Pioneer
Oatmeal Molasses Cookies
A treat made from next to nothing
New Brunswick historical recordOats were cheap, molasses was cheap, and lard was nearly free after rendering pork. These dark, chewy cookies were made in big batches and kept in a tin. In the depths of the Depression, a cookie was a small luxury that cost almost nothing to make.
Source: New Brunswick historical record
Ingredients
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp ginger
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup lard or shortening
- ½ cup molasses
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp cold water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease baking sheets.
- Stir together flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.
- Beat lard, molasses, and sugar until combined. Beat in egg.
- Stir dry ingredients into wet, adding water to bring dough together.
- Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart.
- Bake 10–12 minutes until edges are set and centres look just dry.
- Cool on the pan for 5 minutes before removing — they firm up as they cool.
✦ Kitchen Notes
- Makes about 3 dozen. They keep for a week in a tin — if they last that long.