Fennel-Ginger Molassses Cookies

I developed this recipe when I was nursing my dad in Houston, missing the flavors that remind me of home. I was far from the winter I grew up loving the palm trees, the golden sunsets, the quiet comfort of desert evenings. I missed the bonfires with my closest friends, the singing, the hot coffee warming our hands as the night cooled around us.

One day, wandering through a Christmas market in Houston, the smell of spiced cookies drifted through the air. It stopped me. That warm, familiar mix of spices instantly pulled me back to the UAE. We use spices in so many of our desserts they’re woven into our traditions so that scent felt like someone gently opening a door back to my own kitchen, my own memories.

That’s how these cookies came to life.

My Golden Salted Date Molasses & Fennel Cookies were inspired by classic molasses cookies, but I wanted to fold in the spirit of home. Date molasses deeply aromatic and comforting and fennel, a spice we often use in Emirati date sweets, together create something warm and nostalgic. Something that truly reminds me of home.

Best enjoyed, always, with an afternoon cup of Arabic coffee (gahwa).

Ingredients

Dry

• 219 g (1¾ cups) all-purpose flour

• ¼ teaspoon baking powder

• ½ teaspoon baking soda

• 1 teaspoon ground fennel

• ½ teaspoon ground ginger

• ½ teaspoon ground cloves

• ¾ teaspoon sea salt

Wet

• 84 g (6 tablespoons) salted butter, softened

• 150 g granulated sugar, plus 3 tablespoons extra for rolling

• 55 g (¼ cup) brown sugar or dark muscovado

• 1 large egg

• 60 ml (¼ cup) date molasses

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

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Method

1. Prep the pans.

Grease and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Mix the dry ingredients.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, fennel, ginger, cloves, and salt. Set aside.

3. Cream the butter and sugars.

In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar on medium speed for about 5 minutes, until light and fluffy.

4. Add the egg and molasses.

Mix in the egg for 30 seconds. Add the date molasses and vanilla, beating just until combined.

5. Add the dry ingredients.

Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed (or fold gently) until the dough comes together.

Cover and chill for 30 minutes.

6. Bake the big cookies (10 cookies).

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

• Scoop the dough into 10 large pieces, roll each one in sugar, and place them on the tray with 2 inches of space.

• Bake for 18 minutes, but halfway through (at 10 minutes) remove the tray and smack it firmly on the counter to create cracks.

• Return to the oven for the remaining 8 minutes.

• Cool on the tray for 3 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

7. OR bake smaller cookies (22–24 cookies).

• Scoop using a 1 oz scoop (walnut size).

• Roll in the remaining 3 tablespoons sugar.

• Bake for 12 minutes, smacking the tray halfway through baking.

• Cool 3 minutes on the tray before moving to a rack.