This Molasses Cookies recipe belongs in your recipe box. It is after all one of the most treasured of old fashioned Christmas cookies.
Molasses Cookies an Old Fashioned Christmas Cookie
As a child, I remember my mother making a lot of different old fashioned Christmas cookies and candies. My parents have always had a fondness for both antiques and local history. It sort of made sense that I would come home from school to a mother covered in flour, with an old cookbook in hand making batches of cookies.
This recipe for Old Fashioned Molasses Cookies is just the sort of thing she would make, especially since it doesn't call for butter. My parents had a tight budget, so if you ran out of something you made due, until your shopping trip. We lived in a rural area & it took a bit of time and gas to get to the grocery store.
The molasses cookies are crisp, akin to a ginger snap, but not a s pungent.
How to Make Molasses Cookies
The full printable Molasses Cookies recipe can be found below.
Ingredients You Need
- 1 egg large
- ⅔ cup oil
- 1 cup sugar
- ⅓ cup molasses unsulphered
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 ¼ cups flour unbleached , but all-purpose is fine
- sugar and cinnamon for rolling
Ingredient note: Most light oils are fine for these cookies. Light or classic olive oil (NOT extra virgin), avocado oil, vegetable, canola, or safflower. Sea salt is an equal substitute for the Kosher, if using iodized table salt you will use less (closer to ¼ tsp).
Method
- Start by preheating your oven to 350 degrees and lining baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner for easy clean up. You can bake right on an ungreased cookie sheet if you prefer.
- Next whisk together the egg, sugar and oil.
- Then mix in the molasses, spices, salt and baking soda. Of course we need lots of spices, to team up with the molasses and bring an authentic old fashioned flavor to the cookies.
- Now add your four, mix well. You will end out with a stiff dough. The cookie dough is made stiff, so it can easily be rolled into balls.
- Sprinkle your counter or a large shallow bowl with white sugar and cinnamon. Then shape the cookie by rolling one tablespoon sized balls of the dough on the sugar.
- Arrange the molasses cookie dough balls on liner or directly on baking sheets. They will flatten out and develop the traditional crinkled molasses cookie appearance while baking and cooling.
More Old Fashioned Christmas Cookies!
- Cherry Almond Cookies
- Snowball Cookies Recipe
- Double Chocolate Shortbread Cookies Recipe
- Old Fashioned Sour Cream Cookies
- Lemon Cream Cheese Spritz Cookies
- Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
Old Fashioned Molasses Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- large baking sheets
- stand mixer (optional)
- silicone baking sheet liner or parchment paper (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 egg large
- ⅔ cup oil
- 1 cup sugar
- ⅓ cup molasses unsulphered
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 2 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 ¼ cups flour unbleached , but all-purpose is fine
- sugar and cinnamon for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Beat egg in a large mixing bowl, then whisk in oil & sugar.
- Add the molasses, spices, salt and baking soda, mix well.
- Now, add the flour and mix well. It will make a stiff dough.
- Sprinkle a rolling surface with sugar and a little cinnamon (use a shallow bowl if you prefer)
- Roll 1 tablespoon size scoops of the dough into balls and coat in the cinnamon sugar.
- Place on ungreased baking sheet, approximately 3" apart.
- Bake 12-13 minutes, until golden brown and crinkled on top.
- Cool and serve.
Pennywise Cook says
These look amazing! I pretty much use McCormick for everything. They are always affordable and always have what I'm looking for. Thanks for the recipe! 🙂
Shop with Me Mama (Kim) says
Wow! These look SO delicious!! I love your pictures too, so clear and make my mouth water!
rachel says
This is great. Anything with molasses reminds me of my grandpa (who used to pour it on EVERYTHING!) 🙂
Liz Mays says
One of my favorite kinds of cookies! You have me dying to get into the kitchen and bake!
Ashley Thompson says
I love Molasses cookies! Thank so much for the recipe, I can't wait to make them myself.
Virginia @thatbaldchick says
My husband and I took our honeymoon on a dude ranch in Arizona in 2006. To this day, I remember how absolutely delicious the freshly baked molasses cookies were on our honeymoon. I've tried to make them before, and they never turned out right. I will be trying this recipe!
Sara P. (@SensiblySara) says
Those cookies look delicious! You will mostly find McCormick in my spice cabinet!
Kimberly Grabinski says
Oh wow these look incredible! I am definitely going to make this for the holidays.
Stephanie says
These are among our favorite cookies for Christmas.
Crystal says
Yum, those cookies look so delicious. I'm a sucker for McCormick cinnamon all year round, but it is one of my favorites for the holidays.
Jennifer H says
I've ever tried this style of cookie before. They turned out wonderful!
Lynsey says
Gosh those are gorgeous! I used to do cookie swaps years ago at Christmas - I couldnt ever get cookies to LOOK that pretty lol Those pictures are amazing.
Valerie Remy-Milora says
OOOOOH those look sooo delicious! I love molasses and old fashioned cookies and ginger snaps... I grew up in Paris France but visited my parents in El Paso, Texas every other summer and my grandma was always in the kitchen cooking up something fantastic or another and her kitchen was always well stocked with McCormick spices... and now mine is as well 🙂
Melissa says
Can you believe I've never had a Molasses Cookie? Those look amazing.
Amy @GrinningCheektoCheek says
Those look perfect! I don't think I've ever had a Molasses cookie - but I'll have to give this a try!
Raijean says
Wow, my grandmother used to make these cookies... I need to try this recipe.
Audrey at Barking Mad! says
I love molasses cookies, and you have seriously set the bar pretty high! These are gorgeous!
heather @french press says
one of our holiday favorites
Miz Helen says
I remember having a cookie very much like this, it looks sooooo good, can't wait to put these cookies in my cookie jar. Thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday and have a great day.
Come Back Soon,
Miz Helen
Jen says
Absolutely delicious...thanks for sharing. I loved them, have to double recipe, they disappeared so fast 😀
Debra says
Just made a batch of these. I didn't roll and sugar cinnamon them though so they didn't crinkle. Dropped them by tbsp. Can't taste the spice much so I think I'll double up on the spice next batch.. they are tasty but need alittle more oomph. Oh... and I used marg instead of oil.
Oma says
These are amazing. My husband says taste like hi mom use to make
SH says
I have made a lot of molasses cookies in my time, but these are the best I have ever had.
Thank you for sharing
Jeanette Lemcool says
I just made these! Super GOOD! My husband loves them! The only tweek I made was to add a sprinkle of clove....other than that, I followed the recipe. They are wonderful! So flavorful!!!
Kirsten Farette says
Best molasses cookies we've ever made!