Ginger Cookies

While at my parent's house this weekend, I decided to mess up someone else's kitchen for a change! Ryan has been requesting these cookies for months...ever since someone made them for a church function last Spring. In fact, that day we stole several cookies and took them home to eat later-they're THAT good! These cookies definitely smell/taste more like a cold weather cookie, but don't wait for the temperatures to drop! You need to make these now!

My friend emailed me the recipe, and said she got it from the Better Homes and Garden cookbook.

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons of ground ginger (I ran out and only used 3)

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon (I bumped this up to 2)

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups shortening

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup molasses

3/4 cup sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix flour, ginger, baking soda, ground cinnamon, cloves, and salt in a bowl. Set aside. Beat shortening in mixer for 30 seconds, until creamy. Add sugar and continue to beat well. Add eggs and molasses, continuing to mix until combined. Slowly add flour mixture until it is all added and well mixed.

Pour 3/4 cup sugar into a bowl. Shape dough into 2 inch balls and roll in the sugar. Place on cookie sheets and bake for 9-11 minutes (you want the tops to be puffed and the bottoms to be light brown). Do not overbake!

Cool on a wire rack and DIG IN!