Description
These Spicy Molasses Cookies are soft, chewy, and packed with warm holiday spices like cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and cardamom. With their crackly sugar-coated tops and deep molasses flavor, they’re a nostalgic, crowd-pleasing treat that’s perfect for gifting, sharing, or enjoying fresh from the oven during the holiday season.
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for coating
- 3/4 cup vegetable shortening (such as Crisco)
- 1/4 cup unsulphured molasses
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine sugar, shortening, molasses, and egg. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth and well blended.
- Add flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, cardamom, and salt. Gently mix dry ingredients on top before fully combining with the wet mixture until a uniform dough forms.
- Roll dough into 1 to 1.5-inch balls using your hands.
- Roll each dough ball in granulated sugar to coat all sides, then place on the prepared baking sheet, spacing apart.
- Bake for 9–11 minutes, just until cracks appear on the surface. For soft cookies, do not overbake.
- Let cookies cool on the sheet for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- For extra spice, add finely chopped fresh ginger to the dough.
- Drizzle or dip in white chocolate for a decorative finish.
- Use sparkling sugar for a festive crunch and shine.
- Make ice cream sandwiches by pairing cookies with cinnamon or vanilla ice cream.
- Store with a slice of bread to keep cookies soft for longer.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 11 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 110
- Sugar: 9g
- Sodium: 95mg
- Fat: 5g
- Saturated Fat: 1.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 15g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 1g
- Cholesterol: 5mg
