{"id":13662,"date":"2013-12-12T17:40:28","date_gmt":"2013-12-13T01:40:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.chefmorgan.com\/?p=13662"},"modified":"2013-12-13T07:21:07","modified_gmt":"2013-12-13T15:21:07","slug":"gingersnap-cookies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chefmorgan.com\/engine\/gingersnap-cookies","title":{"rendered":"gingersnap cookies"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"chef<\/p>\n

a little holiday spice<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

gingersnap cookies<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Bonjour.<\/span>\u00a0<\/i>It has been a little longer than usual since I have written.\u00a0 My time has been dominated by publishing deadlines and Paris apartment disasters (although I am learning that the words \u201cdisaster\u201d and \u201cParis\u201d are commonly used together when you live there).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Thanksgiving left as quickly as it arrived. This year it was at our home in L.A. We ate a late dinner because many guests were coming to Los Angeles from out of town. Throughout the day I was cooking and my friend Celine was in the kitchen with me. When I reached in the baking pantry for something, I saw the molasses and the muscovado sugar. I grabbed them.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chef<\/p>\n

Then I saw some dried ginger. Grabbed that too and ground it up. <\/span><\/p>\n

\"ginger<\/p>\n

I was already over Turkey and the trimmings before<\/em> we sat down to eat.\u00a0In between finishing Thanksgiving side dishes, I baked some gingersnap cookies. The spicy smell filled the air with a festive flair. They were an addictive hand-to-mouth treat. They also went nicely with the Champagne.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"chefmorgancookies<\/span><\/p>\n

I set the cookies on a plate in the kitchen and every time someone passed by, they grabbed one or two off of the counter. Admittedly I was quite guilty of this too and wished my run was longer.<\/span><\/p>\n

Later, three generations, ages spanning from 83 to 5, sat at the table to eat. I would like to say that the food was passed in an orderly fashion, but it wasn\u2019t. Milk was split. Adult beverages flowed. Several plates and conversations were exchanged at the same time. Perhaps this sounds familiar ?<\/span><\/p>\n

As the littlest ones began to get full and wander off looking for something sweet, my eight year old niece declared at the table: \u201cI really like twerk – ey<\/i>.\u201d To the majority of the table, it sounded like she said, \u201cI really like twerking<\/i>.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

By now, I think most everyone is aware of a certain former Hannah Montana<\/em> exhibiting her controversial techniques at the VMAs. The exact display of her talents is not really the point. However, quicker than the gravy was gone, a Seinfeld episode unfolded at the table. Rapidly fired remarks and laughter were shot back and forth which went something like this:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cTwerking?\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cDid you say twerking?\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cWhat\u2019s twerking? my father asked.<\/span>
\n\u201cTurkey.\u201d\u00a0reiterated\u00a0my niece.<\/span>
\n\u201cNo, twerking.\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a word now.\u201d Chimed in a little one.<\/span>
\n\u201cWhat is a word now?\u201d my mother asked.<\/span>
\n\u201cTwerking.\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cWhat are you guys talking about?\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cYou don\u2019t know?\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cAbout turkey..?\u201d said my niece.<\/span>
\n\u201cNo, twerking.\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cI\u2019ll show you,\u201dannounces a child (I think one of mine).<\/span>
\n\u201cExcuse me?\u201d I interject. \u201cYou sit down…\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cMom...I\u2019m <\/i>not going to do it … I\u2019ll show them the video.\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cWhat? What video…\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cI still do not know what you are talking about,\u201d says my father.<\/span>
\n\u201cIt\u2019s a dance,\u201d says someone.<\/span>
\n\u201cIt\u2019s NOT<\/em> a dance.\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cWhat\u2019s twerrrrrrk-ing?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Armed with iPads, the tweens educate the elders with the mixed blessings of YouTube<\/em>. There I sit in stunned silence, grabbing the linen napkin in my hand as I nervously witness my parents (and other adults, but I was focused on my traditional parents) watching Ms. Cyrus display her skills.\u00a0 I looked for a defibrillator. I passed the wine. The silence was broken by my mother:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOh my goodness … Where was this?\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cThe VMAs.\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cHow do you kids know about this?\u201d<\/span>
\n\u201cEverybody has seen this video Grandpa.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

There you have it. That is how the simple proclamation of my niece’s adoration of the nation\u2019s beloved Thanksgiving bird \u00a0turned into verbal chaos at the dinner table.<\/span><\/p>\n

The holidays are not the holidays without a touch of spice, particularly when it comes to food. Gingerbread houses, pain d\u2019\u00e9pice<\/i>, spiced wine cider, spiked eggnog.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are looking for a little spice this season, these cookies have it. I made them with a molasses that has a particular sharpness to it (if you want something less spicy, try Grandma\u2019s Molasses). These cookies also have\u00a0 three types of sugar, including rich muscovado sugar.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Were the snappy cookies responsible for the spicy dinner conversation at my house?\u00a0 Any causal connection is speculative at best. Why did I tell you such a ridiculous, unimportant holiday story? I did so because<\/em> it is the holidays. With our endless holiday \u201cto do\u201d lists and the traffic , we can all use a bit of ridiculous levity and a good spicy cookie.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00e0 table <\/i><\/span>(come to the table)<\/span><\/p>\n

LM<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"chefmorgancookiescham2\"\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0gingersnap cookies<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

makes 3 dozen<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

you need:<\/span><\/p>\n

2\u00bd cups all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur)<\/span>
\n1 teaspoon kosher salt<\/span>
\n1\u00be teaspoon ground ginger<\/span>
\n2 teaspoons ground cinnamon<\/span>
\n\u00bc teaspoon ground allspice<\/span>
\n\u00bd teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg<\/span>
\n\u00bd teaspoon baking soda<\/span>
\npinch ground cloves<\/span>
\npinch freshly ground black pepper<\/span>
\n8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature<\/span>
\n\u00bc cup packed muscovado sugar<\/span>
\n\u00bd cup packed dark brown sugar<\/span>
\n\u00bc cup granulated sugar<\/span>
\n\u00bd cup unsulphured Molasses (I use Wholesome Sweeteners)<\/span>
\n2 tablespoons buttermilk, shaken<\/span><\/p>\n

how to:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n