Monday, December 28, 2009

martha stewart's chewy chocolate gingerbread cookies!

in 2001 i bought a special magazine/booklet of martha stewart's that was nothing but holiday cookies. i leafed through the first few pages and spotted 'chewy chocolate gingerbread cookies,' and thought they looked fun. so, i made them.

and they were the best things ever. ever ever. and i've been making them ever since on the holidays. one day, i vow to make a second recipe out of that booklet. but it hasn't happened yet...

i pretty much follow all the directions exactly as described in the link. i think the important thing is to have fresh, grated ginger. enlist help for this, as its a big pain in the buttocks to grate fresh ginger. also, the molasses is a must. and, if you are lucky enough to have a kitchen aid in your midst, break it out mos def.



i love the kitchen aid, even if it isn't mine. it mixes everything, even flour.



although, for the record, i've never made just one batch of this recipe. this year i merely doubled it (since i was making a million of the cookies i posted about last time), but i have made up to four batches at a time, and you really can't put four batches in a kitchen aid - cause it just won't fit. alas. anyway - when all is mixed you wrap each batch in plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for a few hours - like this:



and then, you take each piece and tear off little pieces and roll them into balls with your hands. and, for the record, the chocolate chunk pieces might not do fun things to your hands as you're rolling little balls, but you must ignore the pain, because the chunks are essential. in case you were wondering.


and then, the balls go back into the freezer for 20 minutes, and when they come out, you roll them in granulated sugar before baking them. they are pretty like this - see:



here they are going into the oven...



and here they are on a drying rack. seas of cookies are fun.



mmmm. check out the sugar crystals. these are the best cookies that i make - eight years and counting. try them out and thank me later. you're welcome.



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