The Best Gingersnaps

Total Time: 27 mins Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 12 mins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups plain flour (7 1/2 oz)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temp
• 2/3 cup sugar, plus (5 oz)
• 5 tablespoons sugar, for dusting tops
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg yolk
• 1/4 cup molasses

Recipe

• 1 sift together dry ingredients.
• 2 in a large bowl, using an electric mixer set on high speed, cream together and 2/3 cup sugar until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.
• 3 beat in the vanilla, egg yolk and molasses, mixing well.
• 4 add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in three batches, mixing on low speed until each addition is fully blended.
• 5 cover with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.
• 6 place the chilled dough on a piece of plastic wrap and shap it into a rough log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
• 7 wrap the log in the plastic wrap and roll it back and forth until the surface of the log is smooth and even.
• 8 chill the roll for about 2 hours, or freeze for up to 2 months.
• 9 preheat oven to 375°f (190°c) lightly oil 3 baking sheets.
• 10 remove the rolls from fridge, unwrap and slice 1/8 inch thick.
• 11 place the slices 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets.
• 12 sprinkle the tops with 1/2 tsp sugar each.
• 13 if using one oven, place 2 baking sheets in at a time, refrigerating the remaining one until ready to bake.
• 14 bake the cookies until golden around the edges but still soft, 10 minutes for chewy cookies and 10 to 12 minutes for crisp cookies.
• 15 switch the pans around, halfway through the baking time.
• 16 using a spatula, immediately transfer the cookies to rack to cool.
• 17 store in an airtight container.