Camp Snacks: Soft, Lemon-Glazed Gingerbread Cookies and Cookie Pops

July 9-13, 2012 

We might have to reclassify these first two weeks of July as a “Prelude” to our Summer of Funner proper. First, we had a week-long family visit. Then, the kids spent a week at day camp at the Toronto Zoo. So, despite the humid weather, the Summer of Funner hasn’t really heated up just yet… No worries, the science experiments, art projects, math games, efforts of social activism, musical mayhem, local outings, and story writing are well on their way. In the meantime, here’s the recipe for the camp snacks that we camp up with….our Soft, Lemon-Iced Ginger Cookies and Cookie Pops.

The good thing about starting with a soft ginger cookie [or cookie pop] at the beginning of the week is that even if it hardens up a bit [although, stored in a plastic tubby, ours did not], it will still be tasty by the end of the week. This makes these cookies great for day-camp lunchbags and also for sleep-away camp care-packages.  Just be sure to label your homebaked treats as “nut-free & baked with love,” or else they might be banned from the day-camp picnic table [as ours were on day one – lesson learned] or from the sleepaway-camp cabin!

Soft, Lemon-Glazed Ginger Cookies and Cookie Pops
makes 20-24 generously sized treats

Ingredients
.5 c butter, softened slightly
.25 c shortening [or butter]
1 c brown sugar
.5 c molasses
1 egg
1 tbs vanilla
1 tbs vinegar
2.5 c all-purpose flour
1.5 tsp baking soda
.5 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
.5 tsp ground cloves
Long wooden coffee stirrer sticks or long lollipop sticks

Glaze
1.5 c icing sugar
2+ tbs lemon juice [milk is a viable substitute]
yellow food colouring [optional]

Method
Heat oven to 375 F.
Line baking pans with parchment or silpats.
In a separate bowl, blend flour, soda, salt, and spices.
In the bowl of a mixer, cream the butter, shortening and sugar.
Add molasses, egg, vanilla and vinegar and blend again.
Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl in stages until blended.
If desired, refrigerate dough for a few hours. [It’s totally unnecessary here]
Form dough into golfball-sized spheres.
To make a basic cookie, skip the next step.
To make a cookie pop, insert a long wooden coffee stirrer or lollipop stick halfway into the dough ball.
Flatten dough balls [with or without stirrer/lollipop sticks] slightly on parchment lined pans.
Bake cookies for 6-8 minutes.
Cookies will be soft when removed from oven.
If you don’t like soft cookies or want a harder set from the get-go, bake 2-4 minutes longer.
Cool completely on wire racks.
[You can refrigerate or even flash freeze them for a minute or two if you’re in a rush.]
For the Lemon Glaze:
Add lemon juice [or milk] to the icing sugar, 1 tbs at a time.
Stir with a fork or spoon until it becomes a thick but drizzle-able glaze.
If you are using lemon juice and run out, continue thinning the glaze with small amounts of water.
Add a few drops of yellow food colouring if so desired.
Drizzle icing over cookies with a fork.
Allow icing to set before storing, wrapping, or packing the cookies  or cookie pops into the day-camp lunchbags or sleepaway-camp care packages.

Print Recipe

Soft, Lemon-Glazed Ginger Cookies and Cookie Pops

Author: Roseanne Carrara, Summer of Funner

Ingredients

• .5 c butter softened slightly
• .25 c shortening [or butter]
• 1 c brown sugar
• .5 c molasses
• 1 egg
• 1 tbs vanilla
• 1 tbs vinegar
• 2.5 c all-purpose flour
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• .5 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• .5 tsp ground cloves
• Long wooden coffee stirrer sticks or long lollipop sticks

Glaze

• 1.5 c Icing Sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice or milk
• Optional: Food Colouring

Instructions

• Heat oven to 375 F.
• Line baking pans with parchment or silpats.
• In a separate bowl, blend flour, soda, salt, and spices.
• In the bowl of a mixer, cream the butter, shortening and sugar.
• Add molasses, egg, vanilla and vinegar and blend again.
• Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl in stages until blended.
• If desired, refrigerate dough for a few hours. [It’s totally unnecessary here]
• Form dough into golfball-sized spheres.
• To make a basic cookie, skip the next step.
• To make a cookie pop, insert a long wooden coffee stirrer or lollipop stick halfway into the dough ball.
• Flatten dough balls [with or without stirrer/lollipop sticks] slightly on parchment lined pans.
• Bake cookies for 6-8 minutes.
• Cookies will be soft when removed from oven.
• If you don’t like soft cookies or want a harder set from the get-go, bake 2-4 minutes longer.
• Cool completely on wire racks.
• [You can refrigerate or even flash freeze them for a minute or two if you’re in a rush.]
• For the Lemon Glaze:
• Add lemon juice [or milk] to the icing sugar, 1 tbs at a time.
• Stir with a fork or spoon until it becomes a thick but drizzle-able glaze.
• If you are using lemon juice and run out, continue thinning the glaze with small amounts of water.
• Add a few drops of yellow food colouring if so desired.
• Drizzle icing over cookies with a fork.
• Allow icing to set before storing, wrapping, or packing the cookies or cookie pops into the day-camp lunchbags or sleepaway-camp care packages.