A Deliciously Soft and Chewy Cookie
As the cold weather continues to drag on in Pennsylvania, my desire to fire up the oven and get baking seems to be getting stronger. I am due to bake bread again, but first, I just had to try this easy molasses cookie recipe without shortening I found in an Amish cookbook I picked up recently.
Admittedly, I looked at the original recipe that called for 10 cups of flour and a cringed at the thought of trying to get a batch that large accomplished in a single day with my three young children at my apron strings…so I cut it in half. The halved recipe is the one I’m sharing below. Don’t worry, the half batch still produced somewhere around 3 dozen cookies. My resident taste testers started tasting before they were all done and I lost count!
Why does this recipe use lard?
A little more than a year ago, I started using lard in my kitchen a ton. Vegetable shortening (like Crisco) had previously gotten the boot a long while before that. Do you know Crisco is made through a process of hydrogenating cottonseed oil or some other form of vegetable oil? Hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils are forms of trans fats that are known to be linked to various health conditions including obesity and heart disease.
Not only that but have you ever gotten Crisco on your hands and tried to wash it off? Imagine how my husband must have felt when his parents slathered his body in green colored Crisco to turn him into The Hulk for Holloween one year. He says he was green for almost a week!
If you’ve ever worked with pure lard from pasture raised pigs, it washes off so much more readily. Yes, lard is a saturated fat that gets a bad reputation. However, it is a fat that has been around for hundreds of years and has been a safe choice for generations.
In case you weren’t sure what lard is; lard is simply pig fat that has been rendered and cleared of any impurities or small meat fragments. It is pure white like Crisco and solid at room temperature but turns to liquid when warmed.
How soft is this easy molasses cookie recipe with lard?
Oh so soft and chewy! They couldn’t be much softer or chewier. Nearly every cookie I have ever made where I used lard as the fat has turned out softer and more chewy than the same recipe made using vegetable shortening or vegetable oil. There is just something special about lard that provides consistently delicious results every time.
can i use all purpose einkorn wheat flour instead of whole wheat?
Yes you can! The only suggestion I would make if deciding to use Einkorn instead of a more traditional whole wheat flour would be to either reduce the amount of lard slightly or increase the amount of flour slightly. I’ve noticed in other recipes that when I use all purpose einkorn wheat instead of another variety, the recipe seems a bit more moist or wet. So, go ahead and try a one for one swap or make a small adjustment as suggested and let me know how you make out!
molasses cookies go best with…
Now that you have all of these deliciously chewy molasses cookies. How can you enjoy devouring them other than just munching on each one right after another? You might consider a small cookie mountain surrounded by vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of chocolate syrup like I did here. It was a sugar bomb for sure so I wouldn’t recommend eating all of the easy molasses cookies with lard this way but you may want to try it at least once!
I might also consider using these instead of graham crackers to scoop up yogurt from my bowl as a nice switch. How about a nice molasses cookie sandwich with a homemade frosting? YUM!
Leave a comment at the end of this post with other ideas you have for enjoying these easy molasses cookies with lard.
ingredients for easy molasses cookie recipe with lard
1 ½ C lard
¾ C sugar
¾ C molasses
3 eggs
5 C whole wheat flour
2 ½ Tbsp baking soda
½ tsp cloves
1 ¼ tsp ginger
1 ¼ tsp cinnamon
1 ¼ tsp salt
how to make easy molasses cookie recipe with lard
- Melt 1 ½ C lard and cool
- Add ¾ C sugar, ¾ C molasses, and 3 eggs. Beat well.
- Add dry ingredients. Mix well. (5C whole wheat flour, 2 ½ Tbsp baking soda, ½ tsp cloves, 1 ¼ tsp ginger, 1 ¼ tsp cinnamon, 1 ¼ tsp salt)
- Chill and form into about 1-inch balls.
- Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes
- Remove from tray to cooling rack.
- Enjoy!
Yield: 3 dozen cookies
Easy Molasses Cookie Recipe with Lard
This recipe makes a delicious soft and chewy molasses cookie that cures your craving without being too sugary sweet. These are easy to mix up, bake easily and store great.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Additional Time 20 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 ½ C lard
- ¾ C sugar
- ¾ C molasses
- 3 eggs
- 5 C whole wheat flour
- 2 ½ Tbsp baking soda
- ½ tsp cloves
- 1 ¼ tsp ginger
- 1 ¼ tsp cinnamon
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
Instructions
1.Melt 1 ½ C lard and cool
2.Add ¾ C sugar, ¾ C molasses, and 3 eggs. Beat well.
3.Add dry ingredients. Mix well. (5C whole wheat flour, 2 ½ Tbsp baking soda, ½ tsp cloves, 1 ¼ tsp ginger, 1 ¼ tsp cinnamon, 1 ¼ tsp salt)
4.Chill and form into about 1-inch balls.
5.Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes
6.Remove from tray to cooling rack.
7.Enjoy!
Notes
Depending on the cookie sheet you use, you may need to adjust baking time. I used a stone baking tray and 10 minutes was perfect.
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If you enjoy Pennsylvania Dutch Cooking, you may also enjoy the Chicken Pie in Crock Pot recipe I modified from the same Amish cookbook.
If you do a lot of baking, you surely use plenty of vanilla extract. But have you ever considered making your own? It’s easy and super affordable. Learn how here: How to Make Homemade Pure Vanilla Extact
Learn more about my best suggestions for kitchen utensils here: Reasons to use wooden spoons and other kitchen utensils
Homemaking is not for the faint of heart. It takes a lot of joyful reminders to keep you motivated and happily engaged in all of the tasks involved in this heavy job. Please enjoy a read of Homemaking – Create Your Own Homemade Love Story
