This recipe is part of The Food Channel’s Virtual Cookie Exchange. These Cranberry Gingerbread Gems are a Baking Day favorite of mine, and one which I always associate with this time of year. In the past few years I’ve adapted the cookie to be smaller, crisp, and even more addictive – I usually put ten or so in a small cellophane bag with a ribbon to give to co-workers.

Cranberry Ginger Gems
The FoodChannel.com

¾ cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
¼ cup blackstrap molasses (regular works fine too, but the bitterness helps balance the sweet)
1 egg
2½ cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon cloves
⅓ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chopped crystallized ginger
Ginger brew mixed with sugar (or white sugar mixed with ¼ teaspoon ground ginger)

I use a stand mixer for this, and if you have one I recommend it. Cream together butter and sugar. (Basically blend them together until the mixture is light in color and fluffy.) Add the molasses and egg; blend well.

Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl – flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. I use a fork to fluff up the flour but using a sifter works too. Add dry ingredients to the wet – I recommend doing this a bit at a time, and if you are using a stand mixer, pause between additions. The dough will get very stiff.

Fold in cranberries and crystallized ginger bits. Cover, and refrigerate until very firm – I didn’t use the dough until the next day, but a few hours at least should do it.

Heat the oven to 350°, and prep a shallow dish with ginger-sugar mixture.

Now, you can shape these a few ways. If you want normal size cookies, simply shape into 1-inch balls and roll in the sugar. However, part of the charm of these cookies is how small, crispy and utterly addictive they are – and I would sure feel a lot more guilty eating regular size cookies. To make small cookies, take a scoop of dough and roll it in your hands into a snake. (Yes, it’s going to look like a winner of the dog-turd lookalike contest. Get over it.) Roll the snake in sugar, then take a sharp knife and cut into pieces about a half inch thick. Press slightly to reshape into a circle if nessesary.

I use a sil-pat on a baking sheet when I make these because it pretty much negates any pan cleanup, but parchment or a greased cookie sheet works well too. Place the mini-cookies about an inch apart.

Bake for no more than 10 minutes at 350° – I like to check around 6 minutes in. A cookie should feel set but not stiff – if it feels sturdy in the oven, they are probably overdone. Cool on a rack for a few minutes (if they last that long!)

MF&L Staff at Maine Food & Lifestyle magazine.