Anabelle’s Ginger Crisps Cookies
My first nibble of Anabelle’s Ginger Crisps sold me on ginger cookies decades ago. This is my grandmother’s recipe for an old classic, a thin, crisp ginger cookie.
Ginger Crisps
I vividly remember the scent of my grandparents’ kitchen. There was no lingering aroma of the previous night’s dinner, but instead, a lovely, light fragrant infusion that emanated from Annabelle’s spice drawer. The mixture of cloves, ginger, and cinnamon seemed both exotic and comforting. Anabelle was the grandmother who let us eat toasted and buttered angel food cake for breakfast. And, if we were lucky, she’d have a batch of her paper-thin ginger crisps to snack on later in the day.
Old Fashioned Ginger Cookies
I inherited my grandmother’s terra cotta cookie press which I found in my parents’ silverware drawer, then messaged my aunt, sisters and cousins when I couldn’t locate my recipe for these old-fashioned ginger crisps. I love that my aunt, Angela, copied the recipe word for word. No instructions on how to mix the dough, and who the heck knows the size of a filbert? Not me, until I googled it! I treasure this recipe and added some more details so you all can try them, too.
The leaf and berry pattern on my cookie press did not show clearly after I baked the first batch. So I ended up rolling the rest of the dough balls in sugar and just not worrying about the design. My kids prefer a chewier cookie so I baked mine for just 8 minutes.
Christmas Extravaganza
Today, I’m sharing this recipe with my blogging friend, Abeer, of Cakewhiz, who organized this Christmas Extravaganza. You’ve probably seen her amazing creations on Pinterest and around the web; they are incredible! We were to take a holiday recipe and give it a twist. Mine is using a nearly century-old, family recipe to see how it works in a modern kitchen. Check out the other wonderful holiday creations below.
- 1. Chocolate cranberry skillet cake from Sandra at Sandra’s Easy Cooking
- 2. Pistachio and cardamom semifreddo with rose cream from Manu at Manu’s Menu
- 3. Anabelle’s ginger crisps from Liz at That Skinny Chick Can Bake
- 4. Chocolate cookies with candied fruit slices from Kate at Diethood
- 9. Rose syrup chocolate bark from Abeer at CakeWhiz
Plus More Favorite Holiday Cookies:
- Cranberry, White Chocolate and Crystallized Ginger Cookies
- Chewy Gingersnaps
- Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies
- Chewy Butterscotch Cookies
- 30+ Christmas Cookies
- How to Freeze Cookie Dough
- Plus How to Host a Cookie Exchange
- More Best Cookie Recipes
- More Christmas Recipes
Anabelle’s Ginger Crisps
My grandmother's thin, crispy ginger cookie recipe.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- Sugar, for rolling cookies
Instructions
- Cream butter and sugar, then add egg and molasses. Mix in baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Stir in flour.
- Chill dough. Roll in tiny balls, slightly larger than a filbert* (I used either 1 or 1 1/2 teaspoons of dough per cookie). Roll dough balls in sugar. Flatten with a glass dipped in sugar and place on a baking sheet.
- Bake at 350º about 8-10 minutes. Cool on a brown grocery bag (I used a cooling rack).The smaller the ball, the thinner you can flatten the dough. If you go for a double batch, be sure you have a liter of gin and a chair to get you through the afternoon.
Notes
* A filbert is the same as a hazelnut and about 20 mm in diameter.
* You can make oodles of cookies from this recipe if you make them small and press them very thin.
*The dough can get sticky if your kitchen is warm. I pressed a dough ball with a sugared glass, then resugared and pressed again to get it thinner.
*There is no need to grease the cookie sheet, but I still like to use parchment for easy clean up.
**Don't you love unedited old family recipes????
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
30Serving Size:
2 cookiesAmount Per Serving: Calories: 113Total Fat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 18mgSodium: 43mgCarbohydrates: 16gFiber: 0gSugar: 9gProtein: 1g
28 Comments on “Anabelle’s Ginger Crisps Cookies”
These are one of my fave cookies for Christmas. . gingersnaps .. love love love.. these look perfect!!
Do you think these would work as a slice and bake cookie (for those of us with zero patience for rolling out filberts)?
I have my grandma’s old recipe box. I love reading the recipes:
Bake in a medium oven
Scoop of flour
Bake till done (What does “Done” mean for this recipe?????)
Luckily, I knew what a Filbert was…my mom still calls hazelnuts, “filberts”.
I personally love an old recipe. I have very few as my mother hated cooking and my grandma got alzheimers and I dont know what happened to hers. One thing I do know however is that I love ginger cookies and mosat especially with sugar on the outside
What a great method – love the gin bit 😉 These sound just perfect – Christmas time or any time!
Beautiful looking cookies and love the cookie press design – its so cute! Great shots as well 🙂
I adore heirloom recipes like this. You’re lucky to have this recipe and these memories.
Lizzy,
I love family recipes. This one looks great. I’ve got to try it.
Such a sweet post, Lizzie. It’s amazing how certain smells evoke such strong memories…like these delightful ginger crisps your grandmother used to bake:)