Backtrack to Rosh Hashanah

So, I know I said I didn't get a chance to take pictures of anything I baked on Rosh Hashanah, which is true, but I had these pictures sitting in my backlog and I realized -- hey I baked these cookies for Rosh Hashanah. So these are not the actual Rosh Hashanah cookies, but they are the same recipe. Sarah promised she would blog about these but never did, so here you go.


These are Dorie's Molasses Spice Cookies and they are yummy. They have a good kick of spice, but also some sweetness from the sugar that they are rolled in. They freeze really well and you can make them parve, but substituting margarine for the butter. I would say that these are probably my favorite non-chocolate cookies (and are even better than some chocolate cookies). I have made them a bunch of times and they always turn out well, which is good in a cookie. The only thing I would say is don't overcook them, or they get too hard to eat. They will bake up really puffy and deflate when they come out of the oven, which is totally fine.


Perhaps Sarah has some more (funnier) words of wisdom on these cookies.


Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies
Page 77 from Baking from My Home to Yours
2.5 C flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground allspice
pinch cracked or coarsely ground black pepper (or more)
12 TB unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 C (packed) light brown sugar
1/2 C molasses (not blackstrap)
1 large egg

About 1/2 C sugar, for rolling


Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and pepper.

With a mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy. Add brown sugar and molaasses and beat for app. 2 min. to blend. Add egg and beat for 1 min. more. Reduce speed to low and add dry ingredients, mixing until flour and spices disappear. If some flour remains on bottom of bowl, to avoid overbeating, mix by hand with a rubber spatula. Dough will be smooth and very soft. Divide dough in half and wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Freeze for 30 min. or refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to 4 days).

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats. Put the sugar in a small bowl. Working with one packet of dough at a time, divide it into 12 pieces and roll each piece into a smooth ball between your palms. One by one, roll the balls around in the bowl of sugar, then place them on the baking sheets. dip the bottom of a glass into the sugar and use it to press down on the cookies until they are between .25 and .5" thick.

Bake one sheet at a time for 12 to 14 minutes, or until the tops feel set to the touch. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and, iaf the cookies have spread anda re touching, use the edge of a spatula to separate them while they are still hot. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to room temperature.

Repeat with the second batch of dough.