One of my all-time favorite Christmas cookie recipes are these soft and chewy ginger molasses cookies! Made with molasses, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, and rolled in turbinado sugar, these molasses ginger cookies will move you to the top of Santa’s nice list!
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Love baking cookies during the holidays? Try these Cranberry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies, or these Penguin Cookies, which are both great for Christmas.
One of my all time favorite Christmas cookies are actually something quite simple – this Ginger Cookie Recipe. Made with molasses and spices, these traditional soft ginger cookies are incredible.
If you’re not one for a hard, crunchy cookie, then these soft molasses ginger cookies are for you! Especially when these cookies are still warm, they are practically irresistible!
What do I need to make ginger cookies:
Here’s a quick reference check list of the ingredients you’ll need when making these cookies:
- All purpose flour – ap flour is ideal for making just any type of cookie. You can find all purpose flour in the baking section of your grocery store.
- Baking soda – traditional in most cookie recipes, baking soda is a leavening and will help the cookies rise slightly when baked.
- Ground ginger – found in the spice section of your grocery store, ground ginger will give these cookies their trademark flavor.
- Cinnamon – when paired with other spices, the cinnamon provides great flavor to these cookies.
- Cloves – a rather strong spice, cloves are great for pairing with ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg in these cookies providing great flavor.
- Nutmeg – a very common spice during the holidays, ground nutmeg provides a unique flavor to these cookies. Nutmeg is also a common spice with Eggnog, Eggnog Cheesecake and
- Salt – very important in balancing the flavor and sweetness in these cookies.
- Butter – feel free to use either salted or unsalted butter for this recipe.
- Dark brown sugar – dark brown sugar is ideal for this recipe, which helps keep the cookies chewy and lends to the deep color.
- Molasses – the molasses will lend to the rich flavor of these cookies.
- Egg – will help keep the cookies soft and chewy
- Vanilla – vanilla extract is ideal for creating a great balance of flavor.
- Raw or turbinado sugar – this sugar is found in the baking aisle of the grocery store. Its will give the cookies a nice outer crunch and golden glow.
For exact ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions be sure to scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of this post. Thanks!
How do I make chewy ginger molasses cookies?
Begin by mixing wet and dry ingredients in separate bowls. For the dry ingredients, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. I like to sift these to eliminate any lumps from the spices and flour. However, you can also use a whisk to combine the dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar using a hand or stand mixer. Then add the egg, vanilla and molasses. Beat together until well combined.
With your mixer running on the lowest speed, begin gradually adding in the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Should I chill cookie dough before baking?
While not completely necessary, chilling cookie dough in the refrigerator helps create uniform cookies. It also helps the dough easier to work with and easier to roll into balls.
Once the dough has come together, it will be thick and slightly sticky. Transfer the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap up and refrigerate the dough for at least 4 hours or freeze for 1 hour.
What’s the best way to make round cookies?
Creating round, uniform cookies is done by rolling the dough into balls. It is helpful to use a cookie scoop to scoop the same amount of dough for each cookie. Roll the dough between your hands to create a uniform ball, then roll the cookie in the sugar crystals.
Here’s the cookie scoop I use and love:
OXO Good Grips Medium Cookie Scoop – The key to getting uniform cookies that are all the same size is to use a cookie scoop. I’ve had this OXO cookie scoop for years, and it works great!
What type of sugar should I roll the ginger cookie dough in?
You can use either raw sugar or turbinado sugar – this type of sugar is golden in color and has larger sugar crystals. It looks beautiful on these chewy ginger cookies, and adds the perfect crisp outer texture to every bite of cookie.
Tools I use to bake cookies:
Once you have a dozen cookies rolled in the sugar, place the balls evenly on a cookie sheet. Anytime I’m baking cookies I line the sheets with silicone baking mats. Not only do silicone baking mats help the cookies bake evenly, but they make it much easier to remove the cookies off the sheet once they’ve baked.
Here are the tools I use:
Silicone Baking Mat – Set of 3 Half Sheet – One of my favorite baking tools are these silicone baking mats. I use them pretty much anytime I’m baking something on a sheet pan. Fantastic for cookies, and also great for roasting vegetables, sheet pan meals and even tater tots!
Nordic Ware Aluminum Half-Sheet Baking Pans – I’m currently obsessed with these baking sheets! Not only do they work wonderfully for cookies, but I love using them for sheet pan dinners, too!
Bake the cookies at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. My soft ginger snap cookies were perfectly baked at 9 minutes even. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
As soon as these soft ginger snap cookies go into the oven, you’ll notice the most amazing aroma in your house! In my mind, the smells of ginger and cinnamon baking in the oven is exactly what Christmas smells like.
What can I serve with ginger cookies:
Cookies are great served with a cold glass of milk, hot coffee, hot chocolate or tea. Here are some of our most popular hot drink recipes that would go great with these cookies:
- Chai Tea Latte Recipe
- Caramel Brulee Latte
- Amaretto Hot Chocolate
- Creamy Hot Buttered Rum
- Vanilla Bean Iced Coffee
- Nutella Hot Chocolate
- White Hot Chocolate
- Mint Hot Chocolate
- Baileys Hot Chocolate
- Easy Peppermint Mocha
FAQ’s about making molasses ginger cookies
How do you make cookies chewy?
The key to making ginger cookies chewy is to make sure you don’t over-bake them. I baked these for precisely 9 minutes. Let cool on your cookie sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely. Chilling the dough (making sure it’s cold) also helps ensure a chewy cookie.
Can I freeze ginger cookies?
Yes, ginger cookies can be frozen. Once you’ve baked the cookies and they’ve cooled to room temperature, place in an airtight container. If you are stacking the cookies, place a sheet of waxed paper between each layer so the cookies don’t stick together. Cookies can be frozen up to 2 months in advance.
Can I make and freeze cookie dough in advance?
Yes, making and freezing cookie dough in advance is a great time-saver. Once you’ve made the cookie dough, place on sheets of plastic wrap, and secure tightly. Then store the wrapped dough in a zip-lock freezer bag, making sure it is air-tight. When ready to bake the cookies, let the dough thaw slightly. While the dough is still cold, begin rolling into cookie balls. Bake according to directions.
If you loved these Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies, check out some of these other cookie & fudge recipes that are great for the holidays:
- M&M Christmas Cookies
- Salted Caramel Fudge
- Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Pudding Cookies
- Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge
- Vanilla Fudge Recipe – topped with Christmas sprinkles!
- Chocolate Caramel Cashew Clusters
- Red Velvet Candy Cane Kiss Cookies
- Penguin Cookies
- Christmas Bark
- Rice Krispie Christmas Trees
- Reindeer Pretzels
- Reese’s Pieces Cookies
- Copycat Starbucks Cranberry Bliss Bars
- Chocolate Dipped Ritz Cracker Cookies
- Chocolate Chip Cake Mix Cookies
Here’s the recipe for these delicious Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies:
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Molasses Ginger Cookies
Equipment
- Cookie Scoop Great for making uniform cookies and protein balls. Just scoop and roll!
- Sheet Pan These USA stainless steel sheet pans are great for one-pan meals!
- Silicone Baking Mat Ideal for anything that bakes on a sheet pan. The ultimate non-stick surface!
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients:
- 3/4 cup butter room temperature
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 cup raw or turbinado sugar for rolling
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add the flour baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and salt. Stir together, and then using a sifter, sift the dry ingredients making sure there are no lumps. Set dry ingredients aside.
- With a hand or stand mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add the egg, vanilla and molasses, and beat together until creamy.
- With mixer running on lowest speed, begin gradually adding the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Once all of the dry ingredients have been combined, dough will be thick and sticky. Turn out dough on to a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap up and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or freeze for 1 hour.
- Once dough has chilled, unwrap and begin making cookie dough balls using a cookie scoop and rolling with your hands. Roll the cookie balls in the raw or turbinado sugar, and place on to cookie sheet.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes. (9 minutes was about perfect.) Let cookies cool on sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Enjoy once cooled, or store in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Cookies can also be frozen.
Notes
Nutrition
I love Ginger Snaps and this recipe looks delicious! Hope you are enjoying your week and thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday!
Miz Helen
Thank you for bringing these to FF. Perfect for any kind of cookie exchange.
I want these now, they look so good. Great step-by-step instructions.Thanks for sharing on Fiesta Friday group.
Can you substitute butter flavored Crisco for the butter in the recipe?
Yes, butter flavored crisco would work instead of butter.