Yeah, say that 3 times fast.
After visiting my Grampa last weekend I’ve been craving cookies. Usually it’s me making the cookies for him, not visits causing cravings in me, but my Great Aunt was up as well, baking up a glorious aroma in my grandparents kitchen. Obviously stoked by my Grampa’s mentioning of their childhood slathering of butter and molasses over bread, she was making Ginger Crackles. Spicy, sugary and crisp, the house was like Christmas just with better weather.
Back home with the craving still strong in my nose, I finally knew what to do with the fancy molasses taking up space in the pantry.
…And once I had my cookie, what’s better than it than making whoopie?
Using a cream filling lightly scented with orange blossom water, which so nicely complemented the sticky spice of molasses.
The test batches didn’t last, so I’ll have to make these again for our next Greastest Grampa visit.
SOFT MOLLASSES COOKIES
1/4 Cup Soft Margarine, or butter
1/4 Cup Brown Sugar, firmly packed
1/3 Cup Fancy Molasses
1 1/2 Cups Cake & Pastry Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 teaspoon Salt
3/4 teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Orange Zest
1/2 Cup Soy Milk
1/2 teaspoon Lemon Juice
3 Tablespoons (approx.) Granulated Sugar
Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
Cream the margarine and brown sugar then add the molasses, continuing to mix until well blended.
In a separate bowl combine the flour, soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon.
In a pourable measuring cup combine the soy milk and lemon juice.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the creamed sugar. Blend, then continue with half of the milk.
Add the orange zest and while still mixing, finish with the remaining dry ingredients and milk.
Drop rounded tablespoonfuls of batter, evenly spaced, onto a parchment lined cookie sheet.
Sprinkle the granulated sugar into a shallow bowl and using a dampened, flat bottom glass, dipped into the sugar, flatten each cookie. Recover the glass bottom with the sugar as necessary to keep the dough from sticking.
Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden and puffed.
Cool on a rack before filling.
Makes 18 cookies/9 whoopie pies.
ORANGE BLOSSOM ICING
1/4 Cup Margarine
1/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
1/2 Cup Confectioners Sugar
1/2 teaspoon Orange Blossom Water
Add margarine and granulated sugar to the bowl of an electric mixer and whip until creamy with the whisk attachment.
With the motor running add the orange blossom water and half of the confectioners sugar.
Scrape sides and add the remaining sugar.
Continue to whisk for a few minutes, until light and fluffy.
To assemble, dollop a heaping tablespoonful of icing to the underside of a cookie. Top with a matching cookie, pressing down lightly to spread the icing and secure.
VEGAN VISITOR 
Wow these look amazing!!! I am new to blogging, and I love your site. Where would I find orange blossom water? I’d really like to try these! – Katie
I found mine in a kitchen supply store. I’m sure orange blossom water can also be found at other specialty stores, gourmet markets, and/or Middle Eastern grocers.
Not only are they gorgeous, but they sound delicious as well!
Thanks! I’ll have to look the next time I’m at an ethnic foods store.
These look really good. I pretty much want one right now.
oooooooooh, these look good!! :)
I am going to make gingersnap ice cream sandwiches and was planning to adapt another ginger snap recipe ( http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/GINGERSNAP-AND-LEMON-ICE-CREAM-SANDWICHES-12039 )
but after seeing yours, I am thinking of using your cookies as the base. Do you think it would work? Are they too fluffy and not firm enough to support a frozen filling?
Thanks!
These cookies are cakey rather than crisp, although I do think that if you are making them and serving right away they should hold up well.
I’d love to know if you go ahead and serve them and how they turn out – sounds delicious served with the lemon ice cream!
Wow thanks for your reply. I don’t have time to make lemon ice cream this time so i bought some better pecan and am making a maple butterscotch sauce to coat inside. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
I just made the batter, and after adding about 2 or 3 cups more flour than the recipe calls for, they were still practically liquid, and I had to just drop spoonfuls of them on the baking sheet. I’m hoping they come out looking as good as yours do. But I wonder if there was a typo in the amount of flour used in this recipe.
I just did a google search for vegan whoopie pies and yours was one of the first to come up, these look delicious and I actually want to make ginger ones!