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Molasses Cookies are the perfect sweet treat! I am in love with this molasses cookie recipe – it’s so easy and produces a soft and chewy cookie perfectly spiced for Christmas with a crackly top – just how they should be!
Molasses Cookies are my absolute favorite Christmas cookie. In fact, I crave them (and make them) all year long! If you’re looking for soft chewy ginger molasses cookies, you can’t top this southern favorite. The ground cinnamon paired with the ground cloves and sugars is what takes the flavor and taste over the top. These are my favorite holiday cookies – I love the gingerbread spices and molasses flavor – just smelling molasses makes me long for Christmas! I know they’re traditionally a holiday cookie but I love them all year long.
Ingredients Needed
- Unsalted butter – Make sure that it’s softened; salted may be substituted by reducing the amount of salt in the recipe.
- Brown sugar – Always pack your brown sugar. We also need Granulated sugar for coating.
- Molasses – Use unsulphered or blackstrap molasses.
- Vanilla extract – Pure vanilla extract is my choice!
- Ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves, ground nutmeg – These are the classic gingerbread spices
How to make Molasses Cookies
- Use a mixer and combine the butter, brown sugar, and molasses. Add the egg and vanilla and stir. Then mix in the baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Stir until smooth. I used a hand mixer but you can use a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment if you prefer.
- Slowly add the flour and mix until combined.
- Add the teaspoon ground cinnamon and sugar into a medium bowl. You can use a cookie scoop to shape dough into balls and roll the cookie dough balls in the mixture.
- Place on the baking sheet. These cookies spread, so leave space when you’re baking them. This is where you’ll turn them into M&M Cookies if you want to.
- Put the cookie dough scoops into the fridge for one hour at a minimum.
- Add parchment paper to the baking sheets. Bake until they’re no longer glossy on top. Cool cookie sheets on wire racks.
Expert Tips
- I love adding Christmas M&Ms on top before baking for color and to make them more festive. You can also roll them in sprinkles.
- Want more cookies – just double the recipe.
FAQs
I always use regular grocery store molasses. Usually it’s Grandma’s brand and it is unsulphured. You can also use blackstrap molasses.
While many people think that these two types of cookies are the same, they’re actually quite different. Molasses cookies are soft and chewy, while gingerbread cookies are thinner and typically cut outs or made into gingersnaps, which are crunchy.
To determine if the cookies are done baking, the top of the cookies is your clue. If they’re done and ready to be removed from the oven, the glossy top will be gone and will not look shiny.
Molasses Cookies Recipe
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113g) unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup (150g) packed brown sugar
- ⅓ cup (79ml) molasses
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon divided
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 cups (248g) all purpose flour
- ¼ cup (50g) granulated sugar
- Christmas M&Ms for topping, optional
Instructions
- Note: this dough requires chilling.
- Using a stand or a hand mixer, beat butter, brown sugar, and molasses until the butter is broken up (the mixture will be lumpy). Mix in egg and vanilla, then add baking soda, salt, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and the ginger, cloves, and nutmeg. Mix until smooth, then slowly mix in the flour until the cookie dough forms.
- Scoop 2 tablespoon sized balls of dough onto a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. No need to space them out; you’re going to chill them.
- Chill the dough for at least one hour, but you can also cover and chill up to one full day (or freeze the balls of dough for later baking).
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Stir together the granulated sugar and remaining 1 teaspoon of cinnamon in a small bowl. Roll each cookie dough ball in the cinnamon sugar and then place on the cookie sheet. These do spread, so leave room. Top each ball with 5-6 M&Ms.
- Bake for about 10-15 minutes, or until they’re no longer glossy. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze for up to one month.
Recipe Nutrition
Molasses Cookies are the perfect Christmas Cookie Recipe! These are soft & chewy cookies with M&Ms but they’re amazing plain too!
Hey Dorothy (my grandmother’s name),
I’m here for your cookie recipe but I did read your post and do you still want to write a book? Let’s chat if you do! 🙂 I started my blog ten years ago (lots of French recipes but other things as well) and in 2013 I published my memoir and have since gone on to write romance (contemporary and Regency) and I have my… fifth book coming out in February if you don’t count the novella and French translation of my memoir. And I have FB groups that will help! 🙂
But of course this post was 3 years ago and you could have gone on to publish or have dropped the idea all together. But if it’s a lingering wish, shoot me an email. Now I’m off to bake a GF version of this.
Whenever I’m looking for a recipe I always start with crazy for crust. Family inspired without a lot of seldom used ingredients. I’m over 70 years old and still love baking for my family thanks
my dough seems soft I cant roll them I did the recipe right and my butter was not to soft
Did you chill them? If it’s too soft, chill the dough before scooping the balls.
Hi Dorothy, Thank yes a put the dough in the fridge for 20 min it worked I was just worried I did something wrong because the recipe says roll them then put in fridge which I did after it got firm enough to do so. The cookies came out wonderful one of the best cookies I ever had. Thank you for reply back so fast
That is probably what happened – we don’t bake very often and have no idea how old the baking soda is, but it is definitely older than 30 days, which is what the top of the box says to write in the date space.
We are enjoying the cookies regardless
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