Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: Gingerbread + chocolate = bliss!
Texture: These cookies are perfectly chewy, gooey, and decadent with a slight crunch from the sugar coating.
Ease: There’s more prep work involved with this recipe – but it’s worth every second, promise!
Pros: My all-time favorite Christmas cookie. It isn’t December without these cookies.
Cons: No immediate gratification here unless you freeze the dough balls for baking off whenever the craving hits (which I definitely do).
Would I make this again? I’ve been making this recipe every Christmas for about a decade now!
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Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies are the ULTIMATE Christmas cookie recipe!
They’re bursting with flavor, absolutely loaded with gooey chunks of chocolate, and are ultra soft and chewy throughout.
Plus, the sugar coating makes these Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies sparkly and crunchy and so beautifully Christmassy.
They’re perfect for gifting or any cookie exchanges – your family/friends/co-workers will LOVE these.
Sadly I cannot claim this recipe’s genius as my own creation. I adapted it from Martha Stewart’s Cookies cookbook, one of the first baking cookbooks I ever owned! I first made and shared this recipe in 2009 and I’ve made it every holiday season since.
I hope you love these fabulous cookies as much as I do!
How to Make Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Tips for SOFT and CHEWY Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
- Be sure to measure your flour correctly by weighing it with a digital scale. If you don’t have one, use the spoon and level method (learn more about that here) to avoid creating cakey, dense, or tough cookies that don’t spread.
- Measuring your dry ingredients accurately is one of the best ways to improve your baking.
- If you don’t measure your flour correctly, you could end up with crumbly dough and dry, hard cookies lacking in flavor.
The Best Baking Pans for Cookies
I ALWAYS use an unlined aluminum half-sheet pan, like this one, for baking cookies. Additionally, I always use parchment paper for baking cookies. Never use dark-colored pans to bake cookies, as they tend to overly brown or even burn the bottoms of the cookies. Learn more about that here.
What Can I Use Instead of Molasses?
If you cannot get molasses where you live, you can try substituting honey or dark corn syrup, though the results will NOT be exactly the same. Need more baking substitution ideas? Check out my Ultimate Guide to Baking Substitutions.
Do I Have to Use Fresh Ginger?
Yes! I promise it’s seriously worth the extra effort, and it gives these cookies the most incredible taste and aroma.
The Spices in Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Check your spices to ensure they’re not expired. Even if they’re not expired, give them a sniff and make sure they’re still very aromatic. Older spices carry less flavor; fresh spices will carry a LOT more flavor. So, just be aware of that and feel free to adjust accordingly.
The Chocolate Chunks
I recommend purchasing a bar of baking chocolate and chopping it up, for the most delicious, ooey-gooey chocolate chunks throughout the cookies. You can use prepackaged chocolate chunks if you prefer.
Do I Need to Chill Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookie Dough?
This Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies dough must be chilled for at least a couple of hours, but overnight is even better. Here’s why:
- Chilling cookie dough is very similar to marinating meat – things just get so much better!
- The texture becomes chewier and thicker and the flavor intensifies.
- If you don’t have time, no worries. You can bake the dough off as soon as it’s firm enough to portion out (about 2 hours).
How to Store Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Store Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. The cookies are gooey when warm, but become more chewy as they cool.
More Christmas Dessert Recipes:
- Easy Cut Out Sugar Cookies
- Christmas Brownies
- Turtle Thumbprint Cookies
- Loaded Peanut Butter Christmas Cookie Bars
- Snickerdoodle Recipe
- Peppermint Mocha Bundt Cake
More Gingerbread Desserts:
- Gingerbread White Chocolate Blondies
- Gingerbread Brownies
- Gingerbread Sheet Cake
- Gingerbread Cookie Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Crispy Gingersnaps
Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon (200 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 stick (113 grams) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated, peeled ginger
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup (170 grams) unsulfured molasses
- 8 ounces (227 grams) semi-sweet chocolate, cut into small chunks
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and cocoa. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and fresh ginger on medium speed until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add brown sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 to 3 minutes. Add the molasses and beat until combined.
- On low speed, gradually add in the flour mixture. Stir in the chocolate chunks until just combined. Cover with plastic and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Using a medium spring-loaded cookie scoop, scoop the dough into 1 1/2-tablespoon balls and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Roll each ball in the granulated sugar.
- Bake until surfaces just begin to crack, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
- Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Recipe Notes
This post was originally published in 2009 and has been updated with recipe improvements, additional baking tips, and a new video.
Reader Chewy Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies Photos
If you make this recipe and would like to have it featured, post it to Instagram, tag me, and use the hashtag #handletheheat!
Check out lovely HTH reader Alikane’s beautiful cookies:
Made numerous times, my all time favourite cookies ever! I use treacle instead of molasses and they turn out perfect. I keep the dough in the freezer and make small batches so that I always have fresh warm cookies.
So happy to hear that, Georgia!!
10/10!
Texture, flavour, appearance, and still great after being frozen for over a month!
I love ginger. I love chocolate. I love these cookies!
I made a double batch and experimented with two sizes, (8min for 1tbsp) and also added a bit of dried ginger powder to the sugar coating.
Thanks!!
Great addition! Thanks for the comment, so happy you love this recipe!
So yummy! Very gingery and spicy, but I love it! I rolled them in sugar plus greens me red sprinkles and they look so Christmasy! I didn’t follow the instructions and left the cookies in the oven longer than specified because they still looked so soft. But after they cooled, they were too crunchy, so be sure to follow Tessa’s instructions and only bake them for 10-12 min.
What can i use instead of molasses?
(I think probably honey would work but my 9mo may want a small bite and i won’t be able to offer him)
What do molasses give to the recipe?
It’s not an ingredient i can easily find in Greece. We have petimezi though which is a syrup made from boiled grape juice.
The results won’t be exactly the same, but you can try honey or dark corn syrup instead!
The recipe calls for 1/2 cup or 170 grams of unsulfered molasses. Based on the information on my molasses bottle (1 TBL = 15 grams), wouldn’t half cup would be 120 grams? Please advise!
Can this dough be frozen? Refrigerate? How long for each
Hi Nella, Yes! Check out my full guide on freezing cookie dough here.
Absolutely INCREDIBLE. Do not try faking this recipe without using fresh ginger and freshly grated nutmeg. The marriage of chocolate and ginger is perfect and ever lasting till death (or till you eat them). Make these and you will be a Christmas kitchen Goddess:-).
I’m so happy you loved these cookies, Cindy!
Wow! I can’t resist such a delicious cookies. Sure I will try them.
Great recipe! Followed it to the letter except I used gluten-free flour. Turned out as described but – they could have used more chocolate to up the goo factor, ha!
Delicious! I was very hesitant to make this recipe after seeing all the comments on the original recipe on Martha Stewart’s website, specifically the comments about the quantity of molasses, but I decided to try the recipe as is, at least for the first time, and they turned out great! I added chopped candied ginger after tasting the batter because I really wanted them to be extra ginger-y. I should’ve probably decreased the sugar a bit, because they’re a tad too sweet with the chocolate + candied ginger, so I’ll keep that in mind next time and might up the fresh ginger instead of adding candied ginger. Otherwise, a great recipe that I will definitely make again!
I made these today for my company picnic. Prizes are awarded for best cookie. I added dark chocolate covered crystalized ginger pieces to the mix and topped with a nice chunk of crystalized ginger….hoping I take home the grand prize again this year!