Spicy Sugar-Crusted Ginger Cookies
This chewy spice cookie is flavored with a healthy dose of ginger, both crystallized and ground, and tangy lemon. The crystallized ginger adds texture and a bit of a sweet-hot quality and cardamom in the sugar coating brings a subtle, peppery hint to the mix.
Spicy Sugar-Crusted Ginger Cookies
Yield:
about 3 dozen
Prep Time:
15 minutes
Cook Time:
15 minutes
Total Time:
30 minutes
These chewy spice cookies have a subtle lemon flavor and a bit of a kick from crystallized ginger.
Ingredients
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 cup applesauce
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
For the sugar coating:
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Whisk together the two flours, crystallized ginger, baking powder, baking soda, salt and ground ginger.
- In a separate bowl, combine the applesauce, 1 cup of the sugar, the vegetable oil, grated lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon extract.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour the applesauce-oil mixture into it all at one time. Gently combine the wet and dry ingredients until just blended. Don't over mix. Form the dough into a ball, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Place the 1/4 cup sugar in a pie plate. Add the ground ginger, cardamom and cinnamon and combine.
- Lightly coat your hands with flour and form the dough into approximately 36 round balls, 1-1/2 tablespoons each. Roll the balls in the spiced sugar mixture and place 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes, or until set and very lightly browned. Cool for 1 minute on the baking sheet, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
If you don't have ground cardamom on hand, substitute ground cloves or omit it completely.
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light Magazine
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3 Comments on “Spicy Sugar-Crusted Ginger Cookies”
1/2 cup applesauce? What is the applesauce replacing – eggs? I see this recipe is going to be very soft – what can a person replace the applesauce with to make the recipe not so moist?
Applesauce is used as a substitute for fat (not eggs) in these cookies. As long as it’s not watery, it shouldn’t make the cookies too soft. Since I’ve never made any variation on this recipe though, I really couldn’t advise you as to whether or not you could replace it with butter, shortening or oil. Sorry I couldn’t be of more help.
They so light and puffy, and the sugar-spice coating looks delicious!