THE SECRET RECIPE CLUB COOKIE SWAP: SPICED HONEY-GINGER COOKIES

Posted in Cookies, Desserts, Sweets, Secret Recipe Club by

I have been a member of The Secret Recipe Club for a little over 3  years, and never get tired of it! Getting assigned a food blog every month to cook from is so much fun, because it exposes you to different styles of cooking and of course opens the horizons to new sites that could otherwise go unnoticed.  Every year,  the club takes a break for the holidays, so groups C and D do not post in December. However, instead of taking a break this year, Sarah, the club’s Owner – and Resident Saint who keeps our boats sailing smoothly – came up with a different twist: both groups would be joined in a single event, a Cookie Carnival Swap. Participation would not be mandatory, so that those who prefer to sit back and relax could do so. Me? Sitting out?  No way.  So, this month we have a huge event with 60 food bloggers! As usual, we were assigned a blog in secret, and had to pick a cookie recipe to make and blog about.  My assigned blog, Culinary Adventures with Camilla, was a ton of fun to stalk!  One of the things I loved about her site is that she designs all her recipes. Nothing from cookbooks or cooking shows. That is beyond impressive. Camilla describes herself as a “tree-hugging, veggie-crunching, jewelry-designing mean mommy who loves to cook but hates to clean”.  She is also a freelance writer and photographer for Edible Monterey Bay.  Is that cool or what?

I had a tough time deciding between three cookies: Faux-reos, Salted Mayan Chocolate, and Spiced Honey-Ginger Cookies.  You must stop by and read about her Oreo Cookie experience, she was sort of challenged to make them from scratch, and admitted she had never even tried a Oreo until then. Talk about a challenge!   Still, my love for spices made me choose the last one. Plus, since the recipe called for ginger syrup, it gave me the opportunity of making it myself, something I’ve been meaning to try for years.

HoneySpiceCookies

SPICED HONEY-GINGER COOKIES
(slightly modified from Culinary Adventures with Camilla)

2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 C butter, at room temperature
1 cup raw turbinado sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup ginger syrup (recipe follows)
2 tablespoons honey (I used acacia honey)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place flour, ginger, baking soda, and spices into a mixing bowl. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients. Add in the sugar. Beat in the egg, honey, and ginger syrup. Mix together until a soft dough forms. Pinch off small amounts of dough,  and roll into balls. Place the balls 2″ apart on an ungreased baking sheet, flatten slightly. Bake until the tops are rounded and slightly cracked, about 13 minutes. Cool cookies on a wire rack.
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ENJOY!
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to print the recipe, click here
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dough

GINGER SYRUP
(adapted from many sources)

4 ounces fresh ginger, unpeeled
2 cups water
1 cup sugar
pinch salt

Cut the ginger into small pieces.   Place the ginger pieces with water, sugar, and pinch of salt in a saucepan. Bring to a gentle boil, reduce to a low simmer, and cook for 50 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Let cool, then strain the syrup through. Store the strained syrup in the refrigerator, covered. It should keep for a couple of weeks.
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to print the ginger syrup recipe, click here

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These cookies were absolutely delicious, and perfect for this time of the year. If you like gingersnaps, they will please you because they are similar, but the cardamon takes them in a slightly different direction. On a side note, every time I open the bottle of cardamon I get mesmerized by its intense, delicious smell. Truly addictive for me. I reduced the amount of ginger powder called for in the recipe because my syrup seemed very powerful.  Do not be alarmed by the amount of sugar in the recipe: one cup of sugar plus the syrup, and honey.  The cookies end up with a perfect balance of spice and sweetness.

baking

I took the full batch (about 35 cookies) to our department, and once again they were a huge hit. They  seem pretty humble and harmless, but once you grab the first one it is impossible not to go back for more.

The ginger syrup was a fun culinary project that made our home smell terrific on a gray Saturday afternoon.  You will have more than you need for the cookies, so consider making homemade ginger ale: just add a little syrup to a glass with some ice cubes, squirt a little lime juice, and fill the glass with carbonated water or club soda.  If the temperature outside was not so polar-bear-friendly, I would have a glass right now.

Camilla, you have a great food blog, and I’ll be visiting you often from now on.  I hope you also had a blast with your assignment… As a note to my readers, at this time of the year cookies are in everyone’s mind, so click on the blue frog for a serious collection of goodies made by my fellow virtual friends from The Secret Recipe Club.

Sarah, thanks for organizing this event, saving me from a horrible SRC withdrawn episode!

ONE YEAR AGO: A Simple Taco to Remember

TWO YEARS AGO: Celebrate Wednesday with Homemade Calzones

THREE YEARS AGO: Plum-Glazed Duck Breasts

FOUR YEARS AGO: Holiday Double-Decker

FIVE YEARS AGO: New York Deli Rye

57 thoughts on “THE SECRET RECIPE CLUB COOKIE SWAP: SPICED HONEY-GINGER COOKIES”

  1. I’m making cookies right now but I don’t think they’ll be this good. Maybe. 🙂 I think the Secret Recipe Club must be so much fun. Maybe one day I’ll get in.

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  4. There are so many great ingredients in these cookies and I bet the kitchen does smell wonderful when they’re baking. I wonder how strong the ginger syrup would be if you grated the ginger that you simmered instead of just cutting it into very small pieces? I love ginger. 🙂

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    • I think it would be even more intense – I liked cutting them in pieces because it made straining it very easy. If grating I guess you would have to use a very fine mesh type of strainer. Let me know if you try it…

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      • I realize was a dumb question to which there was an obvious answer … I was really wondering if it was possible for the syrup to be TOO strong/gingery. I’ve made mango-ginger ice some time ago and wished that the result had been MORE gingery (1 only used 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger). Perhaps if I had made an infused syrup and added the rest of the ingredients, the results would have been zippier. 🙂

        http://a-boleyn.livejournal.com/100173.html

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  24. I too love the smell of cardamon; if I ever find a cardamon scented candle I will purchase it immediately. I think my coworkers will love these; I’ve been treating them weekly to holiday cookies!

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  26. When I saw that there was ginger syrup in the recipe I was intrigued. But it was the whole wheat flour that really pulled me in. I have 4# of whole wheat flour that was from locally grown wheat and ground on the farm. It needed a special recipe!

    I baked the cookies an hour ago and the house smells fantastic…even better is that the cookies are great!
    If I make them again, I will mince a bit of the ginger that was cooked for the syrup and add that to the dough.

    I now need to find uses for the remaining syrup and the ginger.

    Suggestions?

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  27. I am in awe of talented cooks like Camilla — and you, for that matter. You both can develop your own recipes, a skill I so lack. Being able to make a dish of pasta is nothing compared to creating a baked good or loaf of bread. Look at these cookies, for example. She created the recipe? Incredible!

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    • Oh, but I rarely design my own recipes – a bread once in a while, a little sauce here and there – but for the most part, I’d say 90% of my recipes in the blog are not mine… borrowed. that is, borrowed recipes

      😉

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  28. Sally:
    What a coincidence! I have just baked several pães de mel. Although translated literally as honey bread, it is actually a gingerbread mini muffin shaped like a cookie.
    These cookies look terrific. I know my Santa would be quite happy to gobble them all up. 🙂 Happy Holiday for you, Phil, and your family!

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  29. Pingback: Cinnamon Roll Cookies - Tara's Multicultural Table

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