place the brown sugar in a medium bowl. Add in the orange zest and use your fingers to incorporate it into the sugar. When the mixture is well-combined and fragrant, whisk in the honey or molasses, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. Gently stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients, mixing just until no flour streaks remain. Stir in the shredded zucchini and chocolate chips.

Scoop the batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each about 3/4 of the way. Bake for 20-24 minutes or until tops bounce back when touched and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for 5 minutes in the tins, then remove to a cooling rack. Store leftover muffins in an air-tight container at room temperature.

*To make zucchini bread, pour the batter into a greased and floured 9″x5″ loaf pan. Smooth the top and bake for 50-60 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 15 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack, then allow the bread to cool completely before slicing.

(Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Chocolate Chip Gingerbread

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Lights are being put up, Christmas music is appearing on the radio, and the calendar is quickly approaching December. My family and I chopped down our Christmas tree over Thanksgiving break and I’ve started making my Christmas list. My car also smells amaaaazing because I sold three wreaths as part of our senior-class fundraiser and they hung out in my car for a couple days. Fresh pine is about a million times better than any car freshener!

I know it’s only November 25, but I just couldn’t wait to get started on Christmas-y things!  Thanksgiving is over so Christmas is fair game, right? Right.

Start off your holiday baking with this Chocolate Chip Gingerbread! I made it last year and immediately bookmarked the recipe to make again. The addition of chocolate to warm, spicy gingerbread is a match made in heaven, and the tiny pockets of melted chocolate chips are to die for. And the recipe makes two loaves, which means you can give one to a friend! That way you can spread some holiday cheer…and also keep yourself from single-handedly devouring two loaves of warm delicious chocolate gingerbread. Which could definitely happen. It’s a win-win!

Chocolate Chip Gingerbread 

Makes 2 loaves

2 1/2 cups + 2 Tbs all-purpose flour, divided

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground allspice

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp ground black pepper

3/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/4 cups granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1 cup molasses

1 cup very hot water

1 12-oz package miniature chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 9″x5″ loaf pans.

Toss chocolate chips with 2 Tbs flour in a small bowl. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 1/2 cups flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and spices.

Using an electric mixer, in a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed. In a small bowl or 4-cup measuring cup, whisk together the molasses and hot water. Alternately add in 1/3 of the molasses mixture, 1/3 of the flour mixture, another 1/3 of the molasses mixture, another 1/3 of the flour mixture, the remaining molasses mixture, and the remaining flour mixture, beating after each addition. Fold in chocolate chips.

Divide batter between the two loaf pans and bake for 55-60 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Tops should be set and firm but not dry. Let bread cool in the pan for 20 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with whipped cream for a special treat.

(Recipe from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe)

Pumpkin Gingersnaps

 

Last year I received a wonderful Christmas gift: a cookie jar!  Surprisingly enough, although I’ve been an adamant cookie-baker since I was about five, I’d never actually owned a cookie jar to fill with my creations.  Tupper-ware containers and saran wrap-covered plates did the job, but there’s something so thrilling about reaching your hand into a cookie jar and pulling out a homemade cookie.  I love my new(ish) cookie jar.  It’s off-white, with a speckly blue lid and a painting of a rooster on the front.  It sounds weirder than it looks, I promise.

The rest of my family also loves our cookie jar, especially my dad and brother.  When I first got it I made even more cookies than usual, and they trained themselves to reach into the cookie jar hoping for a treat every time they wandered through the kitchen.  Then a little problem occurred.  One day as I was unpacking a large amount of groceries, I ran out of room in the fridge.  Luckily the only produce I had left was a bag of potatoes, which can easily be stored at room temperature.  However, the counter was also pretty jam-packed with food…(when I grocery shop, I grocery shop hard!)  Hah.  So my pretty little potatoes (which were actually, like most potatoes, not so pretty) had no place to live.  Until I spied the empty cookie jar sitting suggestively in the corner…aha!  Out came the cookie jar, in went the potatoes, on went the lid, and I thought nothing of it.

Here comes the sad part.  My dad, strolling into the kitchen after dinner for a little snack, saw the cookie jar sitting proud and center in the middle of the counter and happily reached in…only to feel the rough, tough, dry, dirty skin of a potato.  Big letdown.  Biiiig letdown.  Huge.  Unfortunately, I was too excited about my new potato-storing idea to give it up, and periodically my dad or brother will eagerly peer into the cookie jar hoping for something delicious and be met with the sight of a lowly potato.  What can I say?  Fool me once, shame on you…fool me twice, shame on me!  (Or them, in this case 😉 )

The good news is that right now, the cookie jar is not empty.  It is not filled with potatoes.  It is filled with soft, chewy, sweet, spicy, delicious pumpkin gingersnaps!  I found this recipe last fall and fell in love with it.  These cookies have everything to love about gingersnaps (warm spices, molasses, sugar-coating) but with a twist of pumpkin.  These Pumpkin Gingersnaps would be a great addition to your fall/winter baking list!  And they’re much, much better than a potato.

Pumpkin Gingersnaps

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cloves

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup molasses

1 tsp vanilla extract

Additional sugar for rolling

Directions:

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.  Set aside.

Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy.  Add in the egg, pumpkin puree, molasses, and vanilla.  Mix well.  Gradually add in the dry ingredients, mixing until combined.

Cover dough and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 3 days.  When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or baking mats.

Pour a few tablespoons of granulated sugar into a shallow bowl.  Scoop dough by tablespoonfuls, roll in the sugar, and place 2 inches apart onto prepared cookie sheets.  Bake for 10-12 minutes or until tops are crackly and set, but cookies are still soft.  Let cookies cool on the sheets for 2-3 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.  Enjoy!

(Recipe adapted from Two Peas and Their Pod)