I know, I know. I’m late to the party on this one. But I have spent most of December either locked down because of the cold or because the video game Fallout 3 is ruling my life, and I have been sitting on this post. But I’ll tell you right now, if you enjoy baking or just like having access to a huge selection of products, get your ass over to Bulk Barn now.

Many of you who are well-versed in Edmonton’s food are well aware of Bulk Barn and its opening in town. It is a Ontario-based chain that opened their first franchise in Edmonton in late November. My mom had just been singing the praises of the store on her trip through Lethbridge enroute to Montana in September and how good it was when she was in Thunder Bay. Well it is finally here.

So what makes it different than the already good bulk sections of Save On Foods and Superstore? For one, the selection. There are thousands of products here. They may not all be in rotation at the same point, as some products are seasonal, but there is a huge cross section of items. Second: everything is fresh, well stocked, and clean. Also, the items can be measured so that there is little waste when you use them, stopping products you use only a few times a year from going stale. Lastly, the prices are amazing.

Don’t think the items are limited to just flour and spices, either. There are wet products, pet products, natural foods and supplements as well as specialty cake pans for rent, and baking tools.

As a baker, I went nuts buying specialty flour and ingredients. I also picked up a friend’s favourite hard to find snack: chocolate dipped jujubes, and mailed them to her in Calgary. Ibought items for snacking on, for sharing at the office… and for eating in the car ride home.

Pet products, ranging from bird seed to dog food and hamster munchies. No crickets for MY pets though.

The wet bar features nut butters.

Nifty machine for corn syrup. This is where most of my ingredients for marshmallows came from. I was surprisingly accurate in measuring out the products, so there was little waste: something I was really happy about.

Pipette bag tips for icing and decorating.

Cake pans were a mere $1.99 a day (with deposit) and if you could think of it, they had it. (Well, mostly…)

Clean clean clean! It should also be mentioned there were a lot of bags, pencils and twist ties. No struggling with broken or missing pens. As a bonus, for those of you who do not like writing down numbers on tiny tags with tiny pencils, the staff will look up SKU codes at the checkout. You’ll save time if you do it yourself, though.

Of course, a huge selection of candy, including over 40 Christmas products for the season. These jawbreakers were the size of ping-pong balls.

Many MANY spices here.

Rainbow of sprinkles, and other baking decorations.

The best was that they had take-home directions for many products, such as buttermilk power and soya milk powder.

Nuts on sale. Ranging from regular dry roasted to specially flavoured and smoked.

More cooler wet bar products. Kind of industrial looking, but clean.

The offerings of just one aisle. I love that “health food” is down the same aisle as candy and chocolate.

Many gluten-free and restricted diet products here. A god send for those of you who find it hard to get these products, or if you find them pricey.

So, Bulk Barn is basically amazing. I can only describe it as turning up the volume on bulk foods. Take your average product, such as yogurt covered raisins and multiply it: suddenly there are yogurt covered cherries, blueberries and cranberries. You buy how much you need, they offer discounts to students and seniors, and you get coupons when you check out for use on future visits. I highly recommend the honey mustard pretzels by the way.

Other Edmonton food bloggers have long ago written about this place, including Chris over at Eating is the Hard Part.

Bulk Barn
2077 98 Street
(In South Edmonton Common, near Superstore and Bed Bath & Beyond)
(780) 461-4454

My make-at-home, oven-friendly S’more kit. Based on an idea from Twig and Thistle.

Making marshmallows sounds intimidating. Candy thermometers, sticky messes and experimentation. Oh sure, everyone says they are easy. Those people are highly talented in the kitchen though: people like Martha Stewart and the bloggers behind Smitten Kitchen and Whisk. Even with an anxious approach, I still screwed up.

My intention was to put together adorable little S’more packages as New Years gifts. I can’t take credit for the idea, it originated here, at Twig and Thistle. The main difference was that I was going to make my own marshmallows. I really regret not making my own graham crackers as well, but: next year!

The most challenging part of this was finding a trustworthy candy thermometer and the right packaging for the kit. I ended up ordering a bundle of clear acrylic boxes from a wedding favour supply company in Vancouver called Wedding Things. A company called Uline, as well as Etsy and eBay were both options, but they either sold in HUGE amounts or shipping was a bit higher than I liked, so I went with a company close to home.

The first recipe I tried was from Smitten Kitchen. I liked it as it included egg whites, which is not a common component of most marshmallow recipes. I was hoping they would make springy, less saccharine marshmallows. I bought most of my ingredients from Bulk Barn (more on that later) and made them with my mom’s KitchenAid mixer. It’s an important tool for making marshmallows, as a hand mixer may just not have enough power. But some people reported success, so give it a try.

Uh-oh. This doesn’t look right. It foamed up like a science experiment, too.

My first error: using a pot that was too large. I anticipated a huge mess, so I used a huge pot to contain the sugar syrup. This allowed the sugar mix to have large changes in temperature, and I think in the end what got me was that my thermometer didn’t get a good read, and I was anxious for the mix to hit the magic temperature of 240F. One second it was clear and bubbly…and an instant later: golden brown and smelling of burnt sugar.

I put my mix into the gelatin in my KitchenAid mixer, and mixed. Then: problems. The candy syrup had hit the candy temperature, and was starting to solidify. It got stuck in the marshmallow mix, to the whisk and embedded itself in the mix.

This is what I liked to call marshmallow amber.

Much like real amber, right? Just missing the prehistoric insect.

The hard chunks were embedded in nearly every marshmallow, stuck to the KitchenAid mixer whisk and pretty much ruined my first batch…and nearly killed the KitchenAid. It was overheating like you wouldn’t believe, as the candy wrapped itself around the whisk and slowed the motor considerably.

While the flavour was good: kind of caramel tinged, the texture and colour were horrible, and there were still hidden chunks of candy hidden inside. Bad news.

So, I remade the marshmallows, using a new recipe. This time, no egg whites, and I relied on a more scientific Alton Brown recipe. He laid it down in terms my science background could understand. Oh: I also did not let the candy mixture get too hot, stopping at 235F. I added a half teaspoon more of vanilla, and used clear vanilla so it kept the marshmallows snow-white.

The second batch went much better. Here, cutting them. Some people use scissors, or a pizza cutter.

Giving the marshmallows a corn starch/icing sugar bath.

The first batch is on the right, the second on the left. They are puffier as I used smaller pans to make them thicker, and didn’t over heat the syrup this time. They were a bit sweeter because there was more corn syrup in them, but the texture was wonderful.

Packaged up, tied with bakers twine and…

Given instructions and a best before date.

My recipe cards were some silly tissue paper fires. I think a grade two student may be more skilled with glue than I am.

I did not do a price breakdown, but I think these cost about $3-4 to put together.

So my tips:

• Use a medium sized, Teflon coated pot.
• Get a thermometer you trust, and pull the syrup off the stove at, or just below 240F.
• Coat your stiff spatula in spray oil or wet it first before scraping the marshmallow out of the mixer bowl.
• RESIST the urge to scrape everything out of the bowl. This is where things get really sticky. It may go against your nature of “getting the last drop”, but it will be easier.
• Use a mix of corn starch and icing sugar to roll the slightly sticky mallows in.

I will be trying lavender marshmallows soon, much like the ones I was too full to try from The Bison in Banff.

Some other marshmallow posts:

• Duchess marshmallows and mocha
• Marshmallow showdown: Whole Foods vs. Butter Bake Shop
• Recchiuti S’more pack

I’ve been crazy for gingerbread this year, and have been experimenting with different gingerbread recipes for a month.

Gingerbread

The best has been one that is molasses-y but not too much so, kind of crumby yet moist and very spicy, with both ginger powder and freshly grated ginger root. I’m about to make another batch tomorrow, this time with ginger chunks from Bulk Barn.

This opened the flood gates and I started obsessing over ginger flavours. Before I knew it, I was trying anything remotely ginger related. Gingerbread lattes at Starbucks (ho hum, kind of thin). Gingerbread snap cookies (meh.) Then, finally a break through:

Real ginger beer by Crabbie’s

Summer? We drank this the day it was -46C in Edmonton. No ice though.

This is an awesome alcoholic beverage by the way. I got it at Sherbrooke Liquor, when they were out of the newest obsession in the house, a beer called Route Des Épices (Ale Rousse Au Poivre) by Quebec’s Dieu Du Ciel (it’s spicy. VERY spicy.) $6 for a reasonable serving, and this was tart, spicy and light. It’s 4%.

Then, because it was so cold I wanted to find a way to keep warm. I made hot chocolate from scratch. That is to say…

Gingerbread Hot Chocolate

I attended a Christmas party a number of years ago where I remember exactly three things: we watched a Lord of the Ring marathon, we had souffles but the host was perturbed they fell, and there was some wicked home made hot chocolate with Screech in it.

What’s Screech? Why it’s a rum endemic to Newfoundland. Mr M’s mom brought some back when she visited the east coast a few months ago. I’ve been dying to use it.

Real cinnamon reserved for special occasions

Chocolate “paste”

(This pot is my Gran’s. It is great for heating milk in, as it never burns, and stays hot a long time. She made it for making cream of wheat in.)

I edited my dad’s recipe for hot chocolate and came up with an awesome Gingerbread modification.

Gingerbread Hot Chocolate

• 1 cup of whole milk
• 2 portions of 1/4 cup heavy cream (i.e., whipping cream. My dad uses evaporated milk)
• 1.5 tablespoons of good-quality, unsweetened cocoa powder (I have started using Ghirardelli, but Valrhona or even Fry’s are good)
• 1.5 tablespoons of sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 0.5-1 ounce Screech (or any rum. Can also be omitted entirely.)
• stalk of ginger root, peeled and cut into slices
• half stick of cinnamon
• dash of ginger powder and cinnamon
• whole cloves or nutmeg, if you have them

In a heavy bottomed sauce pan over medium heat, pour in milk and 1/4 cup of heavy cream. Add ginger root, cinnamon and any other spices you desire, such as cloves and nutmeg. Let just come to a simmer, and drop heat until milk gets very hot and steeps in spices, 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine cocoa, sugar, dash of ginger powder and cinnamon, vanilla, rum and 1/4 cup of whipping cream with a whisk. It will get very pasty, so add milk or water to thin slightly and incorporate.

When milk has steeped, whisk in chocolate mixture until it has dissolved. Strain into a cup, over marshmallows or with fresh whipped cream on top.

This recipe is not too sweet, very spicy and highly drinkable. I don’t know how well it scales up, as I have only made two servings at a time of it. It’s quite rich.

Finally, at Duchess last week I saw one of their seasonal items:

Gingerbread macarons.

I have nothing to say other than: they’re great. Just like everything else they make.

Finally, at work a few weeks ago, we had to photograph some products from local business Beardog Cafe. One of their products smelled so good it was all I could do to not scarf it down as I shot it: Raven’s Gingerbread.

However, it’s for your four-legged friend. All-natural, and some pretty cute packaging, too.

Do you have any favourite ginger treats?

It was my mom’s birthday on Friday. She was working, so I made something light, easy and fun to eat for her and her co-workers and clients to enjoy: angel food cupcakes with balsamic strawberries and whipped cream.

It was my first time making from-scratch angel food cake. It was so delicious, I will never return to those spongy, greasy pre-packaged ones in the supermarket. 12 egg whites go into the batter though; that’s crazy.

Angel Food Cupcakes

• 12 large egg whites
• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar (sifted)
• 1 cup sifted cake flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Let egg whites sit in a bowl for an hour or so to come to room temperature. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Sift icing sugar, flour, salt together into a bowl.

3. Beat egg whites til frothy. Add cream of tartar, continue beating until soft peaks form. Add granulated sugar gradually, and continue beating, until white thicken and form droopy peaks. Beat in vanilla.

4. Sprinkle sifted dry ingredients in small batches, folding into whites.

5. Fill cupcake pan tins 3/4 full, and bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

6. Cool, and use a butter knife to loosen the edges, then pop out the cupcake. The recipe made about 30 cupcakes.

The strawberries were easy. I hulled and sliced them, sprinkled with sugar and balsamic and let them sit and marinate for a while. They were so good. I’m adding some to my salad for lunch.

note: this originally appeared on my personal blog on may 10 2009.

Mike’s sister Kim has been away for nearly a year, WWOOFing (Willing Workers on Organic Farms; you work on a farm, in return for room and board) in Hawaii, New Zealand and Australia. Shortly before she left, she made the plunge and took on the vegan lifestyle. To welcome her home, Mike made a huge vegan spread, and I made a vegan cake.

Predictably, there were a lot of lentils. Lots. The dishes were mostly Indian, except for two lentil dishes which were Ethiopian. Dishes included brown mustard seed cauliflower, okra curry, kik alicha and a variation on misir wot. To accompany, fresh roti.

Okra is SO delicious! We used fresh, but if you find it hard to get, frozen is okay.

Mmmm, fresh roti.

I bought some rhubarb stalks last week, maybe thinking I would make rhubarb strawberry muffins. Instead, I used the stalks in a vegan rhubarb coffee cake. It was my first time baking anything vegan, and I can say a few things put me off, as they weren’t my normal mode of baking. Vegan baking obviously doesn’t allow use of animal fats, so butter, milk and eggs are out. Instead, recipes tend to use things like applesauce and oil in place of animal fats. Pouring a whole cup of oil into the cake batter kind of turned my stomach, even though it’s really no different than butter.

The cake took a LONG time to bake. The recipe said an hour, but I think my choice of pan made leaving the cake in for nearly two hours necessary. When I popped it out of the pan, it looked…gelatinous and underdone. The middle started to collapse (again, possibly from pan choice or from all my cake testing during the baking) and it turned out to be more of a rhubarb crumble instead of cake.

I used safflower oil, so the oil choice was a bit healthier than a regular canola oil. The addition of flax seeds helped add texture and nutrition. The cake was pretty delicious, and far exceeded my expectations.

Very rhubarb-y filling!

Upside down view shows kind of a weird bottom, which was very moist and almost gelatinous. Baking it in a different pan would have helped avoid that, I think.

Vegan Rhubarb Crumble / Coffeecake

Adapted from KimmyKokonut.

Crumb topping

• 1/4 cup flour
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon safflower (or canola) oil

Cake ingredients

• 1 tablespoon flax seeds, ground
• 3 tablespoon water

• 3 tablespoons applesauce (I bought a jar of organic baby food applesauce since I needed so little)
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons molasses
• 1 cup safflower (or canola) oil
• 4 cups rhubarb stems, medium dice
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp cardamom

Method

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F and get out your 9×13″ pan or 2 loaf pans.
2. Grind flax seeds, and whisk with water and set aside.
3. Make crumb topping: Mix flour, sugar and spices in a small bowl and mix together (whisk, fork, fingers) while drizzling oil in. Once it becomes crumb-y, set it aside. You may need to add more/less oil.
4. In a medium bowl, mix together applesauce, sugar, molasses, oil and flax & water mix.
5. In a separate, larger, bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and cardamom.
6. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ones and mix until JUST combined.
7. Fold in rhubarb and pour into pan(s). Top with crumbs.
8. Bake for one hour or until a knife inserted comes out clean. (I had to bake mine for nearly 2 hours)
9. Cool on a wire rack. This would be great with soy ice cream.

Macarons are the new cupcake, haven’t you heard? Well, actually according the the New York Times, whoopie pies are the new cupcake. But I stand by my macarons. They are experiencing a renaissance, showing up in pâtisseries and bakeries as well as at weddings as favours. Now that Edmonton has finally opened a few cupcake shoppes, it signalled the end to that trend.

First: let’s get one thing straight. Not macaroons. Macarons.

Although macaroons are not without their charms. I used to buy the Neilson brand for $0.97 a box at Zellers during summers in Thunder Bay. It’s funny the things that thrill you as a child.

Macaroons are coconut based chocolate-covered candies or cookies, available at your local dollar store. Macarons are originally from France, and are meringuey light sandwiched cookies, with fillings. A world of difference.

Although I had never tried a macaron until this February at Bouchon in Las Vegas, I had long been interested in them. They’re just so damned pretty! And the flavours are insane. Earl grey, caramel fleur de sel, filled with jam, ganache, buttercream; even ketchup (yes you read correctly)…they are a baker’s dream of customization.

Then I started to research them, and I realized what kind of a baking challenge they were. I put off baking them for months out of fear of failure, which is a common reaction judging by all the blogs I have read about macarons. Some people report six or seven attempts to get something close to edible.The problems never end: too fresh of egg whites, under beating, over beating, under and over folding, humidity, wrong pans… Macarons are all technique, unlike many cookie recipes.

Macarons should be chewy, sweet, airy and with a bit of a crunch when you bite in.

Macarons gone wrong on other blogs:

I will not shame the bakers of these for they were brave enough to post their mistakes, but see what I mean? These suckers are a challenge!

However, I am happy to say, they were not as frightful as I had feared. While they are a bit advanced, I think anyone with a decent oven, electric beater/stand mixer, scale, piping bag and a bit of patience can make these.

I pulled my recipe from a number of sources. There are a few versions floating around the web, and I found the most successful recipes required weighing. I went to my parents house, where they have a convection oven, numerous baking pans, kitchen scales and most importantly: counter space and a KitchenAid stand mixer.

I started a day previous by aging my egg whites on a counter at room temperature. Some people age their whites up to three days. Why is this? According to Harold McGee in “On Food and Cooking“, it is complicated. Basically, the fresher the egg the easier to separate from the yolk. However, it can also be harder to get them to foam and stiffen, hence the artificial aging. One day on a counter at room temperature is equal to four days aging in the fridge.

McGee does say a stand mixer will whip even the freshest eggs, however. So the forced aging does have a reason and is not superstition, as many bloggers believe. The funniest thing about macarons is that everyone has their ‘trick.’ Some beat eggs for a certain number of minutes. Others dry roast their ground almonds, or add powdered egg whites to unaged fresh whites. Yet others let the piped cookies stand for over an hour to form a skin on top, then pray for the best.

Basic Macaron Recipe:

(# of sandwiches made depends on the size of your cookies. I got about 24 2″ cookies, to make 12 macarons)

• 225 grams icing sugar
• 125 grams ground almonds
• 110 grams egg whites (about 4), aged overnight at room temperature
• 25 grams granulated sugar
• Pinch of salt

Weigh the icing sugar and almonds, and sift into a small bowl. Weigh the granulated sugar and set aside. Finally, weigh the egg whites.

In a clean dry mixing bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer on medium to beat the egg whites. Add a pinch of salt before you beat. The eggs should quickly become frothy.

At this point, slowly add the granulated sugar, and speed up the mixer slightly. The mix will become opaque and stiffen. Continue beating until peaks form and hold, and the surface becomes shiny. The whites should stick to the bowl and hold a well defined edge.

Gently fold in the almond/icing sugar mix with a spatula. I did mine in three portions. Here’s the tricky bit: “fold until the ingredients are incorporated, but do not over fold.” Some say you should get something like lava: a gentle crust on top, with liquid motion, and peaks that flatten.

When I filled my piping gun, the mix seemed so thick! I was certain I had failed, to be honest. I piped 1.5″ circles onto parchment paper, smoothing any nipples on top with a moistened finger. I put the macarons into a preheated 350°F oven for 11 minutes.

7 minutes into baking, I saw feet popping up on my little macarons so I was feeling pretty proud. I did have some cracking (mostly in the second batch) but overall, success! I think I might let the macarons sit before baking a little bit longer next time. I think it might stop the quick spreading, and cracking, in the oven. If you have trouble with your macarons, try the Italian meringue method. Some have better luck with that.

The stages of the eggs:

At the start.

Getting foamy now, almost ready for sugar….

Sugar added, and whipping into stiffer foam.

Finally, success!

Piping the macaron batter:

Look at those damn near perfect feet!

It’s citrus season and while I love RioStar grapefruit and naval oranges, I have a special spot reserved for blood oranges. They’re really spectacular. I decided to make blood orange curd for the middle of my macarons.

My initial curd recipe was a DISASTER and so I have this FAILcurd:

It looks like a prop in a horror movie.

One redo later, and I had something much better.

Blood Orange Curd

(makes 1 1/2 cups)

• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon fine orange zest (TIP: zest before you juice the oranges, it is easier)
• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed blood orange juice
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar (I might use less next time)
• 4 tablespoon cubed room temperature butter

In a small saucepan, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and juice until blended. Cook, stirring constantly (to prevent it from curdling), until the mixture becomes thick (like sour cream or a hollandaise sauce), about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in butter pieces. Add the zest and let cool. When cool, cover and put in fridge.

Next time I will include less sugar. Lemon curd demands a high amount of sugar to tone down the tartness, but blood oranges are so sweet they do not need the help. The leftover curd is great on toast.

My sources for my successful macaron making:

• David Lebovitz: Instructions and recipes for making French macarons
• Serious Eats: How to make macarons
• Translated from French, Mercotte: Desperately Seeking Macarons

Also, how wrong is it that making these macarons made me long for a new camera and a kitchen with natural lighting?

These always go quickly when I bring them into the office. They’re super sweet, melty morsels with a chewy base. Great with a glass of milk; they are a true Canadian classic.

Nanaimo Bars

(Makes 16 squares, more if you cut them smaller)

Bottom Layer

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
5 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 egg beaten
1-1/2 cups graham wafer crumbs
1/2 cup finely chopped cashews (use whatever nut you like though)
1 cup finely shredded coconut

Middle Layer

1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon 35% cream
2 tablespoons vanilla custard powder
2 cups icing sugar

Top Layer

one entire bar of dark chocolate, 225g (I used Nestlé Noir, the “intense” 70% cocoa version)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1. Melt first four ingredients of bottom layer in top of double boiler.
2. Add egg and stir to cook and thicken. Remove from heat.
3. Stir in crumbs, nuts and coconut. Press firmly into an 8″ x 8″ pan with clear wrap laid on the bottom. Chill while you prepare the middle layer.

Middle Layer

1. Using an electric mixer, cream all ingredients together, beating well until light in colour.
2. Spread evenly over chilled bottom layer. Place back into fridge to chill while top is being prepared.

Top Layer

1. Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl over a double boiler.
2. Cool slightly – the chocolate should still be pourable.
3. Spread gently over second layer so as not to mix the two layers together. I find tapping gets a smoother layer. Refrigerate until set.

Cut into bite sized portions with a hot knife. Some people cut HUGE portions, but I prefer little bites. I find the bars extremely rich and almost too much to handle.

In this layer: cocoa, butter and chopped cashews. I’ve made them with pecans and hazelnuts. Cashews are my favourite.

It’s hard to get homemade custard to the right consistency in Nanaimo bars, so you pretty much have to use “Bird’s Custard”. I find it sickeningly sweet, even when you cut back on the powdered sugar required. In fact, I would say I don’t even really like Nanaimo bars. Can you believe it?

This is my favourite way to cut Nanaimo bars. They are incredibly messy, so before I start to lay down my layers, I put down clear wrap in the base. Then, when the layers have solidified, you pop out the sheet of Nanaimo and cut on the plastic. The chocolate is contained!

It’s November, so that means it’s hunting month. Every Saturday, Mike gets up before 4 to go out hunting. Or so he says. I think it’s just an excuse to eat Pringles and homemade baked goods.

This week, I made giant soft ginger cookies and dark and milk chocolate chip cookies for the guys.

In high school when people would bring beer to parties, I would bring chocolate chip cookies. And no one would laugh at me. I guess they were pretty good.

Turns out, they’re also considered pretty good around the office as well. I’ll have to freeze more next time.

Giant Soft Ginger Cookies

4-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons ground ginger, 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground cloves (freshly ground if possible)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 cups butter at room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup molasses (I used the highest grade fancy molasses)
3/4 cup coarse sugar or granulated sugar, with cinnamon sprinkled in (not necessary, but it adds a bit of zing)