Whether someone wants to or not, the holidays make them reflect upon their family. My maternal great-grandmother was Austrian-German. Standing about four feet and some inches tall, she lived in a tiny little house in Chicago and didn't speak much English but she taught my grandmother how to make great cookies! While I feel lucky to have some of those recipes, I'm even more grateful for the kindness of my Grandmother and how she made me feel truly loved- whatever I said or did! My mother was not a good every day cook. She worked full time, had three children, and spread herself way too thin. But, when she had the time, she loved to make gourmet meals. I got my interest in cooking and entertaining from my mom because that was one thing we had in common and enjoyed doing together. I loved helping her prepare for wedding showers, baby showers, and dinner parties. The cookies posted here, are in honor of my grandma's style of cooking- simple, old fashioned, but tasty.
Old Fashioned Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients for 3 dozen chewy, delicious cookies:
1 stick butter (1/2 cup)
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon dark molasses
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon cardamom
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
Some sugar for sprinkling
Directions:
With an electric mixer, mix the butter and two sugars together until they are well creamed. Add the molasses, vanilla, and eggs. Beat well. Stir in the dry ingredients a bit at a time until they are entirely combined with the wet mixture. Cover and chill the dough for at least an hour. Line a cookie sheet with foil. Shape the dough into walnut sized balls and space them out on the cookie sheet. Using the bottom of a glass, press down on each ball to flatten it into a 1/4 inch thick circle. Sprinkle each circle with white granulated sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes or until cookies are slightly browned around the edges.
