Recipe for Life: Gingerbread Cookies

Recipe for Life

We all have a favorite indulgence that transports us back to the simpler days of our childhood with the very first bite. For Rick Dunetz, a high school volleyball coach and founder of the Side-Out Foundation (a non-profit that funds research into new treatments for stage 4 breast cancer), that magical food is gingerbread cookies. Rick’s recipe was inherited from a neighbor who baked them for him all through out his childhood years and only passed on the recipe to Rick and his wife after they promised to share it with the next generation of bakers in their family when they could no longer make the delicious cookies. He’s taking that lesson to heart early and shared his recipe with the Full Frame team. Once you’ve tasted them, you’ll want to share them with all of your loved ones as well. 

Ingredients:

  • 236 ml (2 sticks) of softened butter (not melted!)
  • 300 ml (1 ¼ cup) of molasses
  • 3 large eggs
  • 240 ml (1 cup) light brown sugar
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) cinnamon
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) cloves
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) salt
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) ginger
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) baking soda
  • 720 g to 840 g (6 to 7 cups) flour

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 190 degrees Celsius

Add molasses in the mixer, add eggs, and soften butter. Mix until combined.

Add light brown sugar until combined then add all the spices, salt, and baking soda and mix until combined.

Add half of the flour and mix until combined. Add 480 ml more of flour and mix until combined.  Add rest of flour and mix until combined. The mixture should be very lightly sticky to the touch.  Add a little more flour as needed to get the right consistency.

Put dough on 2 pieces of wax paper positioned like a plus sign (+) and drop the dough in the middle. Put the wax paper wrapped dough into an airtight container and refrigerate fridge for a minimum of 24 hours.

When ready to make cookies take out the dough and let sit for 30 minutes or so. When ready cut the dough into 4 separate pieces and knead each piece until you can roll the dough.  

Roll the dough to the desired thickness (6 mm maximum). If you make it too thin the cookies will be on the crisp side, too thick and you may need to increase the bake time. 

Line your cookie sheet with a Silpat (silicone baking mat) or parchment paper. The Silpat is my favorite. Cut your cookies and place them on the cookie sheet. If you want to cut out designs knock yourself out (I mean, not literally but you get the idea)!

Bake cookies for 8 to 9 minutes. Check them for doneness. We like them bready and not crispy. If you think they need more time add 30 seconds to one minute.

You can eat the cookies warm or wait until they cool. Otherwise store the cookies in an airtight container and refrigerate until you are ready to serve.