Gingersnaps with Crystallized Ginger

These cookies call for the strangest ingredient that I have seen yet for a cookie recipe: balsamic vinegar. They also call for black pepper and host of other spices... but balsamic vinegar? I nearly baulked at that ingredient, and the only thing that made me add it in the end was that the baking bites lady made of point of saying in her description that the balance of spices was perfect and that they should be made as written. Therefore, I added the balsamic vinegar. My palate isn't refined enough to detect the vinegar in the finished product, but who knows, maybe they taste significantly different without it in there.

I was excited about this recipe because it calls for crystallized ginger which is an ingredient I like to use. It offers a nice peppery contrast to sweet baked goods and is often a pleasant surprise of a flavor. It also helps that Chris really likes gingersnaps. :)

Either way, these are a great cookie. They look fairly puffy -- quite different from the flat gingersnap cookies I made from the Dorie Greenspan book, but they are crisp (they will probably be less crisp in a day or two -- but they start out nice and crisp) and the spice balance is quite nice. Baking Bites got this recipe from Real Simple, which I guess is a magazine and a website...? I got the recipe from her though, so I'll give her credit for it.

Ingredients:

4 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 cup butter, at room temp
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar, plus more for coating
2 large eggs
1/2 cup molasses
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 375.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and black pepper.

In another large bowl, cream together butte, and sugar. Add the eggs one by one, followed by molasses, balsamic vinegar and vanilla. Either by hand, or with the mixer on low speed, gradually stir in all the flour mix, adding the minced ginger with the last addition. Stir until all the flour is combined.

Form dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, roll in extra sugar and place on baking sheet. Press cookies to flatten slightly and bake for 10-12 minutes, until browned around the edges.