Food Friday~ Lemony Ginger Sugar Cookies

Friday, December 17, 2010

“Sugar & Spice, and everything nice… that’s what these cookies are made of”! Hey everyone, it’s Lu here & today I’m bringing you a cookie recipe that hopefully suits everyone (even Santa Claus)! I have such a sweet tooth & this time of year just makes it ferocious, lol! My family hosts an annual cookie exchange, so I have cookies on the brain for weeks. But, by this time in the holiday season, I am definitely looking for the “Easy” button, lol! Combine that with my lack of baking skills (I have no false modesty about this, truly I cannot bake well), I have been on the search for the “perfect” (i.e. perfectly simple) recipe that is delicious yet is not too painful for those who are a bit “challenged” in the kitchen. And this year, ya’ll, I believe I have found my dream cookie. Now, personally, my favorite cookie is the simple sugar cookie. And NOT those gorgeous cut-out, beautifully decorated kind! Don’t get me wrong, I love the way they look… but I can’t handle the stress of trying to decorate them (well, to give away, I mean). I’m doing good not to forget a vital ingredient or burn them, much less master a beautiful creation, lol!  And truly, I just prefer the taste of the more simple version of the “drop” cookie. But gingerbread cookies are what I always think of when I think of a Christmas cookie… however, like the iced sugar cookies, I have no interest in rolling them out, cutting, baking & decorating. I just want to hurry up & get to the eating, lol! So, when experimenting in the fall, I came up with a sugar/ginger cookie recipe that is tasty and easy. And that is perfect for me. The best part of this recipe (for me) is that it starts with a cookie mix! You know who I love? Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee. I haven’t tried many of her recipes, but I just love the concept of taking something that’s “store bought” & tweaking it to make it almost homemade. It takes out a lot of stress for me when I’m short on time, because I’m not trying to re-invent the wheel. With that in mind, I decided I’d use a box mix for sugar cookies & just add my own additional ingredients & spice.

I figured I’d satisy my desire for the “traditional” ginger cookie and my tastebuds, with the sugar cookie. But I also added an additional item… when grating the ginger root, and releasing that heavenly ginger smell, I thought how much it reminded me of lemons (which I loooooove). And, because our Meyer’s lemon tree is now producing like crazy (we’re so proud, it’s our first crop), I thought I’d throw in some lemon zest as well.  I just love the idea of my now-to-be traditional Christmas cookie having an ingredient from our back yard! Oh, I feel a scrap page coming on…! Of course, any lemon will do, lol. {A note about the Meyer’s lemon: it is very “thin skinned”. Meaning, don’t be heavy handed when you zest or you’ll also get white pith… and that is bitter}

Here is the “short but sweet” ingredient list:

• A box of your favorite sugar cookie mix
• 2 tablespoons of lemon zest (you could add more if you love lemons like I do)
• 1 teaspoon of fresh grated ginger
• 1 tablespoon of crystallized (candied) ginger
• 1 teaspoon of allspice
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon (optional)
• 2-1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• additional sugar (for rolling)

(I tend to go easy on spices, as I don’t want one flavor to overwhelm another. This could easily just become a ginger cookie, lol, so I put in more lemon zest & took it easy on the fresh ginger. My girls won’t eat them if they’re “too” spicey. But by all means, spice it up if you like it that way. If you omit the cinnamon, it has more of a sugar cookie look & taste).

 Directions:

•  Follow the directions on your cookie mix (additional ingredients will vary according to brand)
• Add in additional ingredients and stir until a dough forms
• Form into 1″ balls, roll in sugar to coat
• Space balls approximately 2″ apart
• Bake according to your mix instructions, until the edges are a light brown
• Let sit a minute on the cookie sheet before transferring to a cookie rack to completely cool

Now, because these cookies are so easy to make (and yummy), I knew I wanted to give them as homemade gifts. Check out these little projects I put together:

 I started with a chipboard flowerpot from a local craft store. I created a pot “wrapper”, printed out, then matched a paint color & painted the whole pot. When it was dry, I glued on the wrapper (with Mod Podge), and tied on the ribbon. I filled the pot with a round 5″ foam floral ball and added the grass. Then I set it aside to make the cookies! As soon as the cookies came out of the oven, I immediately inserted a cookie stick (available at your local craft store), appoximately 1-1/2″ into the cookie. You have to move fast or the cookie edges will harden & you won’t be able to insert the stick. Once inserted, let it sit for a minute or so on the baking sheet. Then carefully transfer to the cookie rack to cool completely.  Once cooled, I wrapped each cookie with a small clear treat bag (I bought mine in the craft section of Walmart), then tied off with a ribbon. This way, my “arrangement” will keep for a few days.  *A note: if you plan to wrap up your cookies, be mindful of how large you make them. You’ll want them to slide in easily.

For this next set, I picked up these adorable gift boxes at Target at the beginning of the holiday season, so not sure that they’re still available (I so wished I’d bought a dozen of them). This is just a matter of putting a dozen (or more) cookies into a bag and then into the box they go! So easy! To secure my package, I punched holes on the closure flaps, threaded the ribbon through them & tied off. I created a few gift tags similiar to the new Shoppe gift labels, available here. I just love these labels, they instantly provide the perfect personalized finishing touch. SP makes gift giving so charming and simple!

One final comment about cookie mixes… they do not all look the same coming out of the oven, lol. The mix that I used for my flowerpot, is not the same that I used for the boxes. I found that this gluten free sugar cookie mix from Cherrybrook Kitchen  produces a “puffier” cookie, that would allow me to insert the stick. Not only did I find them more “visually” appealing, now this arrangement will be safe for any gluten intolerances! The other brands (non-gluten free) produced a flatter cookie, which is perfect for stacking a dozen or so cookies into the box.

This was the most fun I’ve ever had baking & putting together baked gifts (and that’s saying a lot, because I’ve been at this for years). And although this recipe is almost easy enough to commit to memory (even for me, lol), I’ve created this recipe card for you. You can click HERE to download, or simply click the image below.  Hope you enjoy!

SP will be back tomorrow to fill you in on the blog’s HOLIDAY SCHEDULE, so be sure to check back then.  Also, don’t miss Kylie’s post above as we have TWO new blog posts for you today :o)  Have a wonderful weekend.

LuFood Stuff, Free (not desktops), Uncategorized 4 Comments