Abe's gingerbread men

One of Abraham Lincoln's favorite culinary tales is the one dubbed "The Gingerbread Story," one he actually mentioned in the famed Lincoln-Douglas debates.

Seems that back in his Indiana boyhood, young Abe's stepmama was in the kitchen cooking up some sorghum and ginger into gingerbread, a cherished treat. Young Abe, smelling the elixir, dashed into the cabin and scooped up three gingerbread boys. He hurried them out to a hickory tree, where he slid down to take the first bite.

As he was sinking his teeth into the legs of the first gingerboy, a neighbor farmboy came along. The boy, whom Abe deemed was even poorer than the Lincolns, asked if he too could have a gingerboy, so Abe obliged. The boy gobbled it down and asked for another. Abe obliged again, left with but one gingerboy — and a tale to tell forever.

The moral of the story has more to do with Abe's endless generosity than his fondness for the sweet and spicy cakes. But from the mouth of Lincoln himself, it's the rare morsel with gustatory leanings. And that's the honest truth.


Young Abe's gingerbread men

Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 8 minutes
Makes: About 5 dozen

Note: The cookies can be iced after cooling. The recipe is adapted from "Lincoln's Table," by Donna F. McCreary.

Ingredients:
21/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup dark molasses or sorghum
1 teaspoon each: cinnamon, ginger, cloves 2 eggs, well beaten
1 teaspoon vinegar
5 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon milk

Cream butter and sugar together in a bowl with electric mixer. Beat in molasses, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Beat in eggs and vinegar; mix well.

Sift flour and baking soda; beat into egg mixture gradually. Beat in milk to form a soft dough. Wrap dough in plastic; refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough in batches on floured board. Cut with gingerbread-man cutters or other shapes. Raisins or dried fruit can be used to decorate. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet, 8-10 minutes. Cool on wire racks.


Nutrition information
Per cookie: 94 calories, 39% of calories from fat, 4 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 17 mg cholesterol, 13 g carbohydrates, 1 g protein, 25 mg sodium, 0 g fiber.