Chewy Ginger Cookies

Introduction

These chewy ginger cookies rely on molasses and a mix of warm spices—cinnamon, ginger, and cloves—to deliver deep flavor with a tender, cracked surface. They bake for about 11 minutes and pull from the oven still slightly underdone in the center, which is the secret to their chew. You’ll shape the dough into balls, coat them in sugar, and watch them crack open as they bake.

Recipe Details

• Prep Time: 15 minutes
• Cook Time: 11 minutes
• Total Time: 26 minutes
• Servings: 24 cookies

Ingredients

• 180 g (¾ cup) butter, softened
• 500 g (2 cups) brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 60 ml (¼ cup) molasses
• 10 g (2 tsp) baking soda
• 600 g (2½ cups) flour
• 2.5 g (½ tsp) ground cinnamon
• 5 g (1 tsp) ground ginger
• 5 g (1 tsp) ground cloves
• 2.5 g (½ tsp) salt
• Extra sugar for coating

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F or Gas Mark 4).
2. Cream the butter and the sugar in a stand mixer or with an electric whisk.
3. Beat in the egg, and stir in the molasses.
4. Combine the baking soda, flour, spices, and salt in a separate bowl.
5. Gently mix the dry mixture into the wet mixture to make a dough.
6. Shape into small (2.5 cm/1 inch diameter) balls and roll in granulated sugar.
7. Place on greased cookie sheet. Do not flatten balls. They will spread out a little bit during baking, so space them about 1.5-2 inches apart.
8. Bake for about 11 minutes. One way to tell they are done is when the cookies are cracked but the dough inside the cracks doesn’t look quite finished. Beyond that they will be too done.
9. Remove pan from the oven and cool to room temperature.

Variations

Deeper spice intensity: Double the ground ginger and cloves. This pushes the warm spice flavor to the foreground and suits palates that prefer a more assertive ginger snap texture.

Add crystallized ginger: Chop 50 g of crystallized ginger into small pieces and fold into the dough after step 5. You’ll get pockets of chewy sweetness and a sharper ginger bite alongside the warm spices.

Brown butter base: Brown the 180 g butter in a saucepan over medium heat until the milk solids turn golden (about 5 minutes), then cool it completely before creaming with sugar. This deepens the nutty undertone and complements the molasses.

Larger cookies: Shape the dough into 4 cm (1.5 inch) balls instead of 2.5 cm and increase baking time to 13–14 minutes. You’ll get fewer, chewier cookies with more pronounced cracking.

All-spice swap: Replace the cinnamon, ginger, and cloves with 15 g (1 tablespoon) of ground all-spice. This creates a more unified warm spice note rather than distinct layers of flavor.

Tips for Success

Don’t skip the cooling step on the pan: After the 11-minute bake, leave the cookies on the hot sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. They’ll firm up just enough to handle without breaking, but still retain their chewy center.

Watch for the crack, not the brown edge: The visual cue given in the recipe is precise—cookies are done when the surface shows cracks but the dough inside those cracks looks underbaked. Overbaking by even 1 minute will make them crisp instead of chewy.

Roll balls in sugar just before baking: If you roll them too far ahead, the sugar will dissolve into the dough and you’ll lose the sparkly coating. Prep all the balls, then roll them in sugar immediately before placing on the sheet.

Space them properly on the sheet: These cookies spread slightly during baking. Crowding them will cause edges to merge. Aim for 1.5–2 inches between the centers of each ball.

Use room-temperature ingredients: Softened butter creams more easily with sugar, and a room-temperature egg incorporates smoothly into the wet mixture, helping you avoid lumps in the dough.

Storage and Reheating

FAQ

Why do my cookies spread too much or turn out cake-like instead of chewy?

The most common cause is overbaking. Pull them out the moment the surface cracks but the center still looks slightly underdone. If they still turn out cakey, your flour may be too tightly packed—spoon flour into your measuring cup and level it off rather than scooping directly from the bag.

Can I use a different sweetener instead of brown sugar?

How can I make the dough easier to handle if it’s too sticky?

Chill the dough for 30 minutes in the refrigerator before shaping into balls. This makes it much easier to roll and coat in sugar without the dough sticking to your hands.

Do these cookies contain any common allergens?

Yes: they contain butter and egg. The recipe is gluten-based and does not contain nuts, but always check your molasses bottle, as some brands process molasses in facilities with tree nuts or seeds.