Step 1

Whisk the dry ingredients. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt until combined. Set the bowl aside.

Step 2

Cream the butter and sugars. Add the softened butter and both sugars to a large mixing bowl or stand mixer. Cream together on high speed for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl.

Step 3

Add the molasses. Mix for an additional minute.

Step 4

Add the egg and vanilla extract. Continue to beat until combined.

Step 5

Pour in the dry ingredients. At low speed mix until a dough forms. The dough will be thick and sticky.

Step 6

Refrigerate the dough. Cover the bowl with foil and transfer the dough to the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours or up to 24 hours before baking.

Step 7

Prepare the baking sheets. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set them aside. Remove the cookie dough from the refrigerator. If the dough chills over 2 hours and is stiff, let the dough come to room temperature for 15 minutes, then proceed to bake.

Step 8

Scoop and roll the cookie dough. Pour the extra granulated sugar into a small bowl. Using a medium cookie scoop, scoop the dough into even portions, (30 grams each). Roll each ball of dough into a uniform shape, then gently roll in the sugar to coat. Place 6 cookie dough balls on a baking sheet spacing 2 inches apart.

Step 9

Bake the cookies. Place one baking sheet at a time in the oven for 8-10 minutes or until the edges look golden and set and the centers look slightly underdone. (We love the texture at 9 minutes!)

Step 10

Round out the cookies. If desired, you can use a large circular cookie cutter or circular glass to coax the cookies into perfect circles while they are hot in the oven. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to continue cooling.