Lately, I have found that my kids are very drawn to stories and books about community. With the loss of some community in their own lives, due to social distancing and cancelled events, they seem to find comfort in stories about big families, groups of friends, or neighborhoods. Going Up! by Sherry J. Lee is an engaging new picture book and is perfect for this moment. The story follows a little girl, Sophie, and her father as they prepare for a party they have been invited to, on the tenth floor of their apartment building. After making a recipe of grandma’s special cookies, they get on the elevator, and that’s when the fun begins! Each stop of the elevator brings more friends and neighbors headed to the same party, carrying their own gifts and treats. The taller-than-normal format of Going Up! creates the feeling that the reader is stepping on the elevator with the neighbors, and the last page has a large format, with pages printed to look like elevator doors, that open to reveal the big party. This book is a fun, colorful picture of community from beginning to end, and the diversity of the different family groups and neighbors lends itself to rich conversation.
Discussion Questions for Going Up! by Sherry J. Lee:
- If we were going to a party in our neighborhood or building, who might we see on the way?
- Which of the families in this book reminds you of our family? Why?
- What dessert or treat would you choose to make and bring to a party?
- Who did you think the party was going to be for in the book? Were there some clues along the way?
I was fascinated by grandma’s Molasses Sandwich cookies that the girl and her father make at the beginning of the book. I love molasses cookies, both the drop and cut-out variety, but had never considered turning them into sandwich cookies. After experimenting, I found that I loved my favorite molasses cookies even more with the addition of raspberry jam! I had always thought of molasses cookies as a holiday or winter dessert (probably because that’s when my own grandmother made them!) but the raspberry jam gives these a light sweetness perfect for summer. The recipe below is an adaptation of the gingerbread cookies I make during the holidays, with less ginger and more molasses added to the dough. I think any jam would taste nice on these, but the slight tartness of rasberry jam was especially delicious!
Molasses Sandwich Cookies
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the next 7 ingredients (through the cloves) until well-combined. Put the sugar and softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla and continue to mix until combined, 2 minutes more.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until well-blended. Divide the dough in half, forming each into a ball. Wrap each ball of dough in plastic wrap, flatten the dough into a disc and refrigerate the discs of dough for one hour.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove one disc of dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4-inch thickness. Cut our shapes from the dough, re-rolling the scraps up to 2 times, and place the cut-out cookies on one of the prepared baking sheets. Repeat with the second disc of dough. You should get about 1 dozen cookies from each disc of dough.
Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. The cookies will look puffed up when ready, but will still be quite soft in the middle. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 15 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Once cookies have cooled to room temperature, spread raspberry jam on half of the cookies and top these with the remaining cookie cut-outs.
Ingredients
Directions
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the next 7 ingredients (through the cloves) until well-combined. Put the sugar and softened butter in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla and continue to mix until combined, 2 minutes more.
With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients and beat on low speed until well-blended. Divide the dough in half, forming each into a ball. Wrap each ball of dough in plastic wrap, flatten the dough into a disc and refrigerate the discs of dough for one hour.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove one disc of dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4-inch thickness. Cut our shapes from the dough, re-rolling the scraps up to 2 times, and place the cut-out cookies on one of the prepared baking sheets. Repeat with the second disc of dough. You should get about 1 dozen cookies from each disc of dough.
Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. The cookies will look puffed up when ready, but will still be quite soft in the middle. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 15 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Once cookies have cooled to room temperature, spread raspberry jam on half of the cookies and top these with the remaining cookie cut-outs.
