Ginger cookies are soft and buttery and melt in your mouth. They’re super yummy so make extra!
Ginger cookies might be my favorite cookies of all time. They’re definitely the most addicting! Warm ginger and cinnamon with sweet molasses makes a perfect cookie combination. Put together a cookie basket for friends and family with our ginger cookies, peanut butter chocolate chip cookies, and gluten free oatmeal cookies!
Ginger Cookies
Ginger Cookies
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Ginger Cookie Ingredients
- Flour – All purpose flour is perfect for this recipe. Make sure not to use self rising!
- Ginger – Ground ginger is probably the most important ingredient, considering these are ginger cookies. This recipe calls for dry ground ginger, don’t try to use fresh or it will throw off the moisture content.
- Cinnamon – Is it even a ginger cookie if you don’t add cinnamon – question for the ages – but really, the combination of ginger and cinnamon gives a beautiful warmth to the cookie.
- Baking soda – Baking soda will help the cookies rise a little. These aren’t big puffy cookies, but we also don’t want them completely flat.
- Salt – Our recipe calls for a little more salt than most cookies, I think – but I like the notes of salt to counterbalance the sweet.
- Butter – We like to use a high quality European butter like Kerrygold for the best flavor – European butters tend to have a lower water content so they’re well suited for baking.
- Sugar – White sugar or brown sugar. We used white sugar in the pictured recipe, but brown is sure delicious too.
- Egg – Egg works as a binder and a bit of a leavening agent in this ginger cookie recipe.
- Molasses – Molasses smell funny straight from the jar, but I’ll tell you – don’t skip them! It’s the molasses that give this cookie a beautiful color and decadently chewy texture.
How Do You Make Ginger Cookies
⭐ First, mix everything together in a large bowl with an electric mixer (dough will be sticky). We don’t do any sifting or fancy stuff with this ginger cookies for dummies recipe!
⭐ Next, roll the dough into small balls (about 36) and bake on parchment or silpat until cooked to your liking.
⭐ Finally, if you’re going to stamp them, do so as soon as they come out of the oven.
If you love delicious cookies, make sure to try our chocolate cake mix cookies next!
Can Ginger Cookies Be Frozen 🥶
Ginger cookies can be frozen. You can freeze ginger cookies before they’re baked (the prepared dough) or you can freeze the ginger cookies after they have baked.
If you are freezing before the cookies are baked, shape the dough into a tube or cylinder shape, then wrap with cling film, parchment paper, or foil, and freeze. When you’re ready to bake just slice off discs.
To freeze after the cookies are baked, make sure they are cooled completely, then store in an air tight container or sandwich bag. Optionally you can place pieces of parchment between layers of cookies to keep them from sticking.
How Do You Make Ginger Cookies Chewy
The keys to making ginger cookies chewy are the molasses and the timing. The sweet and sticky sugary molasses create a deliciously chewy ginger cookie. Make sure not to skip the molasses if you want a chewy cookie.
Also, do not over-bake the ginger cookies. If you bake the ginger cookies too long you will end up with a ginger snap, which is also delicious – but a ginger snap is a hard and drier cookie unlike our chewy ginger cookies.
Which Molasses for Ginger Cookies
We use Grandma’s Unsulfered Molasses for our ginger cookies! Admittedly this is the only type of molasses I’ve ever tried in this recipe, but it is definitely delicious.
If you have a brand of molasses that you love, be sure to let us know in the comments!
Are Ginger Cookies Good For You
Ginger cookies are good for your soul, but not your waistline. Ginger cookies are not healthy as they are loaded with sugar and butter and everything delicious.
That said, I’m a firm believer in ‘everything in moderation’. So enjoy a cookie or two!
Ginger Cookie Making Tips
Bake your cookies on a silicone mat or parchment paper to avoid sticking. These ginger cookies contain both sugar and molasses so they can be difficult to get off a cookie tray.
Use less time in the oven to achieve a chewy ginger cookie, and more time in the oven to get a hard gingersnap cookie.
If you’re using a cookie stamp, stamp the cookies as soon as you take them out of the oven for best results. Do not try to stamp them before you bake as the writing will become illegible.
What Can I Use Instead of Molasses
You can substitute molasses with equal amounts of dark corn syrup, honey or maple syrup. Bearing in mind though that molasses has a distinct flavor and you will not end up with exactly the same result.
I would definitely encourage you to use molasses for this ginger cookie recipe!
More Cookie Recipes
- Peanut Butter Cookies
- Short bread cookies
- Nutella Cookies
- Lemon Cookies
- Carrot Cake Cookies
- Cinnamon Roll Cookies
- See all our cookie recipes!
More Recipes with Ginger
Tools for Making Ginger Cookies
- Cookie stamps – I don’t make a whole lot of cookies, but when I do, we love to pull out our cookie stamps! If you’re making shortbread style cookies that don’t spread, you can stamp them beforehand. If you’re making more traditional cookies, stamp them as soon as they come out of the oven while they’re still soft and hot!
- Bakers half sheet – It’s cool, we only have about six of these bakers half sheets because they’re good for absolutely everything. Cookies? Yes! Steak? Yes! Cake? Oh yeh! Roasted veggies? Uhhhh huh!
- Silicone baking mats – Nothing sticks to these! Whaaaa?! Perfect for baking sugary cookies, or cheesy croissants. You know why? Because nothing sticks to these!!!
- Classic Kitchenaid stand mixer – Save the best for last? Or at least the most grand. I don’t know why, but a kitchen just doesn’t feel like a kitchen without one of these bad boys tucked away on the counter. My favorite things to make in ours are ginger cookies, no churn ice cream, and shredded chicken. Yup, seriously. The Kitchenaid shreds chicken like no ones business!
Ginger Cookies from Aunt Isabel
Over Thanksgiving dinner I was lamenting my lack of cookie baking skills dilemma when one of our guests, (yes, yes, it was Stacy again!) started raving about her Aunt Isabel’s famous ginger cookies.
She warned me that they were involved and kind of a pain to make, but that they were worth all the effort.
I loved the idea of sharing a family recipe, but I loathed the idea of making a difficult cookie. Soooo not my thing!
But I asked her to let me take a look at the recipe and think about it. I had to admit, it sounded delicious. You know I couldn’t leave well enough, so I set out to dumb down the recipe (sorry Aunt Isabelle!).
Admittedly, I’ve never tried the original version so I don’t actually know how it compares, but I have to say the baking-for-dummies variety we put together is really REALLY good!
I’m going to put my easy version below, but also provide Aunt Isabel’s original recipe (in her own handwriting even!) and if you’re feeling ambitious make them both and report back!
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How to Make Ginger Cookies
Ginger Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tablespoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cups butter softened (preferably European butter, like Kerrygold because it has a lower water content)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup molasses
Instructions
- Mix everything together in a large bowl with an electric mixer (dough will be sticky).
- Roll into small balls (about 36) and bake on parchment or silpat for 10 - 12 minutes at 350 degrees.
- If you're going to stamp them, do so as soon as they come out of the oven.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Ginger Cookies
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These Ginger Cookies were originally developed as part of the annual Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, organized to bring awareness to the Cookies for Kids Cancer Charity.
12.17.15
Gale Barnet says
I have the silicone cookie stamp and can not get the dark color in the lettering. Tried post baked, pre stamped before bake and pressed in cinnamon in pre baked to get definition to no luck. Is there a food grade inking pad?
Looks really cool. Thanks
April says
I’m sure you could brush on some food coloring if you wanted to? We just press down firmly as soon as they come out of the oven, I don’t add any color. I’m sorry you’re not getting the result you want!
Patty Murray says
April, where did you get your cookie stamp? I like your ginger cookies! 🙂
April Woods says
here you go 🙂 https://amzn.to/384DDSb hope you love the cookies, they’re my favorite!
Renee Goerger says
Your pressed ginger cookies are too stinking cute! I love that you’ve taken the time to spell out your name! Brilliant! I happen to love ginger cookies and swear by molasses. I would never skip that ingredient. It’s Christmas in a jar.
Suzy says
I love a good ginger cookie this time of the year! Saving this recipe to try.