Preheat the oven to 375°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
Brown the butter: Cut your butter evenly into cubes and line them on the bottom of a medium saucepan. Over medium heat, melt the butter. Allow it to bubble and foam for about five minutes, stirring occasionally with a spatula to keep the heat evenly distributed and to keep the milk solids from sticking to the bottom of the pan. After five minutes, remove the pan from the heat and swirl for 15 seconds. It should start to smell a bit nutty and the color of the butter will be noticeably darker. Pour the butter into a small bowl or ramekin and stick in the freezer for ten minutes to keep it from cooking. There will be brown grainy bits at the bottom, you want to scrape all of that out of the pot–that’s where most of the flavor comes from.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer, cream together the cooled brown butter, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup granulated sugar until fully combined.
Add the egg and mix until fully combined and light in color. Add the vanilla and the molasses, one at a time; mix to combine after each addition.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Add the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl 1/2 at a time. Mix until the dough just begins to come together. Fold in the crystallized ginger.
Pour 1/4 cup of granulated sugar into a small bowl. Using your palms, roll the dough into 20 gram balls (about the size of a teaspoon). Roll the balls of dough in the sugar and line them on the prepared baking sheets; slightly flatten the tops.
Bake 8-10 minutes. Immediately transfer the cookies to a wire rack or a cool baking sheet. Once cool, dip half of the cookie in the melted vanilla almond bark. Feel free to decorate with sprinkles if desired!