Here it is:

ANNIE'S CHEWY MOLASSES COOKIES

1-1/2 cups of shortening (I use half butter & half shortening)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
3/4 cup of dark molasses
4-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
4 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. ginger
1 tsp. ground cloves
Chopped crystallized ginger, to taste, (optional)
Coarse sugar or turbinado sugar for rolling

Cream the shortening and sugars. Add the molasses and eggs and mix until well blended. Sift the flour (yeah right, I don't, LOL) and measure 4-1/2 cups into a separate bowl. Add the spices, salt, and baking soda and whisk to combine. Turn the mixer to low or stir, and add the flour slowly until well mixed. Stir in the chopped ginger and chill the dough for at least an hour.

After the dough has chilled for an hour, roll tablespoonfuls of the dough into balls and roll the balls in the coarse sugar to completely coat. Place the dough balls about an inch apart on a greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake for 12 to 15 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

The cookies will puff up and crack. When the cookies are done the cracks should still look a little wet, but the outside should look dry. They'll "fall" a little as they cool, let them sit a couple of minutes on the sheet before you try to move them to cooling racks.

I made these this year and they were excellent - and they were chewy despite the "crackle" in the name.

Alexa

Double Ginger Crackles


10 oz. (2-1/4 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour
2-3/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. table salt
6 oz. (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1-1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/4 cup molasses
3 Tbs. finely chopped crystallized ginger
Tip: For the best results, measure your flour by weight instead of volume. (1 cup of all-purpose flour equals 4-1/2 oz.) If you donâÂÂt have a scale, be sure to use the proper technique when filling your measuring cups.
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Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and heat the oven to 350ðF. Line two large cookie sheets with parchment or nonstick baking liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, ground ginger, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, beat the butter and 1 cup of the sugar with an electric mixer (a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a hand-held) on medium-high speed until well blended. Add the egg, molasses, and crystallized ginger; beat well. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until well blended.
Pour the remaining 1/3 cup sugar into a shallow bowl. Using a 1-Tbs. cookie scoop, a small ice cream scoop, or two tablespoons, shape the dough into 1-inch balls. Roll each ball in the sugar to coat. Set the balls 1-1/2 to 2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
Bake, rotating the sheets halfway through baking, until the cookies are puffed and the bottoms are lightly browned, 12 to 14 min. If you touch a cookie, it should feel dry on the surface but soft inside. The surface cracks will look a bit wet. Let the cookies sit on the cookie sheet for 5 min. and then transfer them to a rack to cool completely. When cool, store in airtight containers.
Ginger flavor intensifies with time, making these cookies excellent candidates for long keeping. When stored in an airtight container, the cookies remain impressively delicious for up to five days from baking. Well wrapped, the cookies will keep for several weeks in the freezer.

Thanks so much. The past couple times I bought crystallized ginger intended to make these, I ended up snacking on it instead. Needed to find the recipe before temptation struck again!

Pat beat me to it, I just made a batch of those at Christmas and had to get rid of the darned things, I eat way too many when they are around.

That recipe was Grandma's, I don't know where she got it, I added the crystallized ginger. Grandma used to roll hers in just plain sugar, I'm sure she never heard of turbinado, but I think it makes them a little fancier, if you can make a molasses cookie "fancy".

And now I want one.

Annie