Molasses Sugar Cookies are perfect little bites of heaven!

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Last weekend was UNC-CH Homecoming weekend! Several friends came back into town and we had a tailgate before the game.

A couple factors made this day even better:

1. Our football team has been better than we have in years.
2. We’re playing Duke, so stakes are even higher.
3. We’re old enough to throw a good tailgate!

All of this came together for an awesome Saturday with friends. We had a blast tailgating – it rained, but we just camped out in a parking deck and the weather didn’t slow us down! To top of a great morning, we absolutely destroyed Duke. What we thought would be a close game ended up being 66-31. Let’s go heels!!!

As my contribution to the tailgate, I made one of my favorite cookie recipes: molasses sugar cookies. My mom made these a lot growing up, and their spiced goodness is perfect for cool days. The molasses flavor is a tasty twist on a more traditional spice cookie, giving them some unexpected depth. Because the dough has to chill, they’re also great for making ahead of time and then baking at the last minute!

Start with melted shortening, sugar, molasses, and egg.

Add in the spices, then sift in the flour.

Combine, then let chill for a couple hours.

Once chilled,  form into 1 inch balls.

Coat in sugar – this makes the edges delicious once they’re baked!

Lay out on a cookie sheet with enough room for them to spread while baking.

Bake for 8-10 minutes and you’ve got fresh baked molasses sugar cookies!

I’m going to be honest, these are definitely at their peak when they’re straight out of the oven. I definitely did some over-sampling before packing these up and taking them to our homecoming tailgate!

Molasses Sugar Cookies

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c shortening
• 1 c sugar
• 1/4 c molasses
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 c flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt

Steps:

1. Melt the shortening and let cool (but don’t let it re-solidify).
2. Add sugar, molasses and egg to the shortening in a large mixing bowl and beat..
3. Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl, then combine all.
4. Chill the dough for 2 hours.
5. Preheat the oven to 325°F, and form dough into 1-inch balls.
6. Roll the balls in sugar and place on a greased cookie sheet.
7. Bake for 8-10 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.