Adjust an oven rack to the middle position Heat oven to 375 Spread 1/2 cup sugar in a shallow dish for coating Set aside Whisk the flour
baking soda
spices
pepper and salt together in a large bowl Set aside
Beat butter
brown sugar and remaining 1/3 cup sugar together in a large bowl using an elecctric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy
3-6 inutes Beat in egg yolk and vanilla until combined
about 30 seconds Beat in the molasses until incorporated
about 30 seconds
scraping down the side of the bowl and bveater as needed
Reduce mixer speed to low Slowly mix in the flour mixture until combined
about 30 seconds Dough will be soft Give the dough a final stir with a rubhger spatula to make sure it is combinewd
Using wet hands
roll 2 T dough at a time into balls
then roll in the sugar to coat Lay on two parchment-lined baking sheets
spaced about 2 inches apart Bake
one sheet at a tim
until edges set and tops are cracked but centers are still soft and underdone Peek thru cracks to check centers Its about 10-12 minutes Rotate the baking sheet halfway thru baking
Let cookies cool on sheet for 10 minutes You can serve them at this point or transfer to a wire rack
cooling completely before putting on the rum glaze
To make glaze
just mix the confectioners sugar and rum together until smooth Drizzle it over the cooled cookies Let set for 10-15 minutes before serving
NOTE if you want to make these w/o the rum glaze
you could also use a variation that has orange essence in it Just add 1 t grated orange zest to the dough when you add the molasses Process 2/3 cup sugar with 2 t grated orange zest in a food processor until fragrance
about 10 seconds Use that for rolling instead of the plain white sugar
