My grandmother made a mean ginger snap cookie.
Just enough crunch on the outside with a soft and chewy center.
There are two versions of the recipe she left us.
Version 1 - uses 1 eggs and 1 cup of lard; and Version 2 uses 2 eggs and 1.5 cups of lard.
If you use follow both recipes verbatim you don’t get as chewy a cookie. Why?
Because Grandma Brady didn’t share the whole recipe with you.
What Grandma Brady didn’t share is that you use 1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk. The same hack used to make super chewy chocolate chip cookies, too.
Recipes are culture.
There are things that people in the know, know. If you’re not in the know, you don’t get the benefit of being the insider.
Excluding others can be a benefit. Grandma Brady held this recipe hostage so her grandkids would beg, scream, kick, and negotiate with their parents to see her. Even after she left us, she still held something back.
Some things are meant to be for you. Keep them safe.