Spicy molasses and raisin cookie recipeNow for something a little different - Spicy molasses and raisin cookies. The first time I tried the original recipe it was a disaster. The quantities given made a mixture that was far too runny. So, instead of putting the mixture on a cookie sheet I put spoonfuls of the runny mixture into a small cake mould tray and popped that into the oven.The mixture rose vigorously and went all over the bottom of the oven (Saved by my precautions, more later). What was left in the cake indentations was not cooked and what was over the surface of the tray was going hard very rapidly. the whole tray went straight in the bin! I had saved the oven because, in the bottom of the oven, I place an old flat baking sheet covered with tin foil. This caught 90% of the overflowing mixture. The rest was scraped up with a palette knife while the oven was still hot. A narrow escape! Anyway, I tried the recipe again, adjusting the quantities of the ingredients so that the mixture seemed more like the description in the recipe. Success!! Now you can try it too. Makes about 12 to 15 cookies. IngredientsMolasses - 8 oz (2/3 cup)Unsalted Butter - 4 oz (1/2 cup) Caster sugar - 4 oz (1/2 cup) Salt - 1/2 teaspoon Ginger - 1/2 teaspoon (optional) Nutmeg - pinch All purpose Flour - 4 oz (1 cup) Raisins - 3 oz (1/2 cup) - see method All purpose Flour - 4 oz (1 cup) Baking soda - 1/2 teaspoon ToolsScalesHeavy based pan - quart (1 liter) capacity Two or three non-stick heavyweight baking sheets Flat knife to lift cookies Cooling rack MethodIf you have time, soak the raisins overnight in rum.Set the oven to warm up to 400F, Gas Mk 4. If you do not have non stick baking sheets then butter/ grease the ones you are using. Weigh the molasses, butter and sugar into the pan. Heat slowly until the butter is melted and the sugar well dispersed. Stir frequently, especially to mix in the butter which tries to float on the top. Add the salt and the spices. Some people (like me) find the ginger a bit overpowering with the stronger taste of the molasses. Try it with and without for your preference. Continue to heat, bringing gently to the boil. Turn the heat down to a low setting so that it just continues to boil. Caution! The mixture gets very hot as the sugar begins to caramelize. Maintain the gentle boil for five minutes. Turn off the heat and remove the pan. Stir in the first cup of well sifted flour. Allow to cool for ten to fifteen minutes. Stir in the raisins and the baking soda, Add half the remaining sifted flour. Continue to add flour until the mixture stops being runny and becomes a soft but still sticky dough. You may need over the specifed quantity to get it thick enough. Using desert spoon, take generous walnut sized bits of the dough and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Allow for them to spread to 3" diameter. Place them in the oven. After five minutes reduce the temperature to 350 F/ gas Mk3. Bake until the start to become a lighter shade of brown. Do not let them bake too long as they should be flexible after then come out of the oven - 10 to 15 mins. Allow to cool on the trays for five minutes. then lift onto your racks with the palette knife and allow to cool fully. The resulting cookies should be chewy and spicy.
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