Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

I came across this Martha Stewart recipe on a blog that I read often...Stephmodo was guest blogging on petit elephant and talked about them there. I was a bit intrigued by the fresh ginger. It remined me of the triple ginger snaps from Trader Joe's that we discovered last fall. These cookies definitely came out with a good balance of ginger (fresh and ground) and chocolate. A yummy fall addition!

Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies

7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

1 1/2 c. plus 1 tablespoon flour

1 1/4 t. ground ginger

1/4 t. ground cloves

1/4 t. ground nutmeg

1 T. cocoa powder

1/2 c. butter

1 T. freshly grated ginger

1/2 c. dark-brown sugar, packed

1/2 c. unsulphered molasses

1 t. baking soda

1/4 c. granulated sugar

1 t. ground cinnamon

Chop chocolate into 1/4-inch chunks (or just use good chocolate chips!), set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmet, and cocoa. In a separate bowl, beat butter and grated ginger until whitened, about 4 minutes. Add brown sugar, beat until combined. Add molasses, beat until combined. In a small bowl, dissolve baking soda in 1 1/2 t. boiling water. Beat half of flour mixture into butter mixture. Beat in baking soda mixture, then remaing half of flour mixture. Mix in chocolate. Turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap. Pat dough out to bout 1 inch thick; seal with plastic wrap, refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll dough into 2-inch balls; place 2 1/2 inches apart on baking sheets. Refrigerate 20 minutes. Roll dough balls in granulated sugar/cinnamon mixture and return to baking sheets. Bake until surfaces crack slightly about 12-14 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes; transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.