Aunt Sally Cookies, sometimes called Sally Ann Cookies, are soft, molasses cookies cut into a rectangular shape, often with the help of a can of Spam, and topped with unique white icing that hardens on top.
I love the small but mighty community of “dish and tellers” who follow my blog and social posts! Recently I put out an ask on Facebook for a recipe for Aunt Sally Cookies, the gingerbread-like cookies in a rectangular shape with the unique white icing that hardens on top. What I got back was a genuine surprise—a cherished, family recipe for Aunt Sally Cookies that actually comes from the kitchen of my husband’s late great aunt!
No, her name isn’t Sally, it’s Jeanette but she had the exact version of the cookies I was seeking, complete with instructions on using a can of Spam to create their classic shape.
Thanks to Amelia, a second cousin (whom I have never met before but am convinced we would be fast friends!), for sharing her grandmother Jeanette’s recipe and for connecting me with her mom Patricia (Jeanette’s daughter) who shared some fun memories of the cookies and growing up on their family farm in Ross, Minn.
Where does this recipe come from?
Aunt Sally cookies, sometimes referred to as Sally Ann cookies, apparently got their name from a packaged cookie available in the 1950’s. However, as more home bakers attempted to recreate the cookies in their own kitchens, different variations started appearing in church cookbooks (which if you ask me, are a treasure trove of the best family recipes).
Indeed Jeanette’s original recipe came from a church cookbook, but she perfected it through the years to adjust the measurements until she was satisfied. The result is a recipe that multiple generations of her family have loved and continue to make today.
Her daughter Patricia has many fond memories of the cookies, going back to her childhood and enjoying the Aunt Sally cookies her own grandma once made. Later she remembers her mother making them often as part of her weekly baking routine each Saturday.
“We were blessed with fresh bread, buns, cakes, bars and, of course, cookies on a weekly basis,” said Patricia. “There were a lot of mouths to feed and baking was the most economical way of doing things on the farm.”
She adds it was like Grand Central Station at times with all the comings and goings between their family of four children, the hired men who helped on the farm and all the extended family who would stop in for a visit.
“Mother and father were wonderful hosts, always ready with coffee and a homemade treat,” said Patricia.
She adds, in later years, her own children enjoyed the same royal treatment when they would visit the farm. They loved eating fresh baked cookies and doughnuts at the kitchen table and also sneaking some extra treats from the freezer when no one was looking.
Amelia adds, “I remember grandma having a stash of Aunt Sally cookies in her freezer, wrapped in wax paper, inside an old coffee tin.”
Jeanette was also known to send elaborate care packages at Christmas to Patricia’ and Amelia’s family who lived far away from Roseau.
“Flatbread and cookies were shipped with popcorn used as packing material to ensure everything arrived in good condition,” said Patricia. “Lefse and doughnuts were included as well and, of course, a batch of Aunt Sally cookies. With great anticipation, the box would be opened, unpacked and inspected with oohs and ahhs.”
Fun fact: In 2011, Patricia made her mom’s recipe for Aunt Sally cookies and entered them in the county fair, winning first place in a heritage cookie contest!
Tips for making Aunt Sally cookies:
- Before baking, Jeanette would copy her recipes down on a piece of paper or on a recycled envelope to keep her cookbooks splatter-free (note to self: this is a very good idea!).
- The dough for these cookies has to be chilled before rolling and cutting. Jeanette would put her dough on the enclosed porch in the winter to chill it to the right temperature.
- A Spam can makes the perfect cookie cutter to create the oblong, rectangular shape these cookies are known for. The dough should be rolled out quite thick, not thin, to get the best texture and shape!
- Amelia notes that making the frosting takes some patience and, once made, it takes some speed to ice the cookies before the icing sets, but it’s worth the effort as the icing is one of the things that makes the cookies so delicious.
Thanks to Patricia and Amelia for sharing this cherished, family recipe and the sweet memories of your mother and grandmother.
