This Friday a couple of my friends hosted a potluck-style dinner party (or “pitch-in” as we would have said when we lived in Indiana, but for some reason I have found that only people from Indiana know what a “pitch-in” is, everyone else looks at me like I grew a second head). Of course I spent the entire week pondering what I was going to bring. Normally I would consider a known crowd-pleaser such as my family’s favorite green bean casserole or blackberry cobbler (both of which I promise to write about in the near future), but in this case, I had a bit of a conundrum – working wacky hours on Thursday and all day on Friday meant that I needed something that I could make on Thursday morning and still have taste good on Friday night.
In my pondering, I stumbled across the answer on one of my all-time favorite food blogs: Eat, Live, Run. If you have never read Jenna’s blog, get with the picture! Her daily musings are not only entertaining, they are full of helpful kitchen tips and tricks and her recipes are amazing.
So, at any rate, I’m reading along and I come across a recipe she found in her great-grandmother’s recipe box called Ginger Cremes. The name was a little wonky (for the sake of reducing confusion on the recipe page, I am calling them Gingerbread Cake Cookies, since it is a somewhat better descriptor), but the concept of a super soft, gingerbread cake-like cookie instantly hit a mental comfort zone for me. Somehow I knew I could bake these on Thursday morning and that they would only get better by Friday night.
I decided to whip up a simple orange glaze to drizzle over these super soft pillows of spicey goodness. The glaze adds just the perfect amount of sweetness to balance the flavors of the molasses and spices in the cookies. I chose to unleash my inner Jackson Pollock with these cookies, but if you wanted a more traditional-looking icing, you could certainly add more powdered sugar to achieve a thicker, more spreadable icing.
With the holidays coming up, these might be just the perfect cookie to add to your baking list. They hit all the right comfort notes, and would be perfect to eat while snuggled in a blanket (maybe with a special someone) by a fire.
Oh, and by the way, they were a big hit at the party. I’ll chalk that one up as a success.
Gingerbread Cake Cookies
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1 teaspoon baking soda dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
For the Orange Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons orange juice
Instructions
Make the cookies:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Cream together the shortening and the sugar until light and fluffy; add the egg and molasses and beat well. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, ginger, nutmeg and cloves. Alternate adding the dry ingredients with the baking soda water to the sugar mixture, beating well after each addition*.
- Drop by large spoonfuls on prepared cookie sheets and bake for eight minutes, until puffy. Allow to cool on a baking rack before icing.
Make the glaze:
- In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients until smooth. This will produce a glaze perfect for drizzling; for a thicker, more spreadable icing, use a bit less orange juice or add a bit more powdered sugar.
Notes
Stephie,, they are called pitch-ins here in Kansas as well!!!
They say “pitch-in” in IA too. I’ve always called them covered dish suppers. I remember when we moved to IN no one seemed to have ever heard “covered dish.” I know most people call them potlucks. Potluck has an iffy connotation. Covered dish gives the feeling that someone worked hard enough on their contribution that they covered it. š I’m going to make these cookies during the holidays.
These look delicious, Stephie! Definitely going to try them š
Delicious! These look so good! Bookmarking it! The orange glaze sounds perfect. š
Looks so good. Yum!
These big cakey cookies do look delicious. Gingerbread is usually a very flat cookie, but I think this texture is better. The glaze is a tasty addition-well done.
I bet these taste like Christmas! š
These are the best cookies I ever made or had. I usually cook them a about 5 minutes longer. Most of the time I have eaten them all before I can even frost them. They are so soft inside and have the best flavor ever. I am going to make them tonight, hope I can frost them this time. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m so glad you love them!! Thank you so much for sharing!
Hi Stephi
How far apart do you place these on the cookie sheet?? Do they spread a lot??
Thanks!
Alyce Heidt
Hi Alyce ā I’d place them a couple of inches apart to give them some space as they bake. Good luck!
I made the recipe and put it in a Texas sheet cake pan. It was for a contest at a party š I cut it into 24 squares and piped little gingerbread people on them and served them with warm lemon sauce. They ate every one of them and I won $25! Thanks so much for the recipe. Iād like to make the cookies now and use the orange glaze. Can you tell me about how big they get?
I love this, Lynne! Thanks so much for sharing! The cookies don’t get super big, although it depends on how big you want to make them. š
Can you sub butter or margarine for the shortening
I haven’t tried it myself but it should work ok as long as it is softened. The texture might end up a tiny bit different, but it should be pretty close.