You haven’t really known love until you’ve tried the molasses cookies at Sugar 2 Salt. Luckily, we’ve got the recipe.
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The secret to the best-ever molasses cookies? Texture. “A little crunch to the outside, soft on the inside,” says Stephanie Lee Wiitala, proprietor of Traverse City’s Sugar 2 Salt. “The way to achieve this is to not over mix the dough. I always try to stop mixing before I think I should.”
Called S2S for short, this year-round breakfast oasis at The Village at Grand Traverse Commons is run by Wiitala and her partner Jonathan Dayton. The duo is known for their seasonally driven menus, offering elevated takes on morning classics (think slow roasted beef brisket atop potato and garden herb waffles or cornmeal buttermilk pancakes with basil simple syrup).
But it’s the not-so-humble molasses cookies that have become a perennial favorite among customers. Finished with a sprinkle of coarse sugar and ribbons of ginger glaze, the generously portioned cookies are so popular, in fact, that some come solely to stock up. For a truly decadent pairing, we suggest serving these with this month’s Last Call recipe. Whether you want to bake them at home or swing by S2S and let the pros do it for you, well, that’s up to you.
S2S Molasses Cookies
Recipe yields 18-24 cookies.
What you will need:
- 4½ cups all-purpose flour
- 4 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1½ cups butter, room temp
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup molasses
- 2 eggs
- coarse sugar for garnish and ginger glaze to finish (recipe below)
Step By Step:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt, and set aside.
- Cream butter and sugars on medium high speed, scraping down the bowl’s sides as needed until the mixture turns a pale yellow color.
- Mix in molasses and eggs until combined, then gradually add the dry mix until evenly incorporated, being careful not to over mix. Let the dough chill in fridge for 30–60 minutes.
- Portion cookies onto a baking sheet, top with coarse sugar.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Start checking the cookies after 6 to 8 minutes to see how they are looking so they do not end up over baked. Every oven is different so it is good to check in the middle of cooking. When they start to crackle on the top you’ll know they’re almost done.
- After the cookies are completely cool, drizzle the ginger glaze on the cookies in whatever pattern you like.
Ginger Glaze Recipe
What you will need:
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 Tablespoons milk (possibly a little more or less)
Step By Step:
- Combine all ingredients starting with the powdered sugar and ginger first. Add the vanilla and milk until a smooth consistency is reached and not too thick or thin—adjust as needed with more powdered sugar or more milk.
Carly Simpson is managing editor of Traverse, Northern Michigan and produces MyNorth’s popular e-newsletter, The Daily Splash. Subscribe online at MyNorth.com/newsletter and follow Carly on Instagram @carlyannesimpson.
Dave Weidner is an editorial photographer and videographer based in Northern Michigan. Follow him on Instagram and Facebook @dzwphoto.
Sarah Peschel, @22speschel, is a stylist and photographer with an appreciation for all things related to local agriculture, food and drink
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