If you have discard to use, you should devote some of it to these lemon-ginger cookies. The cookies are a variation on a sourdough biscotti recipe I make, and the cookies are easier than the biscotti and need only one baking. I confess that I make up the dough and stash it in the refrigerator for a few days (okay, the last time, I left the dough in the refrigerator for about three weeks--oops!--and the cookies were fine!). Then, when I'm ready, I take out the dough and bake the cookies--usually at dinner time when I have something else in the oven and want a dessert to go along with it. The time in the refrigerator as well as the sourdough discard intensify the tart/tangy taste of the cookies. A little grated ginger gives the cookies a faint, almost imperceptible zing. The cookies are light, a little crunchy on the bottoms, and not-quite-but-almost cake-like on top. You can glaze or frost the cookies if you like, but I like the cookies dusted with confectioners' sugar. I dust them with the sugar just before baking and again after. Simple, beautiful, tasty!
Sourdough Lemon-Ginger Cookies -- Makes about 24
1 cup of sourdough starter/discard
1 cup of sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup of canola oil
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
Grated zest of 1 lemon
2 cups of flour
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
1 teaspoon of grated ginger (yes, you can use the squeeze bottle of grated/ground fresh
ginger)
Confectioners' sugar to dust
In a large bowl, combine the starter/discard, sugar, egg, oil, lemon juice, zest, and ginger well. Stir in the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda until combined. Bake the dough immediately or wrap the dough in plastic/put it in a storage container and refrigerate it for a day or so (okay, up to three weeks, if you forget it). When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line baking sheets with baking parchment. Drop the dough by 1 1/2 tablespoons on the baking parchment, spacing the dough about 2 inches apart (the cookies will spread when baking). Flatten the dough slightly with damp hands/fingers and sprinkle on a little confectioners' sugar. Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes or until puffed and just firm to the touch. Let the cookies cool a few minutes on the baking sheet and then sift a bit more confectioners' sugar over them. The cookies are great warm and also good at room temperature.
