Espresso Shortbread Cookies
Cacao nibs are bits of roasted cacao beans, the primary raw ingredient used to make chocolate. Look for them in specialty or gourmet grocery stores.


1 1/2 cups (3/4 lb.) butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons finely ground espresso-roast coffee beans
3 tablespoons Kahlúa or other coffee-flavored liqueur
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cacao nibs (see notes)

1. Preheat oven to 325°. In a large bowl, use a mixer to beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, salt, espresso grounds, and Kahlúa. Beat to combine. Add flour and cacao nibs and mix until well blended.
2. Form dough into two 1 1/2-inch-thick logs, cover with plastic wrap or wax paper, and chill at least 2 hours or overnight.
3. Cut chilled dough into 1/4-inch-thick slices and lay slightly apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake until cookies are browned on the bottom but not the top, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Ginger Chocolate Cookies
Part chewy molasses cookie, part homey chocolate chip cookie, part spicy gingersnap: These cookies—inspired by ones brought annually by an Oktoberfest guest—have it all. The Sunset staff ate our test batches as quickly as we could bake them.


3/4 cup unsalted butter, plus more for baking sheet
2 cups flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 tablespoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/3 cup granulated sugar


1. Preheat oven to 350°. Butter a large baking sheet and set aside. In amediumbowl, whisk flour, cocoa powder, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until thoroughly combined. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, beat 3/4 cup butter and the brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3minutes. Addmolasses, egg, and vanilla; beat to combine.
3.Mix in dry ingredients gently but thoroughly, scraping down sides of the bowl as necessary. (Batter will be thick.) Stir in chopped chocolate until well combined.
4. Formbatter into 2-tbsp. balls, roll each ball in granulated sugar, and place 12 balls on buttered baking sheet. (If batter is too sticky, dampen your hands with water when forming balls.) Dip the bottomof a cup or glass in water and use it to flatten balls to a thickness of about 1/4 in., rewetting glass as necessary to prevent sticking.
5. Bake cookies 5minutes, turn pan 180°, and bake until just set, about 5minutesmore. Cool on pan for 5minutes, then transfer to cooling racks.
Repeat forming and baking with remaining balls of dough.

Gingerbread Cookies


8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 large egg
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the work surface
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt


Heat oven to 350° F.
Beat the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer on medium-high until smooth.
Add the molasses and egg and beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low.
Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt, then add slowly to the butter mixture, mixing until just incorporated. Shape into a flat disk. Refrigerate, wrapped, for 30 minutes.
Roll out the dough on a floured surface to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into shapes and place on lined baking sheets. Bake 10 to 12 minutes, until firm. Cool slightly on the sheets before transferring to cooling racks.

Gingerbread Iced Cookies
Our panel loved their slightly soft texture. The dough works well for many shapes, from gingerbread snowflakes to classic gingerbread people.


3/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup salad oil
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
About 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Powdered Sugar Icing
(recipe follows; optional)

1. In a large bowl, with a mixer on medium speed, beat molasses, oil, brown sugar, and egg until well blended.
2. In a medium bowl, mix 2 3/4 cups flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Stir into molasses mixture, then beat until well blended.
Divide dough in half, gather each half into a ball, then flatten into a disk.Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and freeze until firm, about 1 hour.
3. Unwrap dough. On a lightly floured surface, with a floured rolling pin, roll one disk at a time to about 1/4 inch thick.With floured 3- to 4-inch cutters, cut out cookies. Place about 1 inch apart on buttered 12- by 15-inch baking sheets. Gather excess dough into a ball, reroll, and cut out remaining cookies.
4. Bake cookies in a 350° regular or convection oven until edges begin to brown slightly, 8 to 10 minutes; if baking two sheets at once in one oven, switch their positions halfway through baking.
Let cookies cool on sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely. Pipe Powdered Sugar Icing over cookies as desired.

Powdered Sugar Icing:
In a bowl, stir 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 1/2 tablespoons water, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla until smooth. Tint to desired color by stirring in food coloring, a drop or two at a time. If icing is too thick to work with, stir in more water, a few drops at a time; if too thin, stir in more powdered sugar. Makes 2/3 cup.

Gingerbread Ice-CreamSandwiches
A stand mixer works best for the thick, sticky cookie dough. Save the recipe for these cookies, and make them again for the holidays.


Cookies:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
Dash of salt
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon granulated sugar, divided

Filling:
1 quart vanilla low-fat ice cream, softened
1/2 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger


To prepare cookies, lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking soda, ground ginger, baking powder, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Place 1/2 cup granulated sugar, brown sugar, and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed 3 minutes or until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add vanilla and egg; beat well. Add flour mixture to sugar mixture; beat at low speed until well blended. Divide dough
in half; gently press each portion into a 4-inch circle on plastic wrap. Cover and chill 1 1/2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350°.
Unwrap each dough portion and place on 2 sheets of overlapping plastic wrap. Cover each portion with 2 additional sheets of overlapping plastic wrap.
Roll, still covered, to a 1/4-inch thickness. Place dough in freezer 30 minutes or until plastic wrap can be easily removed. Remove plastic wrap; cut dough with a 3-inch gingerbread man cookie cutter to form 12 cookies. Place cookies 1 inch apart on baking sheets coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle cookies evenly with 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar. Bake at 350° for 12 minutes or until set. Remove cookies from baking sheets; cool completely on wire racks.
Repeat procedure with remaining dough and 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar.
To prepare filling, combine ice cream and crystallized ginger, stirring well. Spread 1 1/2 tablespoons ice cream on the flat side of each of 12 cookies; top with remaining cookies, flat sides down, pressing gently.Wrap each sandwich tightly in plastic wrap; freeze 4 hours or until firm.