how to soften stale cookies {ginger molasses recipe}

if you have cookies that have gotten a little hardened or stale, there is a simple way to make them soft again like when they were fresh-baked.  just put one small apple slice into your cookie container and seal it tightly. within a few hours, they'll be noticeably softer, and the next morning they'll be just like when you baked them.  i tried this trick yesterday and had a delicious soft-as-the-day-i-baked-it ginger molasses cookie for breakfast, with a slice of last night's pizza and a strawberry smoothie, cuz i'm healthy like that.

this is a recipe i come back to again and again.  mmmmm.

chewy crystalized ginger molasses cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup dark molasses
1 egg
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3.5 ounces crystallized ginger, chopped coarsely

Preheat oven to 375°F. Combine softened butter, sugar, molasses and egg. Using a mixer, beat well. Stir in crystallized ginger. Sift dry ingredients together. Add to wet mixture. Mix well. Form 1 inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar. Place on greased cookie sheet, 2 inches apart. Bake 8-10 minutes. Makes 3 dozen cookies.

three dozen is a conservative estimate. i made literal one inch balls and probably yielded six dozen, but i should have shortened the cooking time (hence them turning hard fast.)

FYI:  don't bother with the over-priced crystalized ginger in the tiny jar in the spice isle at the supermarket.  i've picked it up reasonably at tj maxx and places that sell dry goods in bulk.