Chewy & Soft Molasses Cookies
Save RecipeSometimes the old fashioned way is the best way, so try my Chewy & Soft Molasses Cookies and taste the sweet, warm history!
Hi Bold Bakers!
All year round I look forward to gearing up for holiday baking. There’s just nothing like the classic holiday flavors: rich, aromatic, and full of spice.
This year for baking season, I’m going Big and Bold with the Holiday Baking Headquarters, loading it up with tons of creative cookie recipes for every occasion — but that doesn’t mean I’m leaving the classics behind. These Chewy and Soft Molasses Cookies combine all of my favorite holiday flavors, all inside of a delicious cookie with an exceptional chew.
What do you get when you mix molasses with nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon? A delicious nostalgic flavor, perfect for this holiday.
What’s the difference between a gingersnap and a molasses cookie?
While both a gingersnap and a molasses cookie pack a sweet spice-infused punch, a gingersnap will most literally snap. Gingersnaps are on the crispy side whereas these molasses cookies are more chewy and soft baked. Gingersnap cookies are often dry too, thus turned into crumbs to be used in pie crusts or other desserts. My molasses cookies are a standalone dessert.
They also make a lovely gift as they are super impressive with a sugar coated exterior and crinkly top.
What if my molasses cookies are too flat?
These cookies do spread when baking and become perfectly round discs. They don’t rise per se, but as they have a chewy center they shouldn’t be too thin. That said there is no raising agent in these cookies, which tells you they are not meant to be puffed up. This makes these cookies great for stacking, wrapping and giving as a gift or homemade stocking stuffer.
If you feel like your molasses cookies are too flat, try chilling the dough longer (beyond the suggested 30 minutes) before baking off — it should help them retain their shape.
Can you substitute molasses, or make it yourself?
If you can’t find molasses, you can substitute it for a half/half combination of dark corn syrup and honey. That said, it will not have the exact same depth of flavor — but it will offer the same moisture and chew. If you don’t want to use dark corn syrup, you can use all honey — but this will have even more of a mild flavor.
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Sometimes the old fashioned way is the best way, try my Chewy & Soft Molasses Cookies and taste the sweet, warm history!
- 1 egg
- 2/3 cup (5floz/142ml) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (8oz/225g) sugar
- 1/3 cup (4oz/115g) molasses*
- 2 1/4 cups (11 1/4oz/319g) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
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Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C), line 2 cookies sheets with parchment paper, then set aside.
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In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, oil, sugar, and molasses*
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In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, salt, baking soda until well combined.
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Stir the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined. The dough will be stiff and thick. Scoop the dough into 20 (1 tablespoon) balls.
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Stir together the sugar and cinnamon to make the cinnamon sugar and roll each ball in it coating the dough. Chill the rolled cookies for 30 minutes.
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Bake the cookies for about 12-13 minutes. They will be golden with a crackle top.
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Remove from the oven and cool slightly before transferring to a wire rack.
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Once the cookies have cooled, cover and store in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
*Substitute molasses with a half/half combination of dark corn syrup and honey, or all honey, just know this will mute the flavors a bit.
Meet Gemma
Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professional chef originally from Ireland, and I’m passionate about sharing my years of experience to show you how to make game-changing baking recipes with over-the-top results! Join more than 1 Million other Bold Bakers in the community for new video recipes every week!
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I just made these cookies and they were awesome. I think that they have replaced my old family recipe for gingersnaps! (Don’t tell my ancestors!)
I have an observation about one of the comments that you made regarding the recipe though. You indicate that the recipe doesn’t have any leavening agent, how about the baking soda and egg?
Hi Ada,
that is a good observation for sure. Baking soda/bicarbonate of soda, which is an alkaline salt, is not a raising agent when used on its own in a recipe, it needs the addition of an acid ingredient to become a leavener. In many recipes, such as soda bread, the acid will be buttermilk. In other recipes, it may be vinegar and in still others, it can be cocoa or coffee which are both acid substances.
In this type of cookie, the bicarbonate of soda reacts with the sugars to give a crisp finish to the cookie, much as it does with honeycomb for instance, and this is the second place the bread soda reacts in a recipe, with hot sugar!
The egg, in this case, is more or less a binding ingredient. Egg when is beaten, to incorporate air, is a great leavener, when use to bind ingredient the effect is different, though it does enrich, and perhaps causes a little ‘puff’ to the recipe.
Thank you for this question, it is often asked here, and it helps others to understand how a recipe works,
Gemma 🙂
Hi I was just wondering what type of sugar to use in the recipe? White, brown, etc.
This recipe uses brown sugar but you can use whatever you prefer as the molasses adds most of the flavor.
Make no mistake – these are NOT soft and chewy. But they’re very good crunchy cookies! Love them!
Hmmm they should have been very chewy… I am very glad you liked them, enjoy and happy holidays!
I’m not sure what happened but the dough was very crumbly and dry and then when I baked them they didn’t spread at all they stayed like rocks and were not good. I must’ve left the egg out or something !! So strange. Any input ?
Hmm that is very odd, did you bake them in the bottom rack? As that can tend to burn…
Hi Gemma. Please let me know if I can chill the dough before rolling the cookies. In the comments I read about different types of sugar. Muscovado and brown to substitute I presume white sugar. Could you please let me know the difference between sugars. Thanks and greetings from Oporto in Portugal.
Hi there yes i always suggest chilling my cookie dough! I would use muscovado or coconut sugar if you do no have brown. Enjoy!
Molasses can be substituted by the cane sugar honey.
Hi there, yes you can use honey instead!
I just made this recipe…thank you for amending the recipe to add the baking soda. 😉 It wasn’t amended yet in the recipe I printed out last week, but I caught it and added 1 teaspoon, and it turned out awesome. These taste very close to ginger snaps, and honestly, I like these better. Chewy, spicy and delightful!
Hi Heather,
Thank you for letting us know, I appreciate your kind review and input.
I love this cookie too, just a little bit different,
Gemma 🙂
I’ll be making these this weekend! Why oil instead of butter, out of curiosity?
Hi Carolyn,
The oil does not set up, keeps the cookies, or a cake, moist.
I hope you enjoy this recipe,
Gemma 🙂
You said to add baking soda, but it isn’t in the ingredient list.
its 2 teaspoon. I just edited the recipe there. 🙂
Good eye,
Gemma.
How much baking soda??? Not in the recipe.julie
Hi Julie,
Sorry I was editing this recipe late last night and missed a few things. It’s all there ready to go now.
Happy baking!
Gemma.
Quick query Gemma. The recipe calls for Baking Sosa but no mention of it in the ingredients list. Wondering how much ? Many thanks.
Bee, sorry that was totally my fault. I added it in there now and the recipe is ready to go.
Happy Baking!
Gemma.
Hi Gemma. The procedure sounds like that of chocolate crinkles? Do you have one too? Thanks
I sure do
BUT
today I’m releasing a recipe for a ginger crinkle cookie so check the site for that. It was INCREDIBLE! I had to give them all away because I liked them so much.
Gemma 🙂
Hi Gemma
Love your recipes! Could treacle be used in place of molasses?
Warm Regards
Lindsey
Substitute molasses with a half/half combination of dark corn syrup and honey, or all honey, just know this will mute the flavors a bit.
Best,
Gemma.
Quick question. I recently ordered muscavado sugar from the UK. I absolutely adore the deep molasses flavour. Can this sugar be used as a substitute if I run out of molasses/treacle?
Hi there, great question! This can replace brown sugar but it can not replace a liquid sweetener.