Chewy Gingersnaps
These chewy gingersnaps scented with molasses and spices are the perfect cookie for the holiday season.
These gingersnap cookies are famous in my family and they always make an appearance at every holiday celebration. The recipe comes from my Grandma Wilda, whom I’ve never actually met. But her memory lives on in so many wonderful ways, such as in these tasty cookies.
If you’ve got room in your menu and stretchy pants for one more cookie recipe, will you please try this one? There’s a reason it’s a family favorite. These chewy gingersnaps are soft and chewy (not crisp or crunchy) and packed with the flavor of molasses and ginger, without being too overpowering. They’re the perfect spiced cookie for the season.
Chewy Gingersnaps Ingredients
All gingersnaps are traditionally made with ginger, but other flavorings and spices vary from recipe to recipe. Here’s what goes into these cookies:
- Butter
- Granulated sugar
- Eggs
- Molasses
- Flour
- Baking soda
- Ground ginger
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground cloves
The combination of molasses and spices in this cookie recipe provides so much flavor. Also, these cookies aren’t at all “spicy” like some gingersnaps can be.
baking tip:Measuring sticky liquids
This may seem like a frivolous tip, but it can make your baking a little bit easier. When measuring liquids like honey or molasses, first grease the measuring cup with a little butter, oil, or non-stick spray. Your sticky liquids will slide ride out.
Other cookie recipes you’ll love
Looking for more? How about the other spiced cookie recipes:
- Chai Spice Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Brown Butter Cinnamon Crinkle Cookies
- Brown Butter Snickerdoodles
- Gingersnap Biscotti with White Chocolate
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Note: Recipe originally published December 2008.
Gingersnap Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter (226 grams), at room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar (400 grams)
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup molasses (125 ml)
- 4 cups flour (500 grams)
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Additional sugar , for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the sugar and butter on high speed until light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each. Add the molasses and mix until incorporated.
- In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the molasses mixture. Mix on low until combined.
- Roll the dough by the tablespoon, and roll each ball of dough in sugar. Place the cookie dough on the prepared sheet pan. Place the sheet pan in the freezer for 15 minutes to chill.
- Bake until puffed and edges are set, 9-11 minutes. Let cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool completely.
I can testify to the internet world that these seriously are the best cookies in the world. I would have roomed with Annalise in college without them, but they were a great perk!
These cookies are amazing and now my new all time favorite. Sure to be an annual event. The consistency is perfect! Chewy deliciousnessI added an extra 1/2 tsp ginger and a bit of salt and that’s the only difference. Bravo!!
These look wonderful Annalise! I have made a version of these and loved them. I hope you all have a very happy holiday together. Give John a squeeze for me. 🙂
My favorite. Have the best Christmas!
I aspire to have photography as gorgeous as yours. These cookies look divine.
Thanks Jen, what a nice compliment!
One of my favorite dessert is cookies! especially when it is homemade cookies!!! And I really do enjoy eating and even looking to it. Wooh!!! Thanks a lot for the recipes !!!
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I was looking for gingersnaps as all I had was molasses,so I gave your recipe a try. These were the best gingersnaps I’ve ever had! My husband has never been a fan of them, and he absolutely loved your cookies! A new favorite made it into the recipe box today. Thanks again!
Yay, so glad to hear you liked the recipe!
Looking forward to making these in the next few weeks! I’m assuming, because you didn’t specify, that you used light molasses? Have you tried them with dark or blackstrap? Thanks!
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Just made these for Christmas baking this year. They were great! Thanks for sharing. I blogged about my version too 🙂
I’m glad you enjoyed them, yours sound wonderful!
I’m including this recipe into my Christmas cookies cache this year!!! Thanks and have a great holiday season 🙂
Hoping to make these today but just noticed I don’t have “unsalted” butter. Is there a big difference if I use salted butter instead?
It’s best to use unsalted butter in baking because the salt content of salted butter varies from brand to brand. It will work in a pinch though, just eliminate the salt in the recipe.
I made them with the salted butter that I had on hand and they turned out fabulous! thank you 🙂
Yay! Glad you enjoyed them!
There’s no salt called for in the recipe….
Nope, no salt!
I was wondering if for the chewy gingersnap cookies you use 2 cups of flour (500gr) or 4 cups of flour which will be (1kg) ?
In the list of ingredients says 4 cup of flour (500gr)???
We just made these and used 4 cups of flour. Turned out amazing
My cups of flour are measured at 125 grams each. So 4 cups of flour would be 500 grams. 1 kg of flour would be far too much flour!
Absolutely amazing cookie!! We can’t stop eating them.
I am not sure where I went wrong, but my cookies didn’t spread at all. They were still delicious, just not as pretty as I pictured they would be when I opened the oven, lol. Any tips!? Thank you for the recipe!
My cookies didn’t spread at all either. It was a little disappointing. Maybe I’ll reduce the flour to 3 1/2 cups. The taste was really good though!
I am not sure where I went wrong, but my cookies didn’t spread at all. They were still delicious, just not as pretty as I pictured they would be when I opened the oven, lol. Any tips!? Thank you for the recipe!
Getting ready to get these going. I only have blackstrap molasses. Will this work?
Just made these last night and was seriously so impressed! The texture is spot on. Soft and chewy on the inside. And each cookie looks so perfect! Definetly will be my go to for holiday baking. Thanks for sharing!!
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I made these a few months ago, and a few people who tried them told me they were the best gingersnaps they have ever had!!!!! This recipe is definitely going in with my regular lineup
Lovely cookies, Me and the kids enjoyed making this……even better eating them at the end tho
These are perhaps my favorite cookies ever. So happy to hear you enjoyed them!
Yum! Just made them and they are delicious! Chewy and perfect! Great recipe!! I didn’t have parchment paper, so they came out a bit thicker than yours- but still great! Merry Christmas!!
So happy to hear you enjoyed them! Thanks for the comment, Alex!
Could I make these into gingerbread men? I like the taste of gingersnaps better than gingerbread but need to make gingerbread men. Then would they be gingersnap men? ?
Hi Hollilyn! Unfortunately, this is not the type of dough you can roll out, cut, and have it maintain its shape after baking. 🙁 Better stick to a traditional gingerbread man recipe. Though I admit, the flavor just isn’t the same!
This recipe was a huge disappointment. I am baking cookies for a holiday cookie exchange and I followed the recipe exactly. I rolled them into balls, coated it in sugar, and baked it… it came out as a puffy cookie! I also let it rest for 5 minutes on the baking sheet. Did you forget to mention to flatten the cookie?? It’s not coming out like your picture. I would never bake these ever again ms
I discovered this recipe while searching for a soft Gingersnap Cookie recipe. Thankfully they lived up to my hopes of being a winner – they are delicious, soft and chewy. This was one of many treats I baked and gave as Christmas gifts, and they were well received. This recipe is definitely one of my new favorites – thanks for sharing!
What size scoop did you use?
Made these tonight for a bake sale and Wow! So yummy! Crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside! I would like them to be a little more ginger snap tasting, but I’m not sure if I should increase the ginger or molasses. What do you think? They were pretty perfect as is but hubby loves a strong ginger snap taste! Thank you for sharing!!
Thanks for the feedback! So happy you liked them. If you want more of a “snap”, I would increase the ginger. Maybe another teaspoon?
Its not specified what kind of sugar to use :/
Granulated!
I made the dough for these a few days ago and kept it covered in the frig. They are excellent. I must have made them smaller, as I got 65 cookies out of the recipe. Since my dough was cold, I did not freeze them before baking and they came out fine. This is a keeper. 🙂
These are the best ginger snaps. They are soft and chewy and totally addictive. I’m making them again this year because my spouse cannot get enough of them. I am going to try to freeze some in a container and see what happens.
This was the first time I have made ginger cookies. I used to eat them back in high school. They made the best chewy soft cookies. Guess what? These brought me back to high school but BETTER!!! My whole family loved them!!! I’m making them again Th is weekend.
These were easy and made a good amount. I made them twice. They’re looked like the pic and tasted perfect.
These were easy and awesome! My hubby said they were as good as a breakfast pastry!
I love this recipe and have been making it for about 5 years but I just re read it and realized this version doesn’t have salt. Did I miss something?
Oops, it must have gotten lost during an update. I’ve added it back in now!
Hi! I Love Ginger Snaps, However Can They Be Made Sugar Free??
I have not tested this recipe with a sugar substitute. I would recommend searching for a sugar-free specific gingersnap recipe.
Can the dough be made into balls and then frozen?
Absolutely! I have cookie dough freezing tips here.