Ginger Cookies

These are like ginger snaps but much better. The cookies are easy to make because you don't have to fool around with cutting butter into flour which I think is dicey. This recipe uses canola oil instead of butter.

I highly recommend you get turbinado sugar and whole wheat pastry flour (non pastry works just fine). Turbinado sugar is sold in a regular grocery store as "Raw Sugar" usually in a brown bag, it also says turbinado sugar. It's very coarse and has some molasses flavor, it adds a nice crunch.

You probably don't need to sift the flour.

Mix this up in two bowls - dry ingredients and wet ingredients.

2/3 cup canola oil
1 cup turbinado sugar (plus a half cup for coating later)
1 large egg
4 tablespoons molasses
2 cups sifted whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda (not powder)
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon sea salt (I'm sure regular salt is just fine)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (use a thermometer)

Mix oil and 1 cup of sugar in a larger bowl until combined. Beat in the egg. Add the molasses. Stir until well mixed.

In another bowl, sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt. Stir with a fork until well mixed.

Dump the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat with a fork or spatula until well mixed. It will have a texture like wet concrete.

Put 1/2 cup of the raw sugar into a shallow bowl. Pluck a piece of the dough, enough to make a 1 inch ball, roll it around in your palms. Roll it in the sugar and place on an ungreased nonstick cookie sheet. I put a piece of parchment on the cookie sheet for no good reason. Don't flatten the cookies.

Bake for 10 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool and do the next batch.