Have you heard the legend of the ginger snapping turtle?
A Ginger Snapping Turtle Sleeping... that's why you don't see his eyes
Well, let me tell you, they have quite a temper on them. Imagine a common snapping turtle with the flair and sass of a ginger…OH BOY. This rare species has a warm orange/brown hue. They are quite small in size as far as turtles go. In their developing stages, you will most likely find them in extremely hot and contained areas. Once they have aged and dried out a bit, they tend to inhabit flat, cool, surfaces. They travel in bales (a group of turtles) and have a short life span due to a numerous amount of predators. If they cannot fight off their predators with their intimidating looks, they have quite a kick to them when eaten, so predators must take caution or they will perish. If you are lucky enough to win a battle against a ginger snapping turtle and get to taste it, you will be in for a pleasant surprise (for most humans can stand the spiciness of this rambunctious critter, and if not, then sorry, you may perish)!
Guess what? These critters actually appeared in my kitchen here in Portland, Oregon. Crazy! There was a great battle between people and ginger snapping turtles, but no worries, we were able to conquer the turtles with a few minor scratches and bruises here and there. And, yes, they were TASTY.
Would you like to know how this species ended up in my kitchen? Well, I’m guess ing if you are this far into the post, you will. First of all, I went to the most adorable baking shop that I have been to so far. They had all sorts of bakewares, cookbooks, aprons, mits… it was like a small scale Toys R Us for bakers (or at least for me). They even had a large assortment of food coloring that looked like paints and huge jars of sprinkles assorted by color. I don’t think I was able to shut my mouth while I was in there because I was in baking heaven. The lady in the store probably thought I was out of my mind, but she was friendly and that is all that matters. She even told us about baking classes that happen in the store… and yes, I will attend those when I can. Anyways, upon investigating the store head to toe, I found a corner of cookie cutters. Copper cookie cutters. In all shapes and sizes. Towards the bottom of this display, there was the most adorable turtle cookie cutter.
I wanted it. I got it. Life was good. But it was about to get better. What kind of cookies would best suit a turtle cookie cutter? Hmmmm. Well, I had been planning on making ginger snap cookies. AHA! Light-bulb. What about ginger snap cookies in the shape of turtles? Ginger turtle snaps? Snapping ginger turtles? Oh, Ginger snapping turtles. Here is how the end result ended up in my kitchen…
Extra Spicy Gingersnap Cookies (recipe from Grouprecipes.com)
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups of flour
- 3/4 teaspoon of cinnamon (and of course I put more in)
- 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon of of ground cloves (I didn’t have this, so I replaced it with 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon of ground ginger)
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 8 tablespoons of unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup of white sugar
- 1 cup of brown sugar
- 1/4 cup of egg whites (the whites from 2 eggs should do)
- 1/3 cup of molasses (not blackstrap)
- The secret ingredient: A shard of real star. This is quite a rare ingredient. It really makes the cookie SPARK. I’m aware that most people won’t have access to this ingredient, so you can substitute it with 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (but if you can, get your hands on a shard of real star. It will change your life).
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Cream the butter and then add in sugars in one bowl.
- Add in the molasses into the butter/sugar mix.
- Then add the egg whites to that mixture.
- In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, and spices.
- Combine the dry ingredients with the butter/sugar/egg mixture.
- Roll dough and either form into balls or shape into whatever form you want them to take.
Adolescent Ginger Snapping Turtles
- You can either roll your cookies in sugar before putting them on your cookie sheet, or you can sprinkle the sugar on top after you place the cookies on the sheet (that’s what I did).
- Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes (bake for longer if you want them super crispy).
A bale of ginger snapping turtles
After the great battle between people and turtles...this one was next in line to be devoured
These turtles were quite yummy! They definitely have kick to them and the more you chew, the more the taste of the shard of real star (or cayenne pepper) shines through. If you like gingersnap cookies but aren’t too big on spice, perhaps skip the secret ingredient. However you make these babies, I hope you will enjoy and create some fun shapes and perhaps even silly legends of your own.
