When I walk into a bakery, the first thing I look for are ginger molasses cookies. I have a thing for ginger and molasses. I don’t just like them, I lliiikkee them. It is pretty serious. For years I have searched and searched for a ginger molasses cookie that has the right flavor balance, is a little crunchy along the edges, but chewy middle. This is surprisingly hard to find.
So I finally found THE cookie. It was in Maine. Maybe 5 years ago. It was at one of my family’s favorite restaurant/general stores*. That summer, every time my mom and I went there for breakfast, we left with a cookie… or 7. We also bugged the owners, every single time we were there, for the recipe. Of course, they never shared it with us. That would have been too easy. And possibly a boring story.
After an entire summer of borderline harassing the owners, we left Maine 5lbs heavier and recipe-less. We spent the entire winter dreaming of the cookies and speculating about the ingredients.
When summer showed up again, and we made our way to Maine, the first thing we did was stop in for some cookies, duh. We got there, no cookies in sight. Bummer, but maybe next time. We go back a few days later. Nada. This continues all summer. So we ask the owners where are those amazing ginger molasses cookies that they had last summer?? They look at us like we are nuts. They say they have never had ginger molasses cookies. Wait. WHAT?!?Did they ever exist? Was it all a dream?
Needless to say, we are still baffled by the case of the ghost cookies. I guess we will never know if they were real or just a figment of our imagination. Obviously, I have tried countless recipes looking for something similar. This is the closest I have come.
Although these are not those magical cookies, they are pretty damn good. A little crispy around the edges, chewy and perfect in the middle. Just delicious. I cannot say enough good things. Also, did I mention easy? They are super quick and easy to whip up. Which just adds to their amazingness.
So now, in honor of the mysterious ghost cookies, you have to go make these. You won’t regret it, I promise!
*Can we talk about how awesome restaurant/general stores are?! Need eggs? They got em. Ice cream? Duh. Beer? You got it. Gas? Oh, yea. Awesome breakfast? You betcha. Talk about a one stop shop!
Ginger Molasses Cookies
Equipment
- Stand or Hand Mixer
- Baking Sheet
- Medium Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Unsalted Butter at room temp
- 1 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Egg at room temp
- ¼ cup Molasses
- 2¼ cup All-Purpose Flour
- 2 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- ¾ tsp Ground Cinnamon
- ¼ tsp Ground Cloves
- ¼ tsp Salt
- Extra Sugar to roll dough
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy
- Beat in egg and molasses to butter mixture.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt.
- Gradually add dry mixture to wet. Mix until just combined.
- Roll dough into 2-3 inch balls and roll each one in sugar. This gives them a little extra crunch on the outside without compromising chewiness.
- Bake for about 10-12 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned.
- Remove and let cool, then dive in! ***
