These ginger molasses cookies are perfect for the holiday season. Packed with warming spices, these cookies are both chewy, crisp, and super delicious.
Ginger Molasses Cookie Recipe
It's December, which means it's cookie season! While I don't celebrate Christmas, I am still very excited about all of the Christmas-themed desserts, especially the cookies. This December, everything is all about the cookies! We're talking sugar cookies, thumbprint cookies, and these ginger molasses cookies!
I love ginger cookies. I was never a big fan until recently, but I cannot get enough of these ginger molasses cookies. This recipe comes from Sarah Kieffer's cookbook, "100 Cookies." The book is exactly what it sounds like, 100 recipes for 100 types of cookies and bars. The book pretty much sticks to classic recipes with all crowd-pleasing cookies.
Sarah is known for her pan banging technique. I've used the pan banging technique when making other cookies, but it never worked out as well as it did with Sarah's technique. Her secret is to keep banging the pan down, about 3 or 4 times when baking when the center gets puffy. The pan banging makes the cookies super rippley on the edges and gooey in the middle. The texture is perfect and just what you want out of a cookie.
Holiday Ginger Molasses Cookies
With both ginger and molasses in the cookies, the flavors could easily be too much. This recipe finds a good way to balance out both, resulting in a sweet, but not overpowering flavor. The recipe calls for dried ginger as well. I've used both fresh and crystallized ginger in other cookies, and prefer dried ginger when baking. The crystallized ginger works well in other cookies that are chewier, but it would just overwhelm these cookies since they are so thin.
The ginger and the molasses also work together to balance each other out. The recipe only calls for two tablespoons of molasses, so it doesn't overpower the cookies.
Why I Love These Ginger Molasses Cookies
- Super Festive - These cookies encompass great winter flavors.
- Bold With Flavor - Both the ginger and molasses are strong in flavors, but balance each other out.
- Amazing Texture - The cookies are both chewy and crunchy giving the cookies the best of both worlds.
Ingredients For Ginger Molasses Cookies
See below for all the details on what you'll need to make the full recipe.
- Ground ginger - Strong, but not overpowering in flavor.
- Baking soda - Gives the cookies the signature ripples.
- Cloves - Adds a nice spice and warming flavor.
- Mild molasses - A little goes a long way with flavor.
How To Make Ginger Molasses Cookies
- Prepare: Preheat the oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment. Set to the side.
- Dry Ingredients: In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, spices, salt, and baking soda. Set to the side.
- Wet Ingredients: In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter on medium speed for about 1 minute. When the butter is fluffy, add in the sugar and beat for 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the side of the bowl and add in the egg, molasses, and vanilla. Mix everything together at a low speed.
- Combine: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Scrape down the bowl to make sure the flour mixture is fully incorporated into the batter.
- Form The Dough: Scoop the cookie dough into 1 tablespoon-sized balls and roll the cookie dough into the remaining sugar. Place the dough on the prepared sheet, 6 at a time.
- Bake: Bake the cookies in the oven for about 7-8 minutes. When the cookies start to puff up, open the oven and give the first bang. Lift one side of the cookie sheet up and let it hit the oven rack so the cookies deflate. Repeat this process about every two minutes until the cookies are fully cooked. About 14-16 minutes in total.
- Cool: Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a few minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack. Serve immediately or save the cookies in an airtight container.
FAQs
Molasses adds a specific flavor to the cookies that are both sweet and rich. It also makes the cookies super deep in color.
Both dark and light molasses will work in this recipe. Darker molasses will have a richer flavor and deeper color, while light molasses will be sweet but not as rich. Both will provide an excellent flavor.
Yes! These cookies freeze very well both baked and in dough form. Freeze the cookies baked in an airtight container. They will last about 2-3 months. You can also freeze the cookie dough before baking it. Scoop the dough and freeze it in an airtight container. When you want to bake the cookie dough, place it in the oven and bake it like you regularly would. The frozen dough will last about 2-3 months in the freezer.
These cookies are definitely seasonal but easily could be made all year round. The warm spices are perfect for cold weather. But maybe we should start making these in April or in the middle of July?! They are that good!!
Check out the recipe below and let me know what you are baking this holiday season!
Ginger Molasses Cookies
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 350° and line a baking sheet with parchment. Set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the dry ingredients. Add the flour, spices, salt, and baking soda and whisk to combine.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or using a hand mixer in a medium-sized bowl, cream the butter on medium speed, for about 1 minute. Add in 1 and ½ cups of the sugar and beat together until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Use a spatula to scrape down the bowl as needed. Next, add in the eggs, molasses, and vanilla. Mix together on a low speed until combined.
- Add the flour to the egg mixture and mix together on low speed to combine. Use a spatula to make sure everything is mixed together and not sticking to the bowl. Make sure the molasses is incorporated well and the dough is all the same color.
- Form the dough using a cookie scoop to 1 tablespoon size balls. Roll the cookie dough balls into the remaining sugar.
- Place the cookies on the prepared sheet pan, about 6 at a time. Bake the cookies for about 7-8 minutes before the first "bang." The cookie dough balls should spread out, but be puffy in the middle. When the cookies look ready, lift one side of the pan up about 4 inches and gently drop it back down. The cookies should flatten out, especially the puffy part in the middle. Repeat the process about 2 minutes later. The cookies should look the same, just with more ripples. Repeat this process 3-4 more times. When done, the cookies should look a little gooey in the middle and have lots of rippled edges. The cookies should take about 14-16 minutes to cook in total.
- Move the cookies to a rack and let them cool completely. When they are done, move them to an airtight container. The cookies will last 3-4 days. These cookies can also be frozen and last up to one month in the freezer.
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