In a medium bowl whisk together flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula; add egg, yolk, vanilla, and molasses and whisk on medium speed until fully incorporated about 30 seconds. Scrape down bowl.

Switch to the paddle attachment, and add flour mixture and mix until just combined about 1 minute. Give the dough a final stir with a rubber spatula to ensure that no flour pockets remain.

Cover and chill dough for 2 hours.

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a shallow baking dish or pie plate add 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, rubbing sugar between your fingers, until clumps are broken up; set aside.

Divide dough into 24 portions, each about 2 tablespoons, rolling between hands into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Working in batches, roll balls in sugar to coat and set on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart, 12 dough balls per sheet.

Bake one sheet at a time until cookies are browned and still puffy and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft (The cookies will look raw between cracks and seem underdone), 9 to 12 minutes, rotating baking sheets halfway through baking. Do not over-bake!

Cool cookies on baking sheets for 5 minutes; and then transfer cookies to wire rack and cool to room temperature.

In a medium microwave-safe bowl, add chocolate and heat on HIGH for 1 minute. Stir chocolate, and continue heating in 15-second increments until the chocolate chips are completely melted and smooth.

Hold cookie over the bowl of chocolate and spoon chocolate over half of the cookie, allowing excess chocolate to drip off. Place cookie on a sheet of waxed paper and sprinkle with the desired amount of sprinkles.

Repeat process with remaining cookies, chocolate, and sprinkles.

Let cookies set completely, about 2 hours.