Joe Froggers

01 / ABOUT THE DISH

About the dish

Joe froggers are American egg-free cookies made with a combination of molasses, dark rum, flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, sugar, and butter. The dough is refrigerated (ideally overnight), and it is then rolled and cut into circular shapes. Before baking, the cookies are sprinkled with sugar. Once baked, the cookies become chewy in texture and keep for a long time, which is the reason why sailors prized them during long sea voyages. Joe froggers were served by freeman Joe Brown at his tavern in Marblehead, Massachusetts. They were created by his wife, who made the cookies as big as the lily pads in a pond outside the tavern.