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.
Could you make the dough for these cookies a day ahead and keep it in the fridge overnight before baking? Excited to try these!
I made these crispy ginger snaps and I appreciate that the ingredients are simple ingredients that I always have on hand in my pantry. They are quick ,delicious and very flavorful, I did also add fresh grated ginger! My family and I loved these delicious cookies and will make them often, they are a keeper.
can these be made with ALMOND flour?
We haven’t tried that!
Tim, if you had read the whole article, Tessa said if you want a cookie with more spice, add a tablespoon or two of freshly grated ginger and a touch of cayenne pepper. I did and the cookies are awesome! Thanks Tessa!
So I’m a picky cookie person. I like thin and crispy for most part or just a little chew. I like my Snaps to be as strong as possible and have a snap in the middle. Almost a spring back when you snap them. These cookies turned out beautiful and they have good ginger taste but not quite what I desire in a ginger snap. Can you tell me how to increase the ginger level to almost a hot spicy ginger? I saw some recipes had Chile flakes or some spice like that? Anyway, thank you so much. I will definitely eat the batch. They are very good. BTW, I bought new ginger and cloves prior to making.
If you read the entire article, you will see where Tessa suggests grated fresh ginger and cayenne pepper for a spicier cookie
This recipe was amazing!! It made just under 4 dozen cookies with the size that I like them. The cookies had a crispy outer circle and a soft and chewy Center!!
This is a wonderful cookie! I used 2 heaping tablespoons of ginger and a full teaspoon of apple pie spice. I took these to a party and have been asked to make them for our next gathering.
So happy to hear they were such a hit, Linda! 🙂
I’ve made these beautifully cracked and, out of this World Scrumptious cookies a handful of times and, cannot get over how phenomenal this recipe- THANK YOU!
I do add extra butter, sugar, molasses, Cinamon and mix the ingredients by hand. And, bake them at 360 degrees bc My oven temperature seems to run a bit
Low. On top of all of goodness, they freeze Beautifully!
I so appreciate and am grateful for this recipe which, is One of the tip top cookie recipes I’ve used in 67 years.
Wow, what a compliment! Thanks so much for sharing, Christina. We’re thrilled you loved our recipe!
This is the best gingersnap recipe! Your notes explaining the importance of weighing the flour and testing the baking soda were most appreciated and helpful.
My husband loves them. He prefers a crispy cookie while I usually prefer softer cookies. He gets the calories! The one problem is that I have to keep baking them because they disappear so quickly!
I made a double batch of these for Christmas this year and they got raved about and devoured very quickly. I did have a generous hand with the ginger. I added a generous heaping TBL to a double batch. I measured the flour as carefully as I could because I don’t have a scale. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. These were even better that the ones I used to buy, and have not seen in the stores lately. You enabled me to bake people HAPPY!
So excited to hear that these were such a hit, Janet! Thanks so much for the comment!
You forgot to mention when the flour goes in.
I followed the recipe step by step, & boom no flour mentioned !!so I added it in the end.
The end result was perfection. They were delicious and I will definitely use this recipe again
Its in step 2 last ingredient added
Hi Fay! Please see the end of Step #2: “Add in the salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and flour, and beat until combined.” So you added it at the perfect time 🙂 Glad you enjoyed them!
I made these this morning and they are DELICIOUS!! We don’t eat dairy, so I substituted Country Crock Plant Butter (olive oil) for the butter at the same amount. Increased the ginger to 2 tsp (because we like ginger) and they are FANTASTIC!! I prepared them and baked them exactly as the recipe goes. My husband said, “I could eat every one of those.” So I have to hide them. 🙂 Thank you for sharing.