Tessa's Recipe Rundown
Taste: The perfect balance of sweetness and spice.
Texture: Thin and crispy, these cookies break in half cleanly and have a satisfying crunch.
Ease: Super simple 30-minute recipe. No chilling required.
Pros: The perfect easy, festive addition to any Christmas cookie box.
Cons: None.
Would I make this again? I make these cookies every holiday season!
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These Crispy Gingersnaps Cookies are the perfect classic, crispy gingersnap cookie.
Typically, I prefer a chewy cookie, but every once in a while, I crave that satisfying crunch and crispness of something sweet.
So, I tweaked my Chewy Gingersnap recipe (which is included in my cookbook – available on Amazon!) to make them thin and oh-so-satisfyingly crunchy.
These cookies are perfectly spice-forward, with that beautiful snap. Plus, they look so pretty next to beautifully iced Cut-Out Sugar Cookies and Christmas Brownies on your Christmas dessert table!
These cookies have become one of my most popular cookie recipes ever, with hundreds of wonderful reviews like this comment from reader El below:
Reader Love
My husband loved these cookies. He is a grumpy old man and doesn’t praise much of anything, so when he said, “These are the best cookies I have ever tasted!” I figured that was a super rubber stamp of approval. Great cookie!
–
Enjoy on a cozy day with a glass of milk or a cup of coffee or tea.
Sprinkle of Science
How to Make Thin & Crispy Gingersnaps
What are Gingersnaps?
Gingersnaps are just what they sound like: a cookie flavored with ginger, plus other spices that we’ll talk more about below. They are typically crunchy or have a brittle texture, thus the “snap”. The spiciness of the ginger and richness of the molasses pair perfectly with coffee, tea, hot cocoa, or mulled wine.
A year-round favorite all over the world, Gingersnaps are particularly popular to welcome in the fall and winter holiday seasons. Perfectly spiced, these cookies have the most beautiful cracked, sugary tops. I love these cookies in the fall, when the temperatures are slowly beginning to drop. They’re delicious with a glass of cold milk or even lemonade – and even better when used in place of graham crackers for over-the-top Gingersnap S’mores or to make ice cream sandwiches!
What Makes Cookies Crispy and Crackled?
- A heavy amount of baking soda interacts with the molasses in this recipe to encourage spread.
- This allows cracks in the dough to develop where moisture escapes, creating that beautiful crackled appearance and crunchy texture.
- Ensure your baking soda is fresh and active – learn how to test leavening agents for freshness here.
- There’s also much more granulated sugar than brown sugar in this recipe. White sugar encourages more spread and has less moisture to make for a crisper cookie.
- Lastly, a longer baking time ensures a crunchy texture all the way through the center of these cookies.
Why Roll the Dough in Sugar?
Rolling the cookie dough balls in sugar contributes to the overall texture of the cookies as well as the cracky tops. It helps to draw moisture out from the surface of the cookies while they bake, though the majority of the “crackliness” comes from the baking soda and molasses.
Feel free to skip this step if preferred, but your cookies won’t be quite as crisp and won’t look as pretty.
Measure Your Flour Correctly to Ensure Gingersnaps are Crispy!
- To avoid ending up with Gingersnaps that are thick, hard, or dense instead of perfectly crispy, make sure to measure your flour accurately with a digital kitchen scale.
- It’s so easy to accidentally add too much flour if you’re measuring by using cups.
- If you don’t have a scale, use the spoon and level method to measure.
- Just take a look at what a difference too much flour can make:
How to Make Flavorful Gingersnaps
- Make sure your spices, especially the ground ginger, are fresh and of high quality.
- If your spices no longer smell very aromatic, toss them and purchase new spices.
- The fresher the spice, the more flavorful it’ll be.
- While I haven’t tried it, you can also experiment with crystallized ginger, but expect your cookies to be a little more sugary.
- If you want more spice in your gingersnaps, add a tablespoon or two of freshly grated ginger.
- You can also add a pinch of cayenne pepper or a little black pepper.
- In addition to the spices, the molasses used is also important. More on this just below.
The Molasses
Make sure to use unsulphured molasses. Never use blackstrap molasses in baking, it’s extremely bitter. Brer Rabbit or Grandma’s in their ‘mild’ or ‘original’ flavors tend to work best.
Can I Make these Cookies Smaller?
Sure! Use a small 1 tablespoon-sized cookie scoop for small Gingersnap Cookies and reduce the bake time by a couple minutes.
Can I Double This Recipe?
Yes! Simply double all ingredients to yield about 56 medium-sized cookies. No other modifications needed.
Can I Use This Recipe to Make Gingerbread Men?
No – this recipe was written to be a simple drop-style cookie, so it won’t hold its shape well when rolled out and shaped using cookie cutters. Instead, try my Gingerbread Cookies Recipe!
How to Store Homemade Gingersnaps
Store baked, cooled Gingersnaps in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days.
How to Freeze Gingersnap Cookies
Store baked, cooled Gingersnap Cookies in the freezer inside an airtight container for up to 1 month.
Alternatively, portion out the balls of cookie dough, roll in sugar, place them on a baking sheet, and freeze for 1 hour or until solid. Transfer to an airtight container and store in the freezer for up to 2 months. Bake cookies from frozen, reducing the temperature to 325°F and adding a couple minutes to the baking time. Learn more about freezing cookie dough here.
More Christmas Cookie Recipes:
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar, plus 1/2 cup (100 grams) for rolling
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) lightly packed light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup (113 grams) unsulphured molasses (NOT blackstrap)*
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 teaspoons baking soda**
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 1/4 cups (286 grams) all-purpose flour,
measured correctly
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, use an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment to beat the butter, 3/4 cup granulated sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the molasses and egg and beat until combined. Add in the salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and flour, and beat until combined.
- Place the remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a shallow dish. Scoop the dough into 1 1/2 tablespoon balls and roll in the sugar before placing on the baking sheet, leaving plenty of room for spread. Bake for 15 minutes or until the cookies are spread and the surface looks crackled.
- Let cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 7 days.
Notes
This post was originally published in 2020 and has been updated with additional baking tips. Photos by Ashley McLaughlin.
Good cookies but not enough Ginger. Added another teaspoon of ginger and is now an official ginger snap.
Why not blackstrap molasses?
Hi Melissa! Blackstrap molasses is just a super strong, really bitter flavor that overshadows other flavors in the cookie, so we recommend avoiding it. I hope that helps 🙂 Let us know what you think if you try this recipe!!
Easy and delicious recipe. Heard about Gingersnap cookies for the first time in a cozy mystery audiobook I am currently listening to. They turned out as a wonderful taste experience. Molasses is not available in a lot of supermarkets here in Germany, so I replaced it with honey. Will definitley bake them again. Thank you very much for sharing this winner recipe!
Finally! A gingernap recipe that “snaps” and tastes good too. A little too good, I think. I baked the cookies yesterday. They were gone by noon today. If I can just keep them away from my husband….. I added about 1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper, which gave the cookies just the right amount of heat. Thank you for not making me waste another afternoon on a recipe that does not work. These cookies are perfection.
Bought a bag of Stauffer’s ginger snaps the other day. My hubby and I ate all of them in a very short time….very short! He asked if I could make them. Found your recipe and gave them a try this morning. Really delicious! Wonderful texture and flavor…looked just like your photos. Only thing we are going to do is amp up the spices and adding cayenne pepper. I baked in three batches because of the spread and I pressed them down slightly on the cookie sheet because we wanted them really crunchy. We experimented by adding more ginger and cloves to second batch then amped up the cayenne on the third batch. Third batch was our winner because of the heat level. When I figure out on my next round of them the spice proportions, I will post it for those who want a really “spicy meatball”. Lol!
These are by far the best ginger snaps I have ever had, let alone made. They don’t last long. Even ones I put in the freezer aren’t safe! Everyone who tries them agrees and asks for the recipe.
I have found that using a scale is the best way to go. I have several food allergies, but the substitutions I have used work well. I have used 1T ground flax mixed with 3T hot water instead of the egg. I have also used both regular butter and vegan margarine and they have both turned out incredible. The vegan margarine is a little softer, so I’ve had success with adding 10-15 extra grams of flour.
I simply cannot recommend these cookies enough. You will not regret making them, I promise. Just make sure to have a plan for sharing so you don’t end up eating them all yourself! 😉
So glad to hear that you enjoyed these, even with your modifications, Matt!
My dad loves gingersnaps, but every recipe we’ve tried has been too soft/lacking in flavor, so I did a search for ultra crisp gingersnaps and stumbled upon this recipe! Even though I accidentally overlooked the molasses when scribbling the recipe down on paper (whoops! I did kinda catch my error in the sense that I thought it was weird there was no molasses, so I added a couple tablespoons). I ended up chilling them overnight and taking them out of the fridge maybe twenty minutes before baking, and they turned out SO WELL. Beautifully crisp edges, with a chewy center and the most gorgeous presentation with all those crinkles and sparkling sugar (and they were perfectly round, too)! Next time, I’ll be sure to add the proper amount of molasses, but they still tasted delicious, especially with the addition of some finely chopped crystallized ginger. My dad took just one bite and gave one of those nods that says, oh yeah 😉 This recipe is definitely a keeper and I can’t wait to make them again!
Yay, Erin!! That is so wonderful to hear! I’m so excited that you and your dad enjoyed these so much! 🙂
I made this recipe with nothing other than what is in the list o ingredients, maybe a little less ginger. The cookies are REALLY good. I’m saving this. I’ll make them again soon.
So happy to hear you loved these gingersnaps, Ron!
Made them they turned out great. Crispy and tasty, great with a coffee. I didn’t get the cracks on top though.
Being out of molasses, I used pure date syrup which turned out perfect for taste and texture but maybe changed the chemistry- hence no cracks(?)
I also added a lot of ground ginger and cloves to the mix and in the end rolled the balls in that mixture (with cinnamon) rather than sugar as the sugar on top made things overly sweet to my taste.
Overall a great recipe. Thanks! 🙂
Hi Lila! So glad you enjoyed these cookies! The date syrup may have changed the chemistry of the recipe enough to change the look of the baked cookies, but the biggest contributor to the beautiful crinkly, crackled top is baking soda! Perhaps your baking soda isn’t fresh? Tessa talks about that, and how to test for freshness, in this article here! I hope that helps 🙂
Looks delicious! I will definitely try this out some day! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Love this recipe! They came out perfect!
I wish I knew how to post a picture of them. Perfect crackling on top.
So happy to hear that! Feel free to tag #handletheheat if you’re on Instagram so Tessa can see and comment on your photos! You can also post them in our Facebook Group 🙂
This is an absolute 10 star recipe. I added a bit more ginger, and a bit heavier on clove and some nutmeg and a bit more chy pepper. But clearly a really great ginger snap!