'Healthier' molasses cookies

annie1992

14 years ago

Elery and I are going to Ohio this weekend to visit his Dad and stepmom. She's been sick for a while, in and out of the hospital. She's lost a lot of weight and says nothing tastes good, plus she's diabetic.

Elery asked me to see if I could come up with a healthier molasses cookie, something she loves. So, because it was over 90F again today, I decided to bake, LOL.

I took my molasses cookie recipe and cut it in half. I replaced the sugar with Brown Sugar Splenda and half the flour with whole wheat flour. 1/4 of the shortening was replaced with apple sauce and I left the salt out entirely.

Before baking I dipped the top in more Splenda.

Now, I know she can't eat a handful of these, even with the changes, but I was pleasantly surprised with the results. I cut the fat by 1/3 and added the whole wheat without much of a compromise in texture. They are a bit "cakier" than my original "chewy" cookie, but not so much they are unacceptable to me:

I also made three loaves of honey wheat bread, no pictures because you've seen that before. And since I had the oven on, I decided to make some sugar free strawberry jam to take along with the bread:

the jam is much paler than my usual low sugar recipe, but it does taste good.

Annie

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Comments (17)

lakeguy35
14 years ago
Hope Elery's DM is feeling and doing better...I'm sure she will love those cookies. bread, and jam. I know you don't like the heat so my hat is off to you for turning the oven on and making that jam.

Now, I've been on the hunt for crystalised ginger since your original recipe was posted several weeks ago. No luck in my local stores. I've checked the baking, ethnic, and speciality isles with no luck. Whole Foods would be my last option... HELP! I'm guessing this is an easy find even though I'm having no luck as of yet.

David
Fori
14 years ago
Those look gooood! When I tried the cookie recipe I used all white whole wheat flour and it worked out well. I think applesauce is a natural with this and when I make them again, I'm going to try it! (Not the Splenda though...)

Thanks for sharing!
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Here is my all time favorite chewy molasses cookie, for comparison. Yours has almost the same amount of fat, although my recipe has twice as much flour/sugar/eggs, etc. I think the fat ratio is definitely pretty high in your recipe. Chewy Molasses Cookies (Annie CF) 1 1/2 cups of shortening (I use half and half with butter, but all butter makes them too crispy for my taste) 1 cups granulated sugar 1 cup dark brown sugar 2 eggs 3/4 cup of dark molasses 4 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 4 teaspoons baking soda 2 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons ginger 1 teaspoon ground cloves Chopped crystalized ginger, optional, to taste. I used about half a cup, finely chopped and wish I'd have used more but I love ginger 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. Annie
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Here ya go. Chewy Molasses Cookies (Annie CF) 1 1/2 cups of shortening (I use half and half with butter, but all butter makes them too crispy for my taste) 1 cups granulated sugar 1 cup dark brown sugar 2 eggs 3/4 cup of dark molasses 4 1/2 cups flour 1 teaspoon salt 4 teaspoons baking soda 2 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons ginger 1 teaspoon ground cloves Chopped crystalized ginger, optional, to taste. I used about half a cup, finely chopped and wish I'd have used more but I love ginger 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.
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Aunt Sally and Sally Ann cookies are the same creature; from the late 1930's early 40's, a molasses cookie frosted with a thick cooked frosting that hardens on the exterior but stays soft underneath. The cookie dough is refrigerated and then rolled out and cut with a Spam can to give it the traditional shape. Once baked, the cookie is hard; it seems to draw moisture from the thick frosting and softens up as the frosting hardens. It's really a magical transformation! The name difference seems to be regional (Aunt Sally=east; Sally Ann=south & midwest). My authentic Aunt Sally recipe uses brewed coffee but no eggs. The frosting is made not with marshmallows, but by cooking unflavored gelatine, water and granulated sugar, and then adding powdered sugar and beating it for 15 min. Stage Plank cookies are a different animal altogether; they are a form of gingerbread with well-documented Creole roots. The cookie is crisper than a "Sally" and any icing (the original is not iced), is a just a thin coat of royal icing. Uncle Al's Stage Planks are the archetypal modern Stage Plank cookie-- but they don't seem to bear much resemblence to the original.
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Tracey_OH
14 years ago
I think they look great! You are a sweetheart for going out of your way to make something special for her. I hope she enjoys them. Have a great visit in OH! Hope you make it to Jungle Jim's and Trader Joe's.

Tracey
tami_ohio
14 years ago
Ooooh, Annie! Those look great, and I'm sure she'll be pleased to get them. I hope she is feeling much better soon. Where in Ohio? I am in north central ohio, just about 5 miles south of the lake!

Have a great trip.

Tami
annie1992
Original Author
14 years ago
Tami, she and Elery's Dad are in Lebanon. Her first husband, who passed away several years ago was a business man in Mason. Stepmom owns the Houston, a local restaurant, and her kids own Kirkwood Inn and a dinner theater in a neighboring town. They're also involved, somehow, in the waterpark next to King's Island, so they've done business in the area for years.

David, I got crystallized ginger at Penzey's and at Trader Joe's, but I've also found it at the local Meijer's. Never looked at WalMart, LOL. The cookies are good even without that extra ginger, but they're better with it if you're a ginger fan like I am! I'll look for it at Jungle Jim's, if I find some, I'll stick it in the mail.

Tracey, I'm definitely going to Jungle Jim's. My excuse is that it's only about 15 miles away and I need sorghum. Yeah, I can't get it anyplace else. (grin)

Annie
annie1992
Original Author
14 years ago
Oh, and fori, I agree on the applesauce, it seemed a natural with the other flavors and, although I much prefer the chewier and full fat/full sugar version, these were better than I anticipated.

The next time I'll use the white whole wheat for all the flour, but I didn't have any and I needed to bake before we left.

Annie
BeverlyAL
14 years ago
I'm glad they turned out so well Annie and thanks for letting us know.

I shall never, ever make the others again because I have eaten every one except the few I gave away. I absolutely cannot stay out of them and you know what a large recipe they make.
Kay
14 years ago
David,
My regular grocery store has crystalized ginger in the produce area. I've bought it pre-packaged before, but now they're selling it from the bulk bins, too.
Tracey_OH
14 years ago
I think you definitely need that sorghum Annie LOL. Sounds like a plan to me! I was also thinking if you are around Saturday morning, you might enjoy the flea market at Ceasar's Creek. In the summer, they have a lot of booths set up outside and some really good "junk". Just a thought if you want to get out for awhile :)

Tracey
Rusty
14 years ago
lakeguy35:

Have you tried this? (copied & pasted from another thread on ginger cookies)

RE: OMG Old Original Annie!
Posted by loves2cook4six (My Page) on Thu, Jun 4, 09 at 18:03

lynda
The ginger is really easy.

It's a siple syrup with 3 parts sugar to three parts water and 1 part sliced ginger.

Directions:
Peel the ginger and slice it into rounds about 1/8 inch thick. For every cup of ginger slices, bring 3 cups water and 3 cups sugar to a boil in a large sauce pan. When the sugar is completely dissolved, add the ginger and boil for 45 minutes, until the ginger is sweet and tender. Drain the ginger, reserving the liquid. Place the ginger on a rack to dry for 30 minutes, then toss it with enough granulated sugar to coat. Let it dry on wax paper and then store in an airtight container.

Boil the reserved liquid until it is reduced to a syrup with a consistency somewhere between maple syrup and honey. This will intensify its flavor. This syrup can be used for pancakes, waffles, or ice cream, and is an extra bonus for making your own candied ginger.

The ginger is delicious eaten as candy, and can also be used in recipes calling for candied ginger. If you don't want to make it yourself but don't want to spend a fortune for it, look in an Asian grocery store, where the price will be much less than it is at the supermarket.

Notes:
The left over syrup can be strained and stored in the fridge. It's great over ice cream and can be added to Jams etc

Sorry, don't mean to hijack anyone's thread.

Rusty
tami_ohio
14 years ago
Annie, I've been thur there many times! DD went to school in Cincinnati. It looks like Saturday is going to be beautiful, but Sunday may be wet at times. Have a good visit!

Tami
compumom
14 years ago
David, the Ginger People also make small cans of ginger chips. They're wonderful in cookie recipes. I think my last can came from Homegoods but Wms Sonoma also sells them.

DH is addicted to Buderim Ginger. They have the best quality of ginger that we've ever tasted. The texture is soft and juicy. The only problem is that it's from Australia and not well imported here. They say that the US distributor is getting his act together, I hope so cause World Market doesn't carry it anymore!
foodonastump
14 years ago
I've been following this and the "OOA" thread with interest.

I'm wondering about the thought process of replacing some fat with applesauce. The way I'm thinking it, it sounds like the cookies work with half the fat, and it sounds like applesauce is an addition that works. But is this a replacement?

Not trying to be difficult ;) just a non-baker trying to understand.
lakeguy35
14 years ago
Annie, you don't have to go to that trouble. I should be able to find it....maybe I've been looking in the wrong places.

Carnelian, thanks for the tip! That's the one place I didn't look for it.

Rusty, thanks for sharing that recipe. I missed it in the original post. That leftover syrup sounds good too!

Ellen, thanks for the tip on the chips. I've not been to WS in some time. It's a dangerous place for a foodie to go! LOL.

I'll be sure and report back once I find and or make the candied ginger.

David
annie1992
Original Author
14 years ago
foas, I've often substituted apple sauce or baby food prunes for a part of the fat in baked goods. I usually start by replacing 1/4 of the fat and work up from there until I get a result that I don't like, then I back off, LOL. that particularly substitution is well known and has been used since the 60s, when the "low fat" craze started. If you leave that out entirely, you don't have enough mosture in the dough and so get an unacceptably dry end product, if you can even hold the dough together long enough to bake it.

As I mentioned, the substitution of whole wheat and applesauce did change the texture, the cookies were more cake-y and less chewy. I like 'em chewy, but given the health issues, the recipients were very happy with them the way they were. Plus, they never tasted the originals. (grin)

Annie
foodonastump
14 years ago
Interesting, who knew! (Well, I guess everyone but me...!)
katefisher
14 years ago
First of all that is very kind of you to go to such lengths for someone. Very big hearted.

Second can I find your recipe for Honey Wheat Bread here someplace? That sounded divine.

Finally your cookies looked just delicious. I hope she finds them to be something that can make her palate sit up and take notice.

Thank you.

Kate

'Healthier' molasses cookies

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