Whisk together the flour, salt, allspice, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, and cinnamon until well blended. Set aside.
With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until lightened in color and slightly fluffy. Add the molasses and continue to mix, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the eggs and maple extract and mix. Then, add the flour mixture in 3 additions, blending until just combined.
Divide the dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap, flattening into a disk. Chill at least 2 hours, or up to overnight.
Heat the oven to 350 F and remove half of the dough from the refrigerator. When the dough is soft enough to roll, lightly flour your work surface, and roll out to about ΒΌ inch thick. (With this recipe, I find a thicker cookie turns out more tender, while still maintaining its crispness and firmness on the outside! Thinner cookies tend to be hard.)
Cut out shapes and bake on a parchment lined baking sheet for 12-15 minutes, depending on the size. Cookies will be slightly lighter in color when they are done!
Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before storing or decorating.
Fill a large pot with 1-2 inches of water, and fit a glass bowl on top to form a double boiler. Be sure that the water does not touch the surface of the bowl. Heat on low and add your chopped chocolate to the bowl. Use a spatula to stir and watch closely. The chocolate should melt with nothing higher than low heat. When the chocolate has melted evenly, dip your cookies and place on a parchment lined surface.
Sprinkle with chopped candied ginger, then place in the refrigerator to set.
Cookies can be stored in the refrigerator to maintain the chocolate. Enjoy!