The Molasses Cookie Conundrum, and Mother's Sour Cream Jumbles

Ginger Doodles, displayed in the kitchen of our Amish Farmhouse, 2016

These are the molasses/ginger cookies which are my stand-by recipe.

The original called for more sugar than I use.

My adaptation follows:

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. white sugar

1/2 c. demerara or light brown sugar

1/4 c. molasses

1 egg

1 t. Vanilla

Beat the above until well blended.

Add: 

2 c. flour sifted with

1/2 t. salt

1 t. baking soda

1 t. ginger

1 t. cinnamon

I use a melon ball sized scoop to drop onto a cookie sheet.

You could use a teaspoon or tablespoon to scoop up dough and roll between your hands if you prefer.

Sprinkle tops of cookies with sugar or a cinnamon/sugar mix;

Bake at 350 for 7-9 minutes--usually the longer time.

Let cool slightly on pan, then remove to wire rack.

Mother's Sour Cream Jumbles

I have not made this recipe, although I remember that my mother made them often. 

The cookies had a soft cake-like texture.

My sister has made them using the recipe on mother's handwritten card.

She felt the cookies were 'dry.'

So, no recommendation from me, but here it is!

1 c. sugar

3/4 cup sour milk or cream*

1/2 c. shortening

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

Sift together and stir in:

2 c. flour

1tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Drop on greased cookie sheet, Bake at 375 until cookies are lightly browned on edges and tops spring back when touched.

*Living next door to my grandfather's dairy farm, our milk came from there as raw milk.  Mother used clabbered sour milk for these cookies.  If I made them now I would use cultured sour cream or yogurt--starting with 1/2 cup, adding extra if needed.

Mother sometimes added raisins to the mix, and the tops were always sprinkled with cinnamon.

Electric Mixers hadn't come into general kitchen use when I was a child [!] so this cookie dough was hand mixed.

The proportion of milk/liquid to flour seems a bit off to me--a rather 'loose' batter.

I recall the cookies as spreading in soft mounds on the cookie sheet.