Rayy Sweet Gingerbread Biscuits

Our beloved Kat I. hooked me up with a cookbook I've been wanting for ages, Silk Road Cooking, A Vegetarian Journey by Najmeih Batmanglij. I've slowed down on baking after the holiday blitz, but I've made amazing borscht and also tamarind coconut soup from Silk Road and they were both a-MAZ-ing. I've avoided the Bread, Pastries, Desserts, and Candies section of the book long enough! I plan on making the sweet, spicy and crunchy Rayy Sweet Gingerbread Biscuits this week. I'll send an update when I'm done, for now here's the recipe and a photo from the book. Thanks Kat!!

Rayy Sweet Gingerbread
(Nan-e Qandi, persian gingerbread biscotti)

makes 6 10x5x1/4" loaves

1 cup warm water
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup honey
3-inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 hot red chili, chopped (or 1/2 teaspoon chili paste)
4 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup sesame seeds

Preheat the oven to 400 & line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper.
In a small bowl, combine the water, oil, molases, honey, ginger, sugar, and chili. Mix well.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon onto a piece of wax paper and transfer to a mixing bowl. Gradually blend in the molasses mixture and knead until the dough forms into a ball (about 5 minutes).
Divide the dough into 6 equal balls, cover with a dish towel and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
Roll out one ball on a floured surface to form a 10"x5"x1/4" think oval loaf.
Immediately place the rolled out dough on the baking sheet and paint the dough with water. Then run a fork down the loaf with a fork and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Repeat for the remaining dough. Bake for 7 to 10 minutes, until puffy.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool.

The author recommends dipping in a glass of sweet, hot tea. Cheers!

Update! Here's a photo from a batch I made to celebrate Chinese New Year:

Delicious!