These Ginger Snap Cookies are soft and chewy with a crisp edge. An easy Christmas cookie recipe that are perfect for any holiday cookie spread, but great any time of year!
Ginger Snap Recipe
Serve these Ginger Snap Cookies on a holiday table with Christmas Oreo Bon Bons, Slow Cooker Candied Almonds, and Chocolate Crinkle Cookies.
If you want to keep with the ginger theme, you could also pair it with an easy gingerbread cake with cream cheese frosting!
Do you go to holiday cookie exchanges? I always make cookies, but I’ve never been to an actual exchange. I feel like this ginger snaps recipe would make the perfect batch of cookies to swap.
I polled my friends asking their favorite holiday cookie to help me narrow down what I wanted to bake this weekend. I got a couple requests for cookies I’ve already shared but one friend suggested ginger snaps and this recipe came about.
I consulted a very old cookbook passed down from my grandma for a recipe and am thrilled with the results.
A soft and chewy, spicy, holiday cookie that smells amazing when it’s baking in your kitchen.
Fire up a holiday simmer pot and let the season begin!
Ginger Snaps Ingredients
Below is a list of the ingredients you’ll need to gather to make this recipe, why you need them, and possible substitutions. Scroll all the way down for the full recipe card with measurements.
Jump- Sugar – Granulated white sugar.
- Butter – Unsalted, at room temperature.
- Molasses – Baking molasses – usually light or “original”.
- Egg – One large egg.
- Flour – All-purpose white flour.
- Baking Soda – To add rise.
- Cinnamon – Use a good quality ceylon cinnamon.
- Ginger – Ground ginger.
- Cloves – Ground cloves.
- Nutmeg – Ground nutmeg.
- Salt – For balance.
How to make Ginger Snap Cookies
This section shows you how to make this recipe, with process photos showing the steps to help you visualize it. For full instructions, including amounts and temperatures, see the recipe card below.
JumpMaking ginger snap cookies is surprisingly easy, but you do need to allow time for the dough to chill and come together.
- STEP ONE: To a large bowl, add the sugar, butter, molasses, and egg and beat with a hand mixer until on medium until light and fluffy.
- STEP TWO: Add in the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and salt. Stir it together with a spatula until fully combined.
Cover the bowl of dough with plastic wrap and let chill for at least an hour. - STEP THREE: Pour 1/2 cup of sugar into a shallow bowl. As you scoop the dough into approximately 1″ balls with a cookie scoop, roll the balls in your hands, then in the sugar, and place 12 per sheet on the prepared cookie sheets.
- STEP FOUR: Bake at 350 degrees for 9-10 minutes or until just set. They will puff up then flatten as they bake. Remove from the oven and let cool on the cookie sheets for a minute before removing.
Are ginger snaps supposed to be spicy?
Ginger snaps are not hot spicy, but they do have a nice warmth to them thanks to the ginger, cinnamon, and cloves.
Why are they called ginger snaps?
The name ginger snaps comes from the fact that these cookies are typically very crispy and make a “snap” sound when broken and are filled with ginger.
My version have a crisp edge with a chewy center (don’t over bake them!) and are full of holiday spices. Ginger snaps are a derivation of gingerbread.
What is molasses & why is molasses used in baking?
Molasses is a thick, dark syrup that is made during the sugar making process. Sugar cane or sugar beets are crushed and then the juice is extracted. The juice is then boiled down to form sugar crystals, which are then removed from the liquid. That is the molasses.
Molasses is used in baking to add great brown sugar flavor to cakes and cookies without making them too sweet.
Soft & chewy molasses cookies are similar to these ginger snaps and equally delicious.
Helpful Tools
- Mixing Bowls – I love the grippy bottoms of these bowls so they stay still while you’re mixing.
- Hand Mixer – As much as I love my stand mixer, I use my hand mixer much more often.
- Spatulas – I love these one piece silicone spatulas because they’re easy to clean.
- Silicone Baking Mats – Using either baking mats or parchment paper will help your cookies to bake evenly and make clean up easier.
- Cookie Scoop – I can’t remember the last time I made cookies without using a scoop. It makes life easier & your cookies will be even.
Need more Christmas cookies recipes? Try these:
Dark Chocolate Stars
Crisp Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Cream Cheese Sprinkle Cookies
Christmasdoodles (Snickerdoodles)
Sprinkled Chocolate Fudge Cookie Bites
Click here for my entire collection of cookies.
Did You Make This?
If you made this recipe, I’d love to know how it went in the comments section below.
You can also tag me on Instagram – @melissa_ppplates or share a pic in the Persnickety Plates Community Facebook group. I love seeing what you’ve tried!
Soft and Chewy Ginger Snaps
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup (198 g) granulated white sugar
- ¾ cup (168 g) unsalted butter at room temp
- ¼ cup (85 g) molasses
- 1 large egg
- 2 ½ cups (300 g) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons (12 g) baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon (2 g) kosher salt
- granulated white sugar for rolling
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the sugar, butter, molasses, and egg and beat on medium until light and fluffy.1 cup granulated white sugar, 3/4 cup unsalted butter, 1/4 cup molasses, 1 large egg
- Add in the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and salt, Stir well with a spatula until fully combined.2 ½ cups all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour.granulated white sugar
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
- Pour approximately 1/2 cup of sugar into a small bowl (for rolling).
- Use a medium cookie scoop (#60; 2 tsp) to shape the dough into approx. 1" balls. Roll in sugar and place 12 per baking sheet onto your prepared sheets.
- Bake for 9-10 minutes or until just set (they will puff up then flatten while baking).
- Remove from oven and let stand on the cookie sheet for 1 minute before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- I generally use a #40 cookie scoop (approx. 1.5 Tbsp) to make 1″ dough balls.
- 12/21/25 – After feedback, I increased the flour to 2 1/2 cups flour (300g). The recipe originally called for 2 1/4 cup (270g). I personally like a flatter cookie but 300g will lead to a thicker cookie.
- Store leftovers covered at room temperature for up to a week.
- To freeze before baking – scoop dough balls, roll in sugar, and then freeze flash freeze on a baking sheet. Once frozen solid, move to a freezer bag or container for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen adding a minute to the bake time.
- To freeze after baking – lay cookies in a freezer bag with parchment between layers for up to a two months. When you’re ready to eat them, just put however many on the counter at room temp a few hours before you need them.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is an estimate and provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag me on Instagram @melissa_pplates so I can see!What’s your favorite holiday cookie recipe? Are you trying any new ones this year?
This post was originally sponsored by McCormick®. All opinions are my own, as always.
My dough came out very dry and crumbly. Also they did not spread when baking, I did a double batch and made sure I measured everything correctly,
It sounds like something went wrong, maybe in the doubling process, because the dough shouldn’t have been crumbly & they definitely spread…sometimes too much lol
These cookies are great! So easy to make and they turn out just like the picture!
Family favorite!!! So yummy!! Thank you for sharing!
very good. will definitely make again!
Exactly the recipe I was looking for. Quick, simple and they turned out perfect!
Yay 🙂
I made these for a friend and he said they’re the best cookie he has ever had. I’ll definitely be making these again soon. Such an easy recipe and turns out great every time!
Love hearing that, thank you for letting me know!
Family really enjoyed. I replaced brown sugar with coconut sugar. Made them not as sweet which those without a sweet tooth really enjoyed
Is it necessary to use an electric mixer for these cookies? Tks
I haven’t tried making them without. I’m sure you would do fine with some elbow grease 🙂
Very good and easy
I used this recipe with a little differences and got first in my local fair over one of the best bakers in our area! Definitely wonderful!
Yay! Which changes did you make?
These were super good! I refrigerated for 40 minutes instead of fne full hour and they ended up awesome still.
I didn’t have a cookie dough scoop so I did a heaping tablespoon for each one and cooked for 9 minutes and they turned out good!
Great taste
Happy to hear that!
My go-to holiday cookie recipe! They’re so easy to make and taste amazing. I love the way the house smells when I’m baking them. I’ve made this recipe for the last couple of years and they always disappear fast.
I’m so happy to hear that, thanks for letting me know 🙂
These were a giant hit! They are soft and the molasses gives such a rich and luxurious flavor.
Thanks, Shelly!
Tasty, turned out super chewy. 2 things though, i tripled the ginger because i really wanted that pop of ginger. My only q was not sure how you got 30 out of that? I needed 60 for my lunch, so I hit the X3 button to play it safe. Now listen, my cookies were with a blue scoop,they werent huge, they were reg sized cookies (blue scoop #16 is 2 oz or 4 tbsp), and i got 34 cookies 😕. So i had to make a second batch. So 6X the recipe made 68 reg sized cookies. Just a heads up 😎
I’m glad you liked them! Sorry you had to make a second batch. 4 TB is a lot of dough! 🙂 The recipe calls for 1″ dough balls which is a #40 (1.5 TB) – that’s probably the discrepancy.
These turned out amazing! Thank you!
Excellent recipe and end result cookie – soft with just the right amount of chew. Good ginger flavor and I love the crackly crinkles. Definitely will make these again. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome!
It looks like this recipe calls for white sugar, is that right? Have you tried it with brown sugar?
Yes, white. I haven’t tried it with brown, but let me know if you do!
The cookies were great. I took them to a cookie exchange, and they were a big hit. Very soft and chewy. I discovered I was out of Nutmeg after I had started, but still delicious without it.
I’m so glad they were a hit! I’m making them for a party tomorrow, too.
Has anyone tried this recipe using vegan butter?
The only change I made was to double to spices, and I added some allspice and a few dashes of Chinese 5 spice. I rolled some in Turbinado sugar and some in red and green sugar. They were absolutely perfect. My son loved them. I will make this again for cookie gifts.
Thanks, Patty 🙂