Chocolate Molasses Cookies
Written by Beth - Budget Bytes
Growing up we called these cookies “chocolate gingersnaps” but they’re not like a crunchy gingersnap at all, they’re actually a classic soft and chewy molasses cookie full of warm spices and chunks of melty chocolate. These Chocolate Molasses Cookies are the perfect cozy cookie for cold winter days and they pair perfectly with a hot cup of cocoa or coffee (especially with my gingerbread creamer). And the best part? They freeze beautifully, so you can keep a batch in your freezer and just take one or two out at a time to enjoy with your afternoon cup of tea or coffee. :)
Originally posed 12/11/2011, updated 11/29/2021.
Why You’ll Love these Molasses Cookies
Molasses creates an incredible chewy texture when added to cookies, as well as a slight sweetness with a rich and earthy flavor. If regular cookies tend to be a bit too sweet for you, I bet you’ll be a fan of these chocolate molasses cookies. Not only is the sweetness not super over the top, but the warm spices and semi-sweet chocolate give the cookie a little kick that helps counteract the sweetness. The flavor combination is absolute heaven!
What Kind of Molasses to Use
I used Grandma’s Original Molasses for these cookies. While you can use blackstrap molasses, keep in mind that it has a much more intense, slightly bitter flavor and the ingredients in these cookies were not formulated using that type of molasses. Will it still be good? Maybe! At the end of the day, that’s going to be a matter of personal preference.
How to Store Chocolate Molasses Cookies
Once the cookies have cooled completely to room temperature, store them in an air-tight container to keep them from going stale. The cookies will keep at room temperature for about a week, or you can freeze them for about three months. I absolutely love keeping these in the freezer so I can take just one or two out at a time. I like to microwave the frozen cookie for a few seconds to make it extra soft and gooey.
Can I Substitute the Fresh Ginger?
While I do think the fresh ginger is what makes these cookies extra special, you can substitute it for more ground dried ginger if needed. If you don’t have fresh ginger on hand, use two teaspoons of dried ginger instead of the 1 ¼ tsp listed in the recipe below.
Chocolate Molasses Cookies
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups all-purpose flour ($0.23)
- 1.25 tsp ground ginger ($0.12)
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves ($0.02)
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg ($0.02)
- 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder ($0.04)
- 1 tsp baking powder ($0.02)
- 8 Tbsp butter, room temperature ($0.80)
- 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger ($0.30)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar ($0.24)
- 1/2 cup molasses ($1.18)
- 4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate ($3.49)
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar ($0.04)
Instructions
- Add the flour, ground ginger, cloves, nutmeg, cocoa powder, and baking powder to a bowl and stir until well combined.
- To a separate bowl, add the butter, fresh ginger, brown sugar, and molasses. Use a mixer to beat these ingredients together until light and creamy.
- Begin adding the flour mixture into the molasses mixture, ½ cup at a time, beating at low speed, until all of the flour mixture has been incorporated.
- Roughly chop the chocolate, then stir it into the cookie dough. Wrap the cookie dough in plastic, then refrigerate for at least one hour.
- When you're ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 325ºF. Place the granulated sugar in a small bowl. Divide the cookie dough into four equal-sized pieces, then divide each of the quarters into six small pieces to make 24 total cookies.
- Roll each piece of cookie dough into a ball, then roll the dough ball in the granulated sugar to coat. Place the shaped cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet, 12 per baking sheet.
- Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes in the 325ºF oven, or until they're slightly cracked on top. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition
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How to Make Chocolate Molasses Cookies – Step By Step Photos
Add 1.5 cups all-purpose flour, 1.25 tsp ground ginger, ¼ tsp ground cloves, ¼ tsp ground nutmeg, 1 Tbsp cocoa powder, and 1 tsp baking powder in a bowl and stir until well combined.
Add 8 Tbsp room temperature butter, 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger, ½ cup brown sugar, and ½ cup molasses to a separate bowl.
Use a mixer to beat the wet ingredients together until they are light and creamy.
Begin mixing in the flour mixture at low speed, adding about ½ cup at a time, until all of it is incorporated.
Roughly chop the semi-sweet chocolate. You definitely want it to be fairly chunky.
Stir the chopped chocolate into the cookie dough.
Wrap the cookie dough in plastic, then refrigerate for about an hour to help firm it up. You can refrigerate overnight if needed.
When you’re ready to make the cookies, preheat the oven to 325ºF. Place ¼ granulated sugar in a small bowl. Divide the cookie dough into four equal-sized pieces, then divide each quarter into six small pieces (24 total pieces). Roll each piece into a ball, then roll the ball in the granulated sugar to coat.
Place twelve of the shaped cookies on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake the cookies in the preheated 325ºF oven for about 12 minutes, or until the cookies are slightly cracked on top. Repeat with the second 12 cookies.
Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool for a few minutes, or serve warm. Allow the cookies to cool completely to room temperature before storing in an air-tight container.
Loved the recipe! Should cookie be soft? Or Hard like a gingersnap cookie is? Mine did not crack? Left in a few more minutes but no crack? Thanks so much!
I followed the recipe exactly but used mini chocolate chips. So good!
Loved these! My thought is a little less fresh ginger and more chocolate! I made sure that my dough was just out of the fridge when I put it in the oven, and the cookies came out perfectly!
I made these last night and they spread and flattened a lot. I don’t think it’s the recipe’s fault, though, because this seems to happen to me with all drop cookies that are based on creaming together butter and sugar. Does anyone have any advice on why this happens? Am I not beating the butter and sugar long enough or for too long? I have a kitchen aid stand mixer – the lower-end version – and I use the paddle attachment. The butter/sugar mixture gets stuck up the sides of the bowl, and I do scrape the sides occasionally, but I wonder if it doesn’t get mixed enough. Anyway, thanks for any ideas! Flat cookies are always so disappointing.
It might be more of an issue with the temperature of the cookies when they go into the oven. You really want to chill that dough well before rolling them into a ball. If you find that they are warming up too much while you shape them, perhaps try chilling them again before you actually bake them. This slows the spread. :)
Can you freeze the dough? Trying to get holiday cookie dough prepped and ready! Thanks :0)
While I haven’t tried freezing this particular dough, it probably will freeze very well. :)
Thanks so much!
These were good, but they just don’t beat the “big soft ginger cookies” that I usually make. I’m finding (as I JUST made them) there’s a bit too much of a molasses presence in the flavour. I wonder if it’s the brown sugar? With the ginger cookies I make, it’s just white sugar.
Like I said, they’re good. In fact I’m certain there will be some people REALLY enjoying these on the 31st. But I’ll also be making my ginger cookies to go along side them. ;)
I think the molasses flavor coming from the brown sugar is probably negligible compared to the 1/2 cup of molasses used in the batter. If you wanted to cut down on the molasses flavor I’d just cut back on the molasses. :) I made these once and didn’t have the full 1/2 cup molasses (I had about 1/4 cup) and they still turned out great! I had to add a couple extra Tbsp of water to make the dough come together, but the cookies’ texture was still fine and a much lighter molasses flavor.
I love this recipe! It’s really admirable that you are so diligent about crediting your recipes, even if you’re not sure of the original source. I think I can help you out there–this looks really close to one of my favorites, Martha Stewart’s Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies: http://www.marthastewart.com/339353/chewy-chocolate-gingerbread-cookies. Your recipe replaces the white sugar with more molasses though.
The last time we made it, we doubled the cocoa powder, ginger and spices. So good! I’m getting super excited now because I’ll probably make a batch this weekend. I’ll be making my first trip to the new Trader Joe’s in NOLA tomorrow–I once used one of their giant bars of chocolate for a huge batch these, and it came out really good. If I recall correctly, it was around $5 for a 16 oz bar of quite delicious chocolate. Hopefully they’re still that cheap, in which case these cookies are for SURE happening!
Yum, these look delicious! Check out this post if you want to know how to make them crunchier or chewier! http://sciencewiththat.wordpress.com/2014/03/14/how-do-you-like-your-cookies-crunchy-or-chewy/