1
["Preparation Time: 1 1/2 hrs", "Chilling Time: 12 hrs or possibly more", "Cooking Time: 7 min", "1.", "Put sugar, syrup, water, ginger, cinnamon and cloves into a large saucepan.", "Cook and stir over medium heat till mix boils and sugar dissolves.", "Remove from heat.", "Add in butter.", "Stir till butter is melted and mix is no longer very warm.", "2.", "Mix flour and baking soda.", "Gradually add in flour mix to butter mix and stir to blend thoroughly.", "Dough will have a soft texture.", "Place dough in an airtight container and chill overnight or possibly at least 12 hrs or possibly as long as 1 week.", "3.", "Heat oven to 375 degrees.", "Remove about one-sixth of the dough and knead it till it is slightly softened.", "Roll dough directly onto ungreased cookie sheets till it is about 1/4-inch thick.", "Use a cookie cutter to stamp shapes in dough, allowing a 1-inch margin between each cookie.", "Remove excess dough by lifting it and peeling it away.", "Scraps of dough can be kneaded together and re-rolled.", "4.", "Bake till golden, about 7 min.", "Allow cookies to cold slightly and become crisp before removing them from the cookie sheet.", "Cold thoroughly on wire racks.", "If you like, you may ""paint"" the cooled cookies using a clean, small paintbrush and food coloring which has been watered down slightly.", "Store cookies in airtight containers.", "Note: After the 12-hour resting period, this cookie dough can be hand-molded like clay-rolled, pinched, poked and pressed-and it will keep its shape, expanding slightly while baking.", "Thin cookies will become brown and bake quickly, large and thick shapes will require longer baking.", "Can be cut into any shape desired but make the cookies uniformly thick.", "The microwave oven can be used to cook the sugar mix in step 1."]
