Gingery Maple Thins (by Tona)

Guest Baker Tona is my other sister. She's a super busy scholar, full-time professor, mom of four, agriculturalist and community do-gooder, so she doesn't always have time for hard-core baking. But she had a snow day last week and made these little delights for you and me. Thank you! Tona lives in Stow, Massachussetts.
I'm not usually a fan of crystallized ginger, but I really liked these cookies. I used Australian ginger, maybe that makes a difference? It seemed really soft and not as rubbery as I've used in the past. It took about 5 "wafers" of ginger to get 3 tablespoons of finely chopped. I also substituted Mapleine for the maple extract since that's what I had on hand.

I think I made my dough balls too big - more like a walnut sized is probably best, since I didn't get 2 dozen out of this. Or you could just double the recipe.

I would say these are a rather subtle cookie, perhaps even a slightly elegant one - they're not too sweet, which is nice. They were really delicious right out of the oven.

Gingery Maple Thins
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger

8 T (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

1 tsp maple extract

3 T minced crystallized ginger

1/4 cup granulated sugar1. Preheat oven to 350. Line baking sheets with parchment or silpat. Combine flour, baking soda, and ground ginger in a bowl. With electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg, maple syrup, and maple extract and mix until incorporated. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture and crystallized ginger, and mix until just combined.

2. Place 1/4 cup granulated sugar in bowl. Moisten hands with water and roll dough into 1 1/2-inch balls, then roll in sugar. Place sugared balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Using flat-bottomed glass, press each ball to 1/2-inch thickness. Bake until golden, 12 to 14 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on sheets, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. (Cookies can be stored in airtight container for 1 week.) Makes about 2 dozen cookies

Recipe from Cook's Country, December 2009