Gingerdoodles are the best of what gingerbread and snickerdoodles have to offer. These scrumptious treats combine the warm spices of gingerbread with the soft and chewy texture of snickerdoodles, making them the perfect addition to your holiday cookie tray and making great gifts!
With the warm flavors of ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and molasses, these cookies are a great winter treat.
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These gingerdoodles cookies are perfect for Christmas and the cooler time of year, but can be enjoyed all through the year because if you like gingerbread and snickerdoodles, these may just become some of your favorite cookies!
This recipe was inspired by my Brown Butter Sugar Cookies, a deliciously chewy cookie made with browned butter.
Ingredients in Gingerdoodles
- unsalted butter, softened
- light brown sugar
- unsulphured molasses
- egg
- vanilla extract
- all purpose flour
- baking soda
- ground cinnamon
- ground ginger
- ground cloves
- ground nutmeg
Instructions for Making Gingerdoodles
To make a batch of delicious gingerdoodles, you'll first need to gather your ingredients and prepare your oven.
Begin by preheating your oven to 350°F and lining your baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the softened butter and brown sugar together on low speed. Keep mixing until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
Next, beat in the molasses, vanilla extract, and lastly, the egg and beat until well combined.
Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl; all purpose flour, baking soda ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg.
Gradually add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients mixture until a soft dough forms.
Cover and chill the dough for 20 to 30 minutes to create puffy soft cookies.
Combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon to make the cinnamon sugar mixture in a small bowl to roll the cookie dough balls in when they are ready.
Once the dough is ready, shape it into 1 ½ inch balls or use a #40 cookie scoop to easily portion the dough. Roll the cookie dough balls into the cinnamon sugar mixture before placing them onto a lined cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
Bake the gingerdoodles in the preheated oven for about 9-11 minutes, or until you see the edges starting to brown slightly.
Once the cookies are done baking, remove them from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
By following this easy recipe, you'll be able to enjoy these soft and chewy gingerdoodles with incredible flavor.
Hint: Mixing the ingredients until just combined and keeping an eye on the bake time will produce a soft ginger cookie.
Substitutions
When baking gingerdoodles, you may find that you need to make some substitutions. For instance, if you don't have access to dark molasses, you can replace it with maple syrup or golden syrup. It will change the overall flavor of these chewy gingerdoodle cookies.
You can substitute the unsalted butter for salted butter if that's what you have on hand, or you can use a plant-based alternative at room temperature.
This recipe calls for brown sugar but you can use granulated sugar if you would like. The brown sugar offers a more caramel-like flavor and creates a chewier texture, while granulated sugar provides a more more crispy texture and no molasses flavor.
If you need to replace the all-purpose flour, you can use gluten free flour. If making gluten free gingerdoodles, make sure to use a gluten-free flour that is measure for measure for easy conversion when switching flours.
Variations in Gingerdoodles Cookies
When it comes to gingerdoodles cookies, there are numerous variations you can try to make a version to make this your new favorite cookie.
Ginger is an important spice in this recipe and you can experiment with it to determine how much flavor you want your ginger cookies to have. The other spices can be changed as well to fit the flavor profile of these delicious holiday cookies to your liking.
Storing Gingerdoodle Cookies
These cookies are a great make-ahead recipe and make excellent Christmas cookies. There are a few options for storing these cookies. They can be stored at room temperature or stored in the freezer for long-term storage.
To store gingerdoodles short term, it's important to let them cool completely before placing them in an airtight container. This will prevent the cookies from collecting condensation and becoming soggy. The cookies will last for up to 1 week at room temperature when stored correctly.
To freeze gingerdoodles, allow the cookies to cool completely before transferring them to a freezer safe bag and storing them in an airtight container. These gingerbread snickerdoodles will last for 3 months in the freezer when stored properly. When you're ready to enjoy them, simply let them thaw at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
The dough for these cookies can also be frozen for up to 3 months as well. To freeze the dough, use a cookie scoop to portion the dough as the recipe states and roll the balls in the cinnamon sugar coating before placing them in single layers in a freezer-safe bag. When ready to bake, place the frozen cookie dough balls on the counter while the oven preheats and bake according to the recipe directions.
The cozy flavors in these cookies are the perfect cross between a soft gingerbread cookie and soft snickerdoodles. They come out beautiful and are great for a cookie exchange - I made this last year and everyone loved them!
What's Needed to Make Cookies
Having convenient cookie-baking tools on hand will make the process easier.
- Electric Mixer - A hand mixer with a large bowl or a stand mixer works great for this recipe, it blends the ingredients together well without overbeating at medium speed.
- Measuring Cups and Spoons - It's important to use measuring cups and spoons to accurately measure your spices and other ingredients.
- Mixing Bowls - Two mixing bowls will be necessary for this recipe - one for wet ingredients and one for dry ingredients. Mixing bowls with grips on the bottom is a great feature to keep the bowls in place when beating with a hand mixer. You will also need a shallow bowl for rolling the cookie dough balls in the cinnamon sugar mixture before baking.
- Cookie Scoop - Cookie scoops are great kitchen tools for portioning out cookie dough and for getting the same-sized cookies. A #40 cookie scoop is used in this recipe.
- Parchment Paper - Parchment paper is great to use for easy clean up and for even baking.
- Cookie Sheets - I prefer light-colored baking sheets so that the bottoms of the cookies brown evenly and the cookies bake more evenly overall.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you make chewy gingerdoodle cookies?
The key to chewy gingerdoodles is not to overbake the cookies. Baking them for about 9 minutes will allow the edges to lightly brown. By removing them from the oven before they bake longer will allow them to cook slowly as they cool down.
Do you have to roll gingerdoodles in sugar?
You don't have to roll these cookies in a cinnamon sugar coating but that is part of what makes snickerdoodles special. You can omit the cinnamon sugar coating without altering the outcome of the cookie other than the sugary coating.
Easy Christmas Cookie Recipes
Christmas is a time for indulgence, and there is no better way to satisfy your sweet tooth than with some delicious cookies. Besides these delicious gingerdoodle cookies, there are plenty of options to choose from.
One of the most popular cookies during the holiday season is the classic sugar cookie. These cookies are easy to make and can be decorated in a variety of ways, making them a great option for both kids and adults.
Another popular cookie recipe for Christmas is chewy gingerbread cookies. These cookies are coated with powdered sugar making them extra festive for the holiday season. Molasses cookies are also a great addition to holiday cookie trays, as are snickerdoodle cookies.
Top Tip
Blending the ingredients together just until combined will produce light and chewy results, as will chilling the dough for 30 minutes before baking.
Related
📖 Recipe
Gingerdoodles
Gingerdoodles are the best of what gingerbread and snickerdoodles have to offer. These scrumptious treats combine the warm spices of gingerbread with the soft and chewy texture of snickerdoodles, making them the perfect addition to your holiday cookie tray and making great gifts!
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- ¼ cup unsulphured molasses
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
Cinnamon Sugar Mixture
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line your baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the softened butter and brown sugar together on low speed.
- Next, beat the molasses, vanilla extract, and egg until combined.
- Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl: all-purpose flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the mixture of wet ingredients until a soft dough forms.
- Cover and chill the dough for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon to make the cinnamon sugar mixture in a small bowl.
- Once the dough is ready, shape it into 1 ½ inch balls or use a #40 cookie scoop to easily portion the dough.
- Roll the cookie dough balls in to the cinnamon sugar mixture before placing them onto a lined cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
- Bake the gingerdoodles in the preheated oven for about 9-11 minutes or until the edges start to brown slightly.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Hint: Mixing the ingredients until just combined and keeping an eye on the bake time will produce a soft ginger cookie.
Raw cookie dough can be frozen for up to 3 months as well as the baked cookies. Allow the cookies to cool completely before freezing.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
27Serving Size:
1 cookieAmount Per Serving: Calories: 108Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 16mgSodium: 100mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 0gSugar: 9gProtein: 1g
Nutrition calculation is a rough estimate and can vary depending on the cooking technique and the exact ingredients used. For informational purposes only.
Dana is an experienced recipe creator who crafts easy and delicious recipes for all levels of home cooks.
Her recipes range from classic comfort foods to healthy and nutritious meals, and she is always on the lookout for new and exciting ways to bring flavor and variety to the table.
Sue says
Hi Dana,
I was getting ready to make the Gingerdoodles and am feeling a little perplexed. Your directions state “In large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the softened butter and BOTH sugars.” I only see brown sugar listed in the ingredients. Then in step 7 you say to “combine the granulated sugar and cinnamon to make the cinnamon sugar mixture”. I don’t see the amounts listed in the ingredient list either.
I was excited to see this recipe because I love snickerdoodles and molasses cookies and thought this would be a great combination. I’m afraid to make them since those two directions don’t make sense to me. Can you clarify? Thanks!
Dana says
Hi Sue! The recipe is correct, my fingers just got happy and typed both sugars - my apologies! I added the cinnamon sugar mixture as well to the recipe. It is 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon.