chewy molasses cookies

The physical therapy clinic that I have been working  in has 4 people total: two physical therapists, a patient services manager, and then me, the student.  Since it is such a small clinic, I've gotten to know my "co-workers" pretty well.  We joke together, mess around with the gym equipment when we don't have patients, and share our daily life drama.  


The other day one of them was not feeling well.  This wasn't exactly a rare occasion and actually it occurs so often that I have gotten used to giving her a hard time about it.  Some days I won't even wait for her to bring it up and I'll ask her "So, what's hurting today?"  Her answers range from her knee throbbing all night, her eyeballs feeling like they're going to pop out of her head, and her shoulder hurting all the way from her neck into her fingers.  


One day in particular she had a cold that was really acting up.  After she told me all of her symptoms I responded "I'm really sorry, but I never get sick so it's hard for me to feel bad for you."  Of course I was kidding but I don't think she found it that funny.  In fact, I think she secretly cursed me because the very next week guess who got sick.  Yep, yours truly.  My head was throbbing, my nose was a never-ending snot factory, my appetite was gone(thats how I knew I was really sick), and my throat was dry and achy.  I guess the joke was on me.


With no appetite for real food and feeling really bad for myself, I decided I would make cookies for dinner.  I had been craving a molasses cookie for a couple of weeks and decided I would make a meal out of them.  I had them straight from the oven when they were soft and warm dipped in ice cold milk, and they were even better the next day when they were cooled down.  They turned out chewy, perfectly spiced, and had a nice crunch from the sugar coating.  Even though they didn't cure my sickness, they did make me feel better while I was eating them.   

Molasses Cookies


¾ cup (1 ½ sticks)  unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
½ cup plain molasses (or ⅓ cup blackstrap)
2 ½ cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon ginger
½ cup white sugar for rolling cookies


Directions:


Cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add egg and molasses and beat an additional minute.


In medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and ginger.  Whisk to combine.  Add to butter mixture and mix until just combined.


Cover and chill 1-2 hours, until firm.


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.


After chilled, roll the dough into large tablespoon balls.  Roll in sugar.


Bake on prepared baking sheet for 10-12 minutes.  Let them firm up a bit on baking sheet for about 3 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.