TBB - Gingersnaps
Today Rose's Alpha Bakers share our 9th selection as we bake our way through The Baking Bible. As a reminder, the recipes made during this project are not being shared, but I will share my commentary about each recipe, followed by a full photo tutorial.
This week's selection - Gingersnaps.
Special ingredients and/or equipment needed - Lyle's golden syrup, golden bakers sugar (India Tree), half sheet pans, parchment paper or silpat liners, optional #50 cookie scoop, digital scale, digital instant read thermometer.
How do they taste - Excellent. They ginger flavor is spot on, but they're a little different than common gingersnaps as they are crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. You could bake them a minute or two longer if you like them crisp the whole way through.
How do they look - Absolutely lovely. Theses cookies are not as dark brown as commercial gingersnaps, but the beautifully crackled tops and perfectly round appearance make them impossible to resist.
Level of difficulty - Very easy.
Were the directions clear - Yes, but there was one little problem. The recipe called for 3 teaspoons/3 grams of ground ginger, but I noticed 3 teaspoons of ground ginger actually weighs 6 grams. I posted a question on our group's facebook page and Rose quickly replied that the correct weight for the ground ginger should be 6 grams so make a note in your book if you have a printing that lists 3 grams. The mystery of why the volume measurement specified is 3 teaspoons instead of 1 tablespoon remains.
What would I do differently next time - Double the recipe and make more!
Next up - Swedish Apricot Walnut Bread.
Okay, here's my photo tutorial.
We start with one of my all-time favorite ingredients. Lyle's Golden Syrup. If you've never tried this amazing caramelized deliciousness, you must!
Combine the golden syrup with a stick of butter.
Heat gently until melted, then set aside to cool for about 1o minutes.
Weigh out 1 tablespoon of ground ginger, which should equal 6 grams (not 3 as the book states). Make a note in your book.
Combine the flour, golden bakers sugar*, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground ginger in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the flat paddle or a BeaterBlade attachment. I didn't have golden bakers sugar so I used Rose's substitution of combining superfine and light brown sugars.
Tip: you can easily make your own superfine sugar by pulsing granulated sugar in a food processor, spice grinder, or vitamix for a few seconds.
Mix the dry ingredients together on low speed for 30 seconds.
Add the cooled butter mixture and mix on low speed for about 1 minute.
After a minute, the mixture should look kind of sandy like this.
Next add 1 whole egg and 1 egg white that have been beaten together. Mix again on low for 30 seconds.
Done.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl and make sure all the ingredients have been well combined.
Divide the dough into 3 equal portions. Each should weigh approx 10 ounces or 283 grams.
Wrap each portion in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes - 24 hours.
Time to roll the cookie dough - each blob of cookie dough should be about the size of one tablespoon (I use a #50 scoop which is just about the perfect size).
One level scoop for each cookie.
Let the cookie dough warm a bit at room temperature if it's too cold to scoop.
Roll the dough into round balls. Bake in a preheated oven for 10-12 minutes, turning the pan halfway if your oven has hot spots.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes on sheet pan before transferring to a cooling rack to cook completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week, refrigerate for up to 2 weeks, or freeze for up to 3 months.