I realize that as I’m making each one of my Christmas cookies, I proclaim it to be THE BEST ONE OF ALL! Okay, so here’s today’s BEST ONE OF ALL…..I have to say, it was originally Martha’s recipe, but, as you can imagine, it was WAY too fussy for my taste, so here it is, easy as can be, Christmas on a plate. And FYI, I think Santa is particularly fond of these too.
Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Makes 4 dozen cookies
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ lb (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
4 Tablespoons (or even more! I put in TONS), grated fresh ginger
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1 cup unsulfured molasses
½ cup granulated sugar
In a medium bowl, combine flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cocoa powder and baking soda and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat butter and grated ginger together until whitened. Add brown sugar and beat until combined. Add molasses and beat until combined.
Add flour mixture into butter mixture in two batches, mixing well after each addition. Mix in chocolate chips and put dough onto a piece of waxed paper and refrigerate until firm or about 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 325. Roll dough into 1 ½ inch balls and roll the balls in the granulated sugar. Place the balls 2 inches apart on baking sheets and bake until the surfaces crack slightly, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool for a couple of minutes until transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.