Ingredients
Cookie
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 t cloves
1/2 t allspice
1/2 t nutmeg
2 t ginger
2 t cinnamon
1 t baking soda
1 cup Crisco®/butter*
1/2 buttermilk
3/4 sorghum or molasses
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
Original Recipe Frosting
1 envelope plain gelatin
3/4 cup water
3/4 sugar
3/4 powdered sugar
3/4 t baking powder
1 t vanilla
Directions
Oven 325º Parchment covered cookie sheets. Rectangular cookie cutter. My Mom used a Spam® can that she kept with supply of cookie cutters.
Mix dry ingredients together and set aside. Combine wet ingredients and mix well. Add dry ingredients and combine. Refrigerate for about an hour. Divide dough in thirds and refrigerate dough not being rolled. Roll on lightly floured board to 1/4 inch thick. Cut with Spam type cookie cutter. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Don’t over bake. Cool and frost.
Frosting
Soak gelatin in saucepan for one minute.Add sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Pour gelatin mixture into medium bowl. Add in powdered sugar and whisk until foamy. Add in baking powder and vanilla and beat until thick about 7 minutes.Needs to be thin enough to be spread across the cookies using spatula. Let frosting dry before storing. These cookie freeze very well.
*Crisco has higher melting point and lets the eggs and flour set so the cookies will be higher and not spread out. These cookies look nicer when using Crisco. Butter has lower melting point and flour and eggs don’t set and the cookies spread out during baking. My Grandmother always used lard for baking cookies. They kept their shape and were delicious.