Just got back from my interview with UC Berkeley. I had an amazing time. I went to a fun concert with my potential PI, learned my host is a burlesque performer, and got to learn about countless amazing and exciting research projects. To add to all that, at the beginning of the 2 days of interviews, I received a call (and email) from Washington University’s Movement Science program admitting me. WOO HOO! Someone’s going to grad school!!! This is how I’m feeling:

And this gif is especially pertinent as I returned from Berkeley only to find weather like this:

And of course someone was all cute and did this:
Also, because I mentioned it in my last post, here’s Pink’s performance at the 2014 Grammy’s. Oh, how my heart skips a beat when I watch it! In all seriousness, it takes some massive skill to do what she does here. Yipes!

Now, for those of you who don’t know, I loves the ginger. It’s spicy, kinda burns a bit, and yet soothes the stomach. It’s also delicious. So of course I added more ginger to the following recipe than was originally called for. And on top of that, if I make these again, I think I would like to add crystallized ginger bits. I honestly feel these cookies lack a little something, but I haven’t figured out what exactly. Perhaps a hint more molasses would do the trick. Or perhaps the crystallized ginger will give them that extra edge. Who knows? If anyone plays around with these and has suggestions, lemme know!

Vegan Ginger Molasses Cookies!
Based on this!
Yield: ~3 dozen

Ingredients:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 cup (1 stick) Earth Balance (vegan)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup molasses
~1/4 cup water

How to:
1. Preheat oven to 35o degrees and prepare baking sheets with either SILPAT’s or parchment paper.

2. Mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and dry spices in a small bowl and set aside. Mix sugar, Earth balance, molasses and fresh ginger in mixing bowl until completely combined. Add in dry ingredients and most of the water. Combine completely. I added just over 1/4 cup of water because I prefer my cookies to be a bit thinner. If you prefer thicker cookies, then add less water (means the cookies spread out less when in oven).

3. Spoon dough onto cookie sheets, approximately the size of a ping-pong ball (some people may have pink ones from Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. I suggest using those as a reference). Make sure there’s enough room between spoonfuls so cookies have enough room to spread out (depending on how much water you added).

4. For chewy cookies: Bake for 5 minutes, remove from oven, and drop pan on counter from a height of ~3 inches above counter. Then place back in oven for another 5 minutes. Remove again and drop again. Then let cool for ~3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
For crispy, crunchy cookies: Bake for 10-12 minutes and remove from oven. Don’t drop! Allow to cool for ~5 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack.
Dropping the cookies causes the air bubbles inside the cookies to burst. If these bubbles remain inside the cookies, then they continue to cook the cookies a bit, allowing them to become crispy.

5. EAT!