Saturday, July 9, 2016

Iced Maple~Molasses Cookies & July's Give-Away Apron

It's so hot here (95-degrees with a heat index of 102) that my baking transported me to cooler days and I created a recipe reminiscent of Autumn!  These cookies are scented with ginger, cinnamon, cloves and the tastes of molasses and maple--a cookie I would normally bake for the holidays.

Not to make light of disasters, but on January 15, 1919, in the North End of Boston, a molasses storage tank burst and the streets were flooded with this thick, sticky substance.  It flowed through the streets at 35 miles per hour and killed 21 and injured 150 people.  For several decades, there was a folklore that on hot summer days, the area smelled of molasses!  Well, that's how my kitchen smelled yesterday:-D

Iced Maple~Molasses Cookies
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup Grade B Maple Syrup
1/2 cup Molasses
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
4 3/4 + 3T cups King Arthur All-Purpose Flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 T ground Ginger
2 tsp. ground Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground Cloves
1/2 tsp. ground Cardamon
1 cup finely chopped almonds

Preheat oven to 350F-degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cream the butter thoroughly.  Add the maple syrup and molasses and beat together, scrapping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.  Add the eggs, one at a time--the mixture will appear "curdled."  Add the vanilla and mix well.

Add the remaining ingredients and mix on low to incorporate.  The dough will be somewhat stiff.
Form the dough into balls the size of a large walnut or ping-pong ball;-)  Place the balls on the parchment paper and using a cookie stamp, lightly dipped into flour, press a design in the cookies.  The cookie should be about 3-inches in diameter.

Alternatively, you could use a fork to cross-hatch a design (like peanut butter cookies).  Place the cookies in the preheated oven and bake for 12 minutes.  Remove from the oven and transfer to a rack to cool.
 Icing:
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar (icing sugar)
1 T light Karo syrup
1-2 T very hot water
1/4 tsp. almond extract

While the cookies are warm, use an off-set spatula to spread the icing on top of the cookies.


These cookies were so good with a glass of Iced Tea or, as my hubby had, a tall glass of Lemonade.  Enjoy!

Now, the new apron that will be given away at the end of the month also reflects how hot it is here.  This fabric just jumped out at me in one of my favorite quilt shops!
My Kelly loved the color orange and I think she would approve of my choice.  If you would like to win this apron, just comment on any of the posts this month.  Good Luck!

To put a smile on your face, here's a photo of a squirrel relaxing on one of the Adirondack chairs on the deck.  Since I don't bake with preservatives, the wildlife around here eat pretty good.  This guy has a chunk of bread while stretched out--what a life!

16 comments:

  1. these cookies sound so good. not big on sweet icing but the cookies themselves sound very good. sweet photo of wildlife with your bread. he is lucky to have a piece of your homemade bread.
    stamping sue
    http://stampingsueinconnecticut.blogspot.com/

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  2. I love these beautiful cookies..the design and flavour..just awesome, Susan.

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  4. I must give these cookies a try...because my most favorite cookie is Molasses Crinkles. I would dip them in Dr Pepper and I love the twinkle it made on my tongue from the molasses and the carbonation. Weird but oh so good.

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  5. What fun cookies! And your squirrel looks pretty healthy :-)

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  6. Oh that Boston molassses story is wild...what an awful way to go. Love your cookies and the way that they are finished. Wonder if my potato masher would provide the same effect.

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  7. I love how the cookie stamp looks, and it makes a great way to get the icing to stay put til it sets up! Lovely apron for this month and a cute squirrel pic too!

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  8. Libby and I enjoyed the cookies this afternoon with our 3:00 coffee! There is nothing more wonderful than homemade cookies delivered right to your front door! Thank you, Sis, love you so much!
    PS-- The apron is beautiful!

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  9. Your cookies look delicious, Susan. I've never heard the Boston molasses incident---how horrible. Stay cool, dear Susan. xoxo ♥

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  10. I just finished eating a molasses cookie. Yum. I will have to try frosting them.

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  11. I love the flavor of molasses and these cookies are so pretty. So is your new apron! Enjoy your week, Sis. Hugs, Diane

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  12. I am a new reader to your blog. The squirrel relaxing while he's eating was cute! I, too, love making molasses cookies. Just curious where you got the cookie stamp? I have never seen those before. Apron is beautiful!

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  13. I am a new reader to your blog. The squirrel relaxing while he's eating was cute! I, too, love making molasses cookies. Just curious where you got the cookie stamp? I have never seen those before. Apron is beautiful!

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  14. our neighborhood has a squirrel named Mr. Nutz (don't ask how i know he is a boy squirrel) and he used to spread out (on the peach tree till it - the tree - got into an argument with a windstorm) just like your squirrel ... anywho, i lurve molasses cookies and i would really, really like to sink my teeth into one right now ... but it is waaaay too hot to bake ... still, Winter Is Coming...

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