Ginger Malt Cookies

1 ½ cup flour 

1 tsp baking soda 

½ tsp ground allspice 

1 tsp ground cinnamon 

1 ½ tsp ground ginger 

pinch of salt 

7 Tbsp butter, softened 

⅓ cup packed brown sugar 

½ cup barley malt syrup 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

¼ cup coarse granulated sugar, to sprinkle on top of the cookie before baking

Sift flour, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt into a medium bowl. Combine the butter, brown sugar and barley malt syrup, and vanilla in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Add the flour mixture and stir until incorporated. Lightly knead the dough to bring it together if needed. Form the dough into a flat rectangle and wrap in plastic. (This will make it easier to roll out the dough.) Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 1 or 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. If using one baking sheet, bake the cookies in batches.

Cut the dough in half so it is easier to roll. On a lightly floured surface, roll it out 1/4-inch thick. Using a 2-inch or 3-inch cookie cutter, cut out as many cookies as you can. Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat process with the remaining half of dough. Reroll the remaining dough and cut out the remaining cookies. Refrigerate the dough if hard to work with.

Sprinkle some coarse sugar on top of each cookie. Bake cookies in the middle rack of the oven. If you are baking 2 trays of cookies at the same time, shift pans halfway during the cooking time so cookies brown evenly. Bake the cookies until crisp and golden brown, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies onto a rack to cool. Serve. Makes about 40 to 50 cookies depending on the size of the cookie cutter.