Crispy Ginger Cookies
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Sugar, spice, and all things nice—these thin, crispy ginger cookies are what holiday dreams are made of.
These thin and crispy ginger cookies, a gem from pastry chef Emily Luchetti’s Stars Desserts, are truly something special. Featuring a spot-on mix of ginger, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and a bit of black pepper, these cookies deliver a sweet, buttery crunch with just the right touch of chewiness in the middle. They are a treat any time of day (yes, even breakfast), and they fill the house with the most heavenly aroma as they bake. With their deep amber color and slightly crackled tops, they’re perfect for the holidays. Think of them as the more delicious cousins of gingerbread men, offering a rich taste and a delightful texture that traditional holiday cut-out cookies just can’t match.
“I absolutely LOVE these cookies! They are crispy around the edges, with a little soft chew in the middle. And the spices are just enough to be tasty without being overpowering.”
What You’ll Need To Make Crispy Ginger Cookies
- All-Purpose Flour: Forms the base of the cookie dough, providing structure and texture.
- Ground Ginger, Allspice, Cinnamon, Cloves and Pepper: Infuse the cookies with warm, aromatic flavors characteristic of ginger cookies. Pepper may sound unusual but it adds a delightful little kick that lingers on the palate.
- Baking Soda: Helps the cookies rise and spread, resulting in a crisp texture.
- Granulated and Light Brown Sugar: Sweeten the dough and contribute to the cookies’ crispiness and caramelization.
- Butter: Provides richness and moisture to the cookies, ensuring a tender crumb.
- Egg: Binds the ingredients together and adds structure to the dough.
- Molasses: Adds richness, depth of flavor, and chewiness characteristic of ginger cookies.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, ginger, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, salt, and pepper.
Whisk and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine ½ cup of the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and butter.
Beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
Add the egg.
Beat for about 20 seconds, then scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the molasses.
Beat until just combined, then scrape down the sides of the bowl again.
Add the dry ingredients.
Mix on low speed until just incorporated. The dough will be very soft; refrigerate it for about one hour, or until firm enough to roll.
Preheat the oven to 350°F and set a rack in the middle position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the remaining ½ cup granulated sugar in a shallow bowl. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and roll in the sugar to coat. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until set and deeply golden on the outside and slightly soft on the inside. (As they bake, they will puff up and then flatten. Do not remove them from the oven until they are flat.)
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate the dough between batches.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sure! In most recipes, you can swap light and dark brown sugars for one another. Dark brown sugar contains a bit more molasses than light brown, so the caramel-like flavor it adds will be slightly more prominent (but the difference is subtle and won’t impact the flavor of the cookies).
Yep — just form the dough into balls, roll in sugar, freeze them on a baking sheet for about an hour, then transfer to a sealable bag. When ready to bake, pop them straight into the oven from frozen, adding a couple of minutes to the baking time. For more guidance, check out additional tips on how to freeze cookie dough.
Definitely! The cookies will keep nicely for several days in an airtight container; freeze for up to 3 months for longer storage.
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Crispy Ginger Cookies
Sugar, spice, and all things nice—these thin, crispy ginger cookies are what holiday dreams are made of.
Ingredients
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- Scant ¼ teaspoon salt
- Pinch freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup granulated sugar, divided
- ½ cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened but still cool
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup molasses, such as Grandma's Original
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer, beat ½ cup of the granulated sugar, brown sugar, and butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add the egg and beat for about 20 seconds, then scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the molasses and beat until just combined, then scrape down the sides of the bowl again.
- Add the dry ingredients, then mix on low speed until just incorporated. The dough will be very soft; refrigerate it for about one hour, or until firm enough to roll.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set a rack in the middle position. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the remaining ½ cup granulated sugar in a shallow bowl. Form the dough into 1-inch balls and roll in the sugar to coat. Place the balls on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until set and golden on the outside and slightly soft on the inside. (As they bake, they will puff up and then flatten. Do not remove them from the oven until they are flat.) Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate the dough between batches. The cookies will keep for several days in an airtight container; freeze for longer storage.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: To freeze before baking, scoop the dough into balls and roll in sugar, let set on a baking sheet in the freezer, then place in a sealable bag and press out as much air as possible. Freeze for up to 3 months. Bake as needed directly from the freezer, allowing a few minutes longer in the oven. To freeze the cookies after baking, store the cooled cookies in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Freeze for up to 3 months. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature.
Nutrition Information
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- Serving size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 119
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 17 g
- Sugar: 11 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Sodium: 75 mg
- Cholesterol: 19 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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If you love the flavor of an old fashioned ginger cookie, this is the perfect recipe. It is crunchy on the outside and chewy inside. I’ve added it to my Christmas cookie baking list!
Hi,
Love your site and as a totally novice baker has been successful with all your recipes.
Got stuck on the ginger cookies. I watched them rise in the oven and then fell flat and started to bubble. Left with paper thin ginger snaps. Tasted snappy/ good but not like the pic in the recipe. Trying to figure out what I did wrong. Help?
Hi Linzi, Sorry to hear you had a problem with these! Did you make any adjustments to the recipe?
I do not believe so but will give it another bash. FYI love the cookery book.
Hope you have better luck with these when you make them again!
Maybe you over softened the butter? Or you didn’t chill the dough long enough (absolutely required) If the butter is too soft, its often the cause of cookies that go flat too soon – as the butter melts too soon & they don’t set properly. It needs to be soft, but still cool.
I made the cookies ALMOST as written. The only changes I made was to add finely chopped dried ginger pieces and 1/2 tsp of finely ground black pepper. These are the best crispy gingers snaps I’ve ever made. They are crispy but tender – DELISH.
The spice mix is perfect, not too much ginger or other warm spices.
BTW Jenn I’ve also made and shared your onion brisket recipe – it’s another winner.
Thanks for all your hard work testing and trying for all.
HAPPY 2021
Paula
Edmonton, Canada
💗
Just made these cookies. My husband kept buying ginger snap cookies from our local grocery store. I promised him I would try to make his favorite cookies. I did and my batch came out just as perfect as the pic. Followed the recipe to the letter. No more store bought ginger snaps in this house. Thanks
Loved these ginger cookies! They reminded me of hermits I had as a child. I had to make do with dark brown sugar and salted butter so I dropped the salt in the recipe. I experimented and added raisins to some and loved the addition. I froze half the batter to cook when my kids are home st Christmas. Will add chocolate chips to some other ones to see if I like that. They taste great plain. My husband and I did not feel it needs the sugar dipped before baking and will eliminate that for the next few batches. It does look pretty but we are trying not to eat too much sugar. Thank you for this recipe.
I really love these cookies! They are the perfect texture and just crispy enough. I am making my third batch in this week, and have given many away to neighbors, they’ve gotten rave reviews. The first time I made them exactly as the recipe, the next two times, ai left out the pepper, and added 1 extra teaspoon of ginger.
I made these (made it with maple syrup since that’s what I had but was still a hit!!) and was wondering if I could make these bars or maybe your luscious lemon bars with the ginger cookies as the crust? Any thoughts on how the flavor would turn out, or modifications I should make?
Hi TJ, I love lemon and ginger together, but I’m not sure these cookies would work. I’d go for a gingersnap crust, similar to the one used here.
I’m making these now. I slightly pressed the top down then proceeded to bake. They flattened to a thin wafer. The 3 cookie sheet I placed the balls in the oven and they look better; more like your photo.
These look yummy! What is the difference between these cookies and your recipe for Old fashioned Ginger Spice Cookies?
Hi Bridget, These cookies have more butter and granulated sugar than the Ginger Spice Cookies. Using more butter makes the cookies flatter/less puffy and the granulated sugar increases their crispiness. Hope that clarifies!
Hi Jenn (:
What a lovely recipe. I made it just now, and the cookies are delicious. The flavor profile is complex and packs a true punch (I added even more ginger, and 1/3-1/2 tsp of cayenne). I was looking for a recipe for crispy gingersnaps, as opposed to chewy ones, that so many seem to prefer, and yours is the closest I’ve got. My question is as follows: I really want to try and imitate the texture of the store bought gingersnaps – they’re much crunchier and dense, though they’re also pretty flat. The crispiness in your recipe is very nice and airy/fluffy, and I am looking the create that crunch that you can literally almost chip a tooth over. I was wondering what can create that effect. I read elsewhere that using shortening creates a harder texture? Would really appreciate your input. Just as a side note – how do you think it would be best to sub the egg in this recipe. I made mine with a flax egg, but wondering whether that’s optimal.
Hi Nathaniel, glad you like these! Unfortunately, I don’t know how you would adapt this recipe to get the texture you’re looking for. For the best results, I’d suggest looking specifically for a gingersnap cookie recipe. Sorry I can’t be more helpful!
You were plenty helpful with creating this recipe. I’ve been lauded nonstop in the last few days, by people who tried this cookie. It’s wonderful as is. Thanks again! (:
Hi, I was going to ask how to make them softer. I can tell you how to make them really hard but not sure I know the answer exactly. The only thing I can think of is I whipped the butter by hand and not for as long as directed. I only cooked them for 9 mins before they started to burn. They are very hard. The first time I made them they were softer. So I am asking the opposite. How do you make them soft?
Hi Teresa, If you’re looking for a softer cookie, I’d use this recipe. I developed them to be softer and chewier. Hope you enjoy!