Homemade soft molasses cookies with crackly tops are super chewy and perfectly spiced. They stay seriously soft for days—if they last that long—and are always a holiday favorite.
Molasses cookies have always been my top choice because they bring me right back to my childhood. I grew up helping my mom bake them. After rolling the dough in the sugar and watching them bake through the little oven window, my sweet reward was biting into a warm cookie fresh from the oven. In addition to the nostalgia, the soft texture paired with cozy molasses puts them above any other cookie.
Sorry, chocolate chip cookies, you don’t even compare.
Molasses Cookie Comparison
Since they’re a favorite, I have plenty of gingersnap/molasses cookie recipes on my website and in my cookbooks. Most stem from the same-ish recipe with the exception of the crisp variety. Let’s review what makes each one individually and undeniably delicious:
- Soft White Chocolate Chip Molasses Cookies: Studded with white chocolate chips, these cookies are lusciously soft and mega chewy. You’ll love the combination of cozy spices and white chocolate.
- Ginger Pistachio Cookies: I add salty pistachios to my mom’s classic recipe. These ginger molasses cookies are soft, salty, sweet, and spiced. Find this recipe in Sally’s Cookie Addiction cookbook.
- Crisp Molasses Cookies: Another favorite! These are extra crisp. If you’re looking for a crunchy molasses cookie, this one’s for you—they actually snap when you break them!
- Chocolate Ginger Cookies: These are an elevated twist to our classic molasses cookies. You’ll appreciate the added cocoa flavor and how they are beautifully finished with dark chocolate and crystallized ginger.
- Gingerbread Blossoms: Think of this recipe as a new take on these holiday-favorite spiced soft molasses cookies, with the chocolatey appeal of peanut butter blossoms. They capture so many of the things we love this time of year—warm spice; cozy molasses; a soft, chewy texture; and a melty chocolate kiss in the center.
If I had to choose, I would always reach for my mom’s recipe that lives in Sally’s Baking Addiction cookbook. Nothing compares to mom’s.
What Makes These Molasses Cookies Different?
Another molasses cookie recipe? Yes! These cookies are different from my other varieties and here’s why: they’re soft, crackly, and chewier than all the rest. I used my gingerbread blossoms recipe as a starting point. My goal was to produce a flatter, chewier cookie with the same amount of softness. To accomplish this, I used the same ingredients but slightly altered the ratios:
- Flour: I reduced the flour considerably to yield a flatter cookie.
- Baking Soda: To avoid a super flat and overly greasy cookie, I increased the baking soda. Need that lift!
- Spices: Same amount. This careful blend of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves is exactly what every molasses cookie needs!
- Butter, Brown Sugar, Egg, + Vanilla: Same amounts. Brown sugar is what helps produce the softest molasses cookie ever. (In fact, it’s the first thing I changed when making my crisp molasses cookies.)
- Molasses: Make sure you’re using unsulphured or dark molasses, but do not use blackstrap because it is too intense for these cookies.
Mission accomplished. These cookies are mega chewy, mega soft, and mega crackly!
Which Molasses Do I Use?
There are varying intensities of molasses on store shelves from lighter molasses to blackstrap molasses. Go for an unsulphured or dark molasses, also sold as “robust” molasses. Blackstrap molasses can be quite intense—I don’t bake with it too often.
I’m not working with any of these companies, but I prefer Grandma’s, Brer Rabbit, or Wholesome brands. Wholesome’s organic molasses is super dark, so it will make your cookies a little darker. Look how dark it makes my spiced gingerbread loaf. As opposed to the same recipe as a cake (gingerbread cake) made with Grandma’s brand. What a difference in color!
How to Make Soft Molasses Cookies
- Whisk the dry ingredients together.
- Combine the wet ingredients together.
- Mix the wet and dry ingredients together.
- Chill cookie dough. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Roll cookie dough into balls. Use about 1 Tablespoon of dough per cookie.
- Generously roll each cookie dough ball in granulated sugar. For sparkle, of course!
- Bake. The cookies will puff up as they bake then gently sink back down. This is what creates those familiar crinkles and crackles we love. If your cookies aren’t cracking, gently bang the cookie sheet on the counter 2–3x which will help those warm cookies spread and crack on top. See recipe direction #5.
This is a wonderful make-ahead recipe because the cookies stay seriously soft for days (if they last that long!).
This recipe is part of my annual cookie countdown called Sally’s Cookie Palooza. It’s the biggest, most delicious event of the year! Browse dozens of cookie recipes over on the Sally’s Cookie Palooza page.
Seriously Soft Molasses Cookies
- Prep Time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 30-32 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These seriously soft molasses cookies are the most tender and chewy gingersnap cookies around!
Ingredients
- 2 and 1/4 cups (281g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup (12 Tbsp; 170g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup (80ml) unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Rolling
- 1/3 cup (67g) granulated or coarse sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt together until combined. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and both sugars together on high speed until creamy and combined, about 2 minutes. Add the molasses and beat until combined. Then add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- On low speed, slowly mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until combined. The cookie dough will be slightly sticky. Cover dough tightly with aluminum foil or plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour and up to 2–3 days.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Always recommended for cookies.) Set aside.
- Remove cookie dough from the refrigerator. If the cookie dough chilled longer than 2 hours, let it sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes. The cookies may not spread in the oven if the dough is that cold. Roll cookie dough, 1 Tablespoon each, into balls. Roll each in granulated sugar and arrange 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake for 11–12 minutes or until edges appear set. If the tops aren’t appearing cracked as pictured, remove the baking sheet from the oven and gently bang it on the counter 2–3x. This will help those warm cookies spread out and crack on top. Return to the oven for 1 additional minute.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Cookies will stay fresh covered at room temperature for 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: You can make the cookie dough and chill it in the refrigerator for up to 2–3 days. Baked cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving. Unbaked cookie dough balls (before rolling in sugar) will freeze well for up to 3 months. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, preheat the oven, then roll in granulated sugar. Bake as directed. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Cooling Rack
- Be sure to check out my top 5 cookie baking tips AND these are my 10 must-have cookie baking tools.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Quick question. How do you get them to come out flatter ? I just made these but mine are puffy and didn’t flatten out . But they are delicious:)
Hi Chrissy! Too much flour in the dough will make them thicker. How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
SOOOOOOO good!!!
This recipe is a serious keeper. I made them for the holidays last year and my coworkers demolished them. Even for myself, I’m not normally a “soft cookie” person, but these have such a divine texture I didn’t feel the need to add to the baking time to get them crunchy. This year I’ve altered the spice blend to make them chai spiced. You can also play around with rolling them in different sugars. I’ve found that turbinado sugar enhances the molasses flavor and gives a nice crunchy exterior with a soft interior!
Sally & Team,
Any advice on how to modify using melted butter? I don’t have a mixer at all, and thought using melted butter would be easier than wearing my arm out trying to cream the butter and sugar by hand . Thanks!
Hi Kelly! It would take some testing to modify this recipe to use melted butter. It may be best to search for a recipe that uses melted butter instead, but let us know if you try anything here!
Trina,
So, I followed Sally’s recipe with these modifications: I melted 12 TBS butter, used 100g dark brown sugar, 35g granulated. I used 3 tsp ginger, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp cloves/nutmeg each. I used 1 egg yolk. The dough was soft, so it is in the fridge right now. I will let you know how it turns out!! I’ll tag SBA on IG! Thanks for the reply!
Hi,
Quick question.
Do I have to roll them in sugar? I planned on leaving plain and adding icing.
Thanks!
Hi ADD, you can definitely leave them plain and add icing if desired.
You’re recipes are the best when ever I’m going to try a new cookie i look at your website thanks for sharing your recipes
Made these today, excellent cookie. And signed up for your newsletter. Thank you
I have made these every Christmas since finding this recipe and they are always a favorite. Thanks for another great recipe!
These are delicious! Can you make them into larger cookies?
Hi Emily, you can certainly try making these as larger cookies. Bake time will vary. Hope you enjoy them!
Made these for the first time last year and I was blown away with the amazing molasses flavor. I adore how these make the kitchen smell like (in my mind) traditional Christmas!
These will be my first batch of Christmas cookies for this year, as I’m trying to plan ahead and will be freezing the balls after they chill in the fridge for the hour or so.
This is my favorite molasses cookie recipe. They turn out perfect every time. It’s October and these are the perfect fall cookie!!
These should be named Seriously Addicting! Best cookies ever- people beg me to make more!
With this Molasses cookie recipe dip one end in melted white chocolate?
Hi Cynthia, these should be just fine to dip in white chocolate. Enjoy!
This recipe is exactly what I was looking for – soft, chewy, spicy! The only thing I did differently was to roll the dough balls in coarse sugar which gave the cookie an added crunch. Delicious!
I tried another molasses cookie recipe and my cookies turned out flat and no cracks. Recipe did not call for chilling dough. Could that be the cause? Also called for just 1 tsp baking soda. I am going to try your recipe, but I don’t want to be disappointed again.
Hi Denise, it’s hard to speak for other recipes that we haven’t tested ourselves, but the cracks and crinkles appear in the cookies after the cookies rise up in the oven, and then fall back down. Tapping the baking sheet on the counter can help too if you’re not seeing the cracks. Let us know if you give these a try!
I LOVE Molasses cookies and this recipe came out Perfect!!! Thank you!
I love this recipe. Has anyone ever used cookie cutters with it? I might need to decrease the spreading though…
Can you explain why my cookies stayed domed and circular instead of going flat? I followed your recipe to a T and have never failed with one of yours before.
Hi Emily, this is usually the case when there is too much flour or other dry ingredient soaking up all the moisture from the dough. Did you scoop the flour, or did you spoon and level it? Spooning and leveling or weighing the flour is ideal.
Thank you Sally and team. I adore your recipes. I’ll try again!
Hey Sally! I have a question. If I don’t have 1-2 or 3 days to let it sit, would I be able to only put it in for a few hours?
Hi Leah, the dough needs to chill for at least 1 hour, but you can bake them off at any point after that.
Curious why to not use blackstrap molasses? Also, does it work to scoop the cookies and then chill them, so I am not struggling with cold dough for scooping? Thanks!
Hi Suzy, some people find that the flavor of blackstrap molasses is too strong in these cookies, but you can use it if that’s all you can find. We recommend chilling the dough before scooping because the dough is too soft to form into balls before chilling, but you can certainly try it if scooping cold dough is difficult for you. Enjoy the cookies!
This recipe is amazing! I didn’t have enough molasses to make 1/3 of a cup, so I added a tiny bit of maple syrup to make up for it and it still turned out delicious. I also added pumpkin spice chocolate chips for a touch of autumnal flavor and the dough and finished cookies got along with the chips very well, no worries about the add-in. The cookies did not spread out as much as pictured in the article, but that’s probably because my oven runs a bit cold. Flavor, texture, and taste are 10/10, my new favorite molasses cookie recipe.
Wow, these cookies are amazing, definitely our favorite cookie recipe by far. Every time we make them we can’t stop eating them! We use vegan butter instead of dairy butter and they come out perfectly every time. Thank you, Sally!
This recipe is so great!!! I’ve never made molasses cookies but they turned out perfect!! Will def make again! Thank you as always for another great recipe!!!
I made these cookies recently. They were amazing! I will definitely be making this recipe again.
Wow, these are amazing. I’ve had eight already and all the people I’ve shared them with have loved them. I’ll be making these again for sure.
These cookies are so great. reduced the sugar a bit and they still turned out marvelous. I love them. They will be my forever go to! Thank you so much!
This soft molasses cookie recipe is a favorite of mine. I just made it again but realized I forgot the egg. I added it at the end and the cookies baked up chewier than before and just as soft. The texture is amazing!
I can’t get these cookies to flatten out and crack on the top. I’ve done them twice. Once using the cups . Measurement . . 2nd time using the weight. No go. What an I doing wrong?
Hi Renee, When cookies aren’t spreading, it means that there’s too much dry ingredient (flour) soaking up all the liquid. Make sure you are properly measuring your flour. When measuring flour, use the spoon & level method, or weigh it (which it sounds like you tried). If you’re in the middle of baking a batch and the cookies still aren’t spreading, remove them from the oven, and bang the tray on the counter 2-3 times before returning them to the oven. (This is what I do when I notice my cookies aren’t spreading!) You can also take your big bowl of cookie dough and microwave it for 10-15 seconds to slightly warm it up before scooping/rolling/baking. Warm cookie dough spreads more.
Help! These are my favorite cookies. I made them a half dozen times and they were perfect. But the last two times I made them, the rise in the oven but fall and spread before they are done. They still taste great, but no longer pretty .
Hi Angie! Could it be that the weather has been warmer the past couple times? If your butter is too warm to start, the cookies will spread too much. Here’s more tips for preventing cookies from spreading.
I love this recipe. My dad and I love molasses cookies, and I wanted to start making them myself and these did not disappoint. I’ve made this recipe probably 4 times already.