Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies

I tasted the best ginger molasses cookie at a cider mill a few years back and have sought the perfect recipe since. As a Christmas gift, a colleague left me a 1/2 dozen cookies in my office and the perfect recipe was found. I profusely thanked them for the cookies and nicely asked for the recipe so I could recreate the gingery goodness myself. I was so appreciative and happy when they simply sent me the link to this amazing recipe. If you want a perfectly balanced ginger molasses cookie with a little spice, a crunch on the outside and chewy on the inside, this Epicurious recipe is the one. It's even worth chopping up the candied ginger into tiny little pieces to get this taste.

Within a few days, I went home to my nice new kitchen to make them prior to Christmas and gifted some to my colleagues at the office so I wouldn't eat them all myself. I don't know about serving them with apples and cheddar as the recipe mentions, but a cold glass of milk or a hot cup of coffee is perfect.

Caramel Apple Cookie Pops

I've made this caramel apple cookie recipe before and just made the regular cookies. I took them to the neighborhood Halloween party last year and they got rave reviews.  While I knew it was an amazing recipe, I wanted to do something different this time around, especially since I was planning to take them to the same party again this year. Since they are inspired by caramel apples, I thought...why not add sticks to them like caramel apples?  Plus, it would make it fun for people to eat at the party. I haven't made cookie pops before, but I knew it was a nice thick cake-like batter that would probably work.  They are yummy too!  They're made with fresh shredded apple and with the caramel icing, they taste just like the real caramel apples.  Except they're better...and not as messy!

I made the dough, put scoops on the Silpat, placed the lollipop stick through the center and flattened each cookie scoop with the back of a spoon to get more of a round shape and set it into the stick.

I let them cool on a pan a little after baking and carefully transferred them with a spatula to some parchment paper to cool and set.

The caramel apple icing was carefully applied so as to not pull on the stick too much and voila!....caramel apple cookie pops! The original recipe called for adding nuts like the apples I have here, but I was taking them where there would be lots of kids so I thought I better not chance it with possible allergies. They were a hit again and gone before I left the party early!

My sister and her family came to the party with us and she made these yummy and adorable spice sandwich cookies with homemade jack-o-lantern faces.  We used some cream cheese frosting that we colored orange to put in between and also used some of the leftover caramel apple icing for some. 

She even made some pretty oak leaves.  The pumpkin faces were the best to see the icing through and it oozed out through the eyes when you took a bite! :)

  

Recipe for Caramel Apple Cookie Pops

 (Adapted from a recipe for Caramel Apple Cookies in Midwest Living Magazine) 

Ingredients:

Cookie dough:

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 t. pumpkin or apple pie spice
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup apple juice
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 large tart apple (peeled, cored and coarsely shredded)

Icing:

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 3 Tbs. apple juice
• 2 2/3 cups powdered sugar

Chopped nuts (optional)

Directions:

In a large mixing bowl, beat 1/2 cup butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds.  Add 1 1/4 cups brown sugar, baking soda, pie spice, and salt. Beat until well-combined, scraping sides of bowl. Beat in egg until well-combined. Add 1/2 cup apple juice; beat on low speed until combined (don't worry if mixture looks a little curdled). Beat in the flours and fold in the shredded apple.

Drop dough by slightly rounded teaspoons 2 inches apart onto a greased or Silpat lined cookie sheet. Be careful not to make them too big if you're making cookie pops so they won't fall off the sticks if they're too heavy.  If you are doing pops, stagger the scoops on the cookie sheet and place the sticks into the center of the rounded teaspoon.  Run a spoon under warm water and flatten each of the cookie scoops slightly with the back of the spoon.  Bake at 350 degrees about 10-12 minutes or until tops and edges are browned.  Let stand for a few minutes to cool and transfer carefully to parchment paper or wire racks for icing.

For icing: In a small saucepan, heat and stir 1/2 cup brown sugar, butter and apple juice over medium heat until all the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and whisk in the powdered sugar.  If it is too thick, you can add a touch more juice or if it's too runny add a little more powdered sugar.  If you let it sit too long, it will thicken and you may need to add some juice to get it back to spreading consistency.  Spread carefully on top of cookies and sprinkle with chopped nuts, if desired.