MUSINGS ON GINGERBREAD

A food blogger I am not. In fact, as I built my Pinterest boards, I decided not to save recipes except those from recognized test kitchens for the simple reason that I just don’t cook / bake that much. When there are just two of you, you don’t need much food. But here I go – trying and posting mid-century recipes.

I like variety in my diet, so constantly baking gingerbread might not be to my liking. However, today I’m trying a recipe for a molasses refrigerator cookie, but since they are to remain in the fridge for 3-4 hours, I won’t have time to bake them until tomorrow.

As I’ve mentioned before, I have gingersnap recipes from both of my grandmothers – Nina Saunders Portfors and Ina Dickson Dobson. The recipes are similar – both rolled. I don’t recall that Mother ever used the Saunders’ recipe. My dad, however, loved his mother’s gingersnaps and made them frequently, storing them in a tin can. We used to laugh that Daddy would change any recipe, often before he even tried the original, and yes, he changed the gingersnap recipe by adding an egg. Actually, as I’ve researched more modern gingersnap recipes, it appears the addition of an egg is the main difference. Perhaps my dad had done his homework.

At Thanksgiving, I made a batch of the Dobson gingersnaps, using my turkey-shaped cookie cutter. Years ago, I vowed that when I could afford it, I would have a collection of wonderful cookie cutters. Wouldn’t you know it, when I finally “arrived,” I no longer cared about cookie cutters? I now collect patterns of a different sort.

 

And when I searched for the perfect ginger cookie to frost, my dad's comment was, “Why not just frost the cookies from the old family recipe?” Frankly, I just think time goes on and there are probably tastier recipes, so my quest for the perfect frosted gingerbread boy is ongoing.

Reading recipes you see a lot of variation in the amount and type of spices. Both ginger and molasses are strong flavors (and expensive, too, by the way.)

Oh! I almost forgot -- I also tried a recipe for molasses oatmeal raisin cookies last month, but I didn’t care for them. No one else raved about them either, so I won’t make that recipe again.

Of course, my favorite cookie is your standard Tollhouse Chocolate Chip. Sometimes I substitute M&Ms. Sometimes I add Rice Krispies. But -- the men in my life prefer any other kind of cookie and preferably without candy, with the exception of toffee bits. KW