“The Best” Soft Ginger Molasses Cookies

Remember our healthy cookies from last week? In general, we love to make desserts that are on the “light” side, even if it involves adding non-traditional items like black beans. So this holiday season, we set out to find some light / healthy cookie recipes.

Somewhere along the line, we learned a crucial lesson: sometimes, cookies aren’t meant to be healthy.

We had lots of failed cookie experiments over the past few weeks. Turns out, ripe bananas or apple sauce don’t exactly equal butter and sugar. And there’s something about the texture of a cookie that’s very hard to replicate without the magic of butter.

So while we found one “healthier” cookie we liked (and one really tasty healthy-ish dessert), we now bring to you — a cookie with white flour, butter, and sugar. Because, these are “real” foods too. And, if you enjoy a reasonably whole foods diet most of the time, it’s always good to have a splurge or two, especially around the holidays.

The perfect splurge for us is a ginger molasses cookie. We were terribly excited to develop this recipe, because it’s everything we’re looking for in a cookie — amped up with aromatic spices like ginger, cloves, and cinnamon, with a tinge of dark molasses, a delightfully chewy texture, and a crunch of turbinado sugar.

We did use natural turbinado cane sugar, a slightly less processed version of sugar than white sugar, which brings a nice sweetness without being overpowering. Overall, our perfect cookie.

Gluten-free or dairy-free? Check out these dessert recipes instead:
Chocolate Black Bean Cookies
Peppermint Ice Cream and Hot Cocoa “Affogato”
Gingerbread Dough Truffles
Raw Brownies
Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
Dark Chocolate Coconut Ice Cream
Easy Peppermint Stick Ice Cream
Natural Chocolate Mint Pudding

Soft Ginger Molasses Cookies

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• Author: a Couple Cooks
• Yield: 24 cookies

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Ingredients

• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon allspice
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• ¾ cup turbinado raw cane sugar
• 1 large egg
• ½ cup molasses
• Extra sugar for rolling

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Instructions

1. In a bowl, add 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground ginger, 1 teaspoon allspice, ½ teaspoon ground cloves, and ½ teaspoon kosher salt. Mix well to combine.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer (or with a hand-mixer), beat together 3/4 cup butter and 3/4 cup turbinado sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
3. Add 1 egg and 1/2 cup molasses and mix to combine. Then stir in the dry ingredients. Refrigerate the batter 1 hour.
4. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375°F.
5. Roll the dough into 1 ½” balls, then roll the balls in turbinado sugar to coat the outsides. Arrange on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake in oven until set and crinkled on top, about 10 to 12 minutes (around 10 minutes for smaller cookies and 12 for larger). Remove from the oven and cool slightly.

Notes

Adapted from Food 52