"Grandma's Ginger Snaps"

Crisp on the outside. Chewy on the inside. These little cookies are positively addicting. I've never had better ginger or molasses cookies. Yet, they are simple, so simple to make.

The only copy of the recipe we have is faintly written in my husband's grandmother's handwriting. I can't really even call it a recipe. It's more like notes. There's an oven temperature, but no cooking time, for example. So I've had to fill in some gaps.

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
2/3 cup shortening (Crisco)
1 egg
4 Tablespoons molasses (grandma's notes say she always uses more)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees
2. sift or whisk together dry ingredients
3. cream together shortening and sugar
4. add egg, beat until combined
5. add molasses, beat until well combined
6. With beaters on low, add flour and beat only until flour is incorporated and dough will come togther in balls.
7. roll dough in small (3/4-1 inch balls) roll in sugar and place on ungreased baking sheet. Leave room for a small amount of spreading
8. bake for 9-10 minutes, until top starts to darken and crack. Cookie will puff in oven and fall when it come out.
9. let stand on baking sheet until set, about 30 seconds to 1 minute; then remove from sheet cool cookies completely on rack.

Whisk the dry ingredients.

Cream the shortening and sugar and then add the egg.

Add the molasses and beat until well blended.

With the beater set on low, add the flour and beat just until flour is fully incorporated and dough will hold in balls.

Form dough into small balls and roll in sugar.

Place on an ungreased cookie sheet (Yippie! I hate to grease cookie sheets)! Leave room for some spreading.

Bake at 325 degrees for 9 to 10 minutes, rotating pan halfway through.

Bake only one pan of cookies in an oven at a time...else they don't cook as evenly.

Cool on the baking sheet for 30 second to a minute to give the cookies time to set.

Then take them off the sheet to cool completely on rack.

They should look like this and taste like heaven.