Bake a batch of crisp gingersnap cookies for Christmas or any time you want a spiced cookie with a satisfying snap. These thin, crunchy cookies are flavored with molasses, ginger, cinnamon and cloves, and they come together quickly with simple pantry ingredients. Best of all, there is no dough chilling required, so you can have homemade gingersnaps ready in about 30 minutes.
A great cookie is all about texture, and these crispy gingersnap cookies deliver exactly what their name promises. They are thin, crackly and crunchy, with warm holiday spices in every bite. While soft cookies and chewy cookies have their place, gingersnaps bring something different to the cookie tray. Their bold molasses flavor makes them perfect for the holidays, but their crisp bite also pairs beautifully with coffee, tea or a glass of milk. They are simple enough for everyday baking and festive enough for Christmas cookie boxes.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Crisp, snappy texture. These cookies bake up thin and crunchy, just like classic gingersnaps should.
- Warm spiced flavor. Molasses, ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves create a deep, cozy taste that is especially good during the holiday season.
- Quick and easy. The dough does not need to chill, and the recipe uses familiar baking ingredients.
- Great for gifting. Once cooled and stored properly, the cookies stay crisp and flavorful for up to 2 weeks.
Ingredient Notes
- Molasses: Use unsulphured molasses for the best flavor. Avoid blackstrap molasses because it is much stronger and can taste bitter in cookies.
- Butter: Use unsalted butter at room temperature. Adding salt separately gives you better control over the final flavor.
- Brown sugar: Dark brown sugar adds extra depth and pairs well with molasses, but light brown sugar will also work.
- Granulated sugar: This helps the cookies spread and develop their crisp texture.
- Spices: Fresh ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves make a noticeable difference. If your spices have been sitting in the pantry for a long time, check that they are still fragrant.
- Baking soda: This helps the cookies rise and spread in the oven. Make sure it has not expired.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts and full instructions.
Recipe Variations
Add icing. For a sweeter finish, whisk together 1 cup confectioners’ sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 to 2 tablespoons milk until smooth. Drizzle the icing over completely cooled cookies and let it set before storing.
Use fresh ginger. For a stronger ginger flavor, peel and finely grate fresh ginger, then add 1 tablespoon when mixing in the egg and molasses. Candied ginger may also be folded into the dough if you like a chewy ginger bite.
Make a cookie crust. Crush baked gingersnaps and use the crumbs for a spiced crust in desserts such as pumpkin cheesecake or eggnog cheesecake.
Make mini gingersnaps. This recipe uses about 1 1/2 tablespoons of dough per cookie. For smaller cookies, use about 3/4 tablespoon of dough. The recipe will make approximately 48 mini cookies, and the baking time should be reduced to 10 to 12 minutes.
How to Make Gingersnap Cookies
- Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon and cloves. Set the dry mixture aside.
- Beat the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the egg and molasses, then mix until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix only until the dough comes together. Scoop the dough, roll it into balls and coat each ball in turbinado sugar.
- Bake at 350 F for about 15 minutes, or until the cookies look crackly on top and set around the edges. Let them cool briefly on the baking sheet, then move them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Expert Tips
Measure the flour carefully. Too much flour can make the cookies cakey or hard instead of crisp. For the most accurate results, weigh the flour or use the spoon-and-level method.
Use fresh spices. Gingersnap cookies depend on bold spice flavor. Fresh ground spices give the cookies their signature warmth and aroma.
Do not skip the sugar coating. Rolling the dough in turbinado, demerara or raw sugar gives the cookies a sparkly finish and helps create a crisp exterior.
Expect the dough to spread. These cookies are meant to be thin. The spreading is what helps create the classic crunchy gingersnap texture.
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
Make ahead: Prepare the dough and keep it covered in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours. Before baking, let the dough sit at room temperature until it is soft enough to scoop and roll.
Store: Keep cooled cookies in an airtight container or cookie tin at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. Make sure the cookies are completely cool before storing so they stay crisp.
Freeze: Freeze baked cookies for up to 3 months. Wrap stacks of 4 or 5 cookies in plastic wrap, then place them in a freezer bag or airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator before bringing them to room temperature. The cookie dough can also be frozen for up to 3 months and thawed in the refrigerator before baking.
Recipe FAQ
Gingersnap cookies are supposed to be fairly flat. Their thin shape helps create the crisp, snappy texture that makes them different from softer ginger cookies.
Gingerbread cookies are usually softer and chewier. They may be rolled and cut into shapes, such as gingerbread men, or shaped into balls before baking. Gingersnap cookies are rolled in sugar and baked a little longer so they become thin, crisp and crackly.
The cookies may have baked too long, or too much flour may have been added to the dough. Check your oven temperature with an oven thermometer if needed, and measure the flour carefully for the best texture.
Related Recipes
Here are a few more festive recipes to enjoy during the holiday season.
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Get the Recipe: Crispy Gingersnap Cookies
Equipment
- Kitchen scale
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
- Baking sheet
- Medium cookie scoop
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ cups (286 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons (9 g) baking soda
- ½ teaspoon (4 g) salt
- 2 teaspoons (6 g) ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon (4 g) ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon (1 g) ground cloves
- 14 tablespoons (198 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (66 g) packed brown sugar, light or dark
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ¼ cup (85 g) unsulphured molasses
- Turbinado, demerara or raw sugar, for rolling
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
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In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and cloves. Set aside.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and molasses, then mix until combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
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Add the flour mixture and mix just until combined. Do not overmix.
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Scoop about 1 ½ tablespoons of dough, roll it into a ball and gently coat it in turbinado sugar. Place the dough balls on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
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Bake at 350 F for 15 minutes, or until the tops are crackly and the edges are set. If the cookies look slightly puffy, they will flatten as they cool. Let them rest on the pan for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Freeze: Freeze the dough for up to 3 months. Wrap it in plastic wrap and store it in the freezer. Thaw in the refrigerator before bringing to room temperature, scooping and baking.
Calories: 159 kcal,
Carbohydrates: 23 g,
Protein: 2 g,
Fat: 7 g