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You know what really tastes like Christmas? These Chewy Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies. With a mix of sweet molasses and warm ginger, these cookies have the best balance of sweet and just a little spicy – similar to my sourdough discard gingerbread loaf. What makes these cookies unique is their slightly crispy edge but a chewy center.
Easy to whip up and perfect for your holiday cookie plate, don’t wait – add these sourdough discard cookies to your baking list now. Or try my cut-out sourdough gingerbread cookies with a similar flavor profile but fun to decorate with the whole family.
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Table of Contents
- Some Important Ingredients in Chewy Ginger Molasses Sourdough Cookies
- Mixing Up Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies
- Scooping Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookie Dough
- Convection Bake for Cookies
- Let Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies Cool
- Looking for More Delicious Cookie Recipes?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies Recipe
Some Important Ingredients in Chewy Ginger Molasses Sourdough Cookies
Molasses: Regular light molasses makes these cookies chewy and flavorful. If you want a deeper/darker and more bitter molasses flavor, you can use blackstrap molasses.
Ground Ginger: I use ground ginger in this recipe that packs the delicious ginger flavor these cookies are known for.
Sourdough Discard: In order to avoid a stronger sourdough flavor, use sourdough discard that is fresh or no more than a day or two old. I always use 100% hydration sourdough discard. If your discard is very runny, you may need a little extra flour in this recipe.
Unsalted Butter: I bake a lot of cookies and always use unsalted butter. You can control the flavor much better when you use unsalted butter. Salt content varies between brands of salted butter and your baked goods may come out too salty using salted butter. If you choose to use salted butter, decrease the salt a little bit in the recipe. Use softened butter for best results.
Granulated Sugar: Granulated sugar is used to sweeten the cookies, also the cookie dough is rolled in granulated sugar before being baked.
All-Purpose Flour: These cookies are perfect with all-purpose flour. Use flour with an 11.5% protein content, not bread flour.
Mixing Up Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies
Use a stand mixer or hand mixer to whip up the room temperature butter. It should lighten a little in color as you mix. Add the granulated sugar to the butter and mix until fluffy. Crack the egg and add it to the mixture, whip until completely combined. The egg will help emulsify the butter/sugar mixture and turn it into a lightly colored whipped mixture. Scrape the sides of the bowl down as needed. Add the molasses and sourdough discard. Mix again until fluffy.
To a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon. Whisk together to combine.
Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of the stand mixer. Mix together until just combined.
Scooping Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookie Dough
Pour some granulated sugar in a small bowl. Scoop the dough into small balls, about 2 Tablespoons each. Roll each cookie dough ball in the granulated sugar, and place dough balls onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving some space between each cookie dough ball.
Convection Bake for Cookies
I use convection bake to bake almost all of my cookies. Convection bake is one of the secrets to a delicious crispy edge with a gooey or chewy middle. If you have the convection bake feature on your oven, use it! If you don’t have this feature, you have a couple of options:
- You can increase the temperature by 25 degrees (400 degrees Fahrenheit for this recipe) and preheat your oven for 15-20 minutes to get it really hot before baking the cookies.
- Bake the cookies at the convection temperature (375 degrees Fahrenheit for this recipe) and add some extra time to the bake, usually 2-3 minutes.
Whatever you do, the key to baking these cookies is to avoid over-baking them. Take the cookies out when they are still a little gooey in the center. They will keep cooking and set up to be nice and chewy as they cool.
Let Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies Cool
These cookies take a little time to set up fully on the baking sheet before you can dig into them. The cooling time is important because the middles may be just a tad gooey. This is good because it turns into a chewy middle as it finishes baking on the baking sheet. Let them cool most of the way and enjoy!
Looking for More Delicious Cookie Recipes?
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I store leftover cookies?
If you have extra cookies, let them cool completely. Then store cooled cookies in an airtight container in the freezer. Pull them out of the freezer a few hours before you want to enjoy them so they can thaw at room temperature. Enjoy!
Can I freeze the cookie dough?
Yes. This is a great cookie dough to freeze. Mix up the cookie dough. Scoop into balls and place the balls on a baking sheet. Don’t roll in granulated sugar yet. Freeze the dough balls on the cookie sheet. Once they have frozen completely, place cookie dough balls in an airtight container and freeze for 2-3 months. When ready to bake, bake from frozen or thaw in the refrigerator. Roll in granulated sugar. Add an extra minute or two to the bake time for the chilled dough.
Can these cookies undergo a long fermentation for more sourdough benefits and flavor?
Yes. Stick the dough in the refrigerator after mixing and let it sit in the refrigerator overnight or for up to a couple days. This extended fermentation time will give more of the health benefits of sourdough and will make the cookies have a more sour flavor.
My cookies baked up flat. Why?
They most likely didn’t have enough flour in them or your butter was melted. Add a little extra flour the next time you mix them up.
My cookies baked up too thick and crumbly. What happened?
The cookies probably had too much flour in them. Try reducing the amount of flour by a little bit.
Molasses Ginger Sourdough Cookies
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Equipment
- mixer or hand mixer
Ingredients
- 82 grams unsalted butter, softened, about 6 Tablespoons
- 240 grams granulated sugar, about 1 cup
- 1 large egg, about 50 grams
- 90 grams molasses, see recipe notes, about 1/4 cup
- 60 grams sourdough discard, see recipe notes
- 290 grams all-purpose flour, about 2 cups
- 12 grams baking soda, about 2 teaspoons
- 2 grams salt, about 1/2 teaspoon
- 5 grams ground ginger, about 2 teaspoons
- 3 grams ground cinnamon, about 1 teaspoon
- granulated sugar for coating
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F convection. See recipe notes for alternatives to convection baking.
- To the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment (or using a hand mixer), beat the softened butter for about a minute until light and fluffy. Add the granulated sugar. Cream together until fluffy and smooth.
- Crack the egg and add it to the butter/sugar mixture. Whip together with the beaters until the egg is fully incorporated. Add the sourdough discard and molasses. Mix again with the mixer until smooth and combined.
- To a medium-sized bowl, add the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon. Whisk together to combine.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix until the wet and dry ingredients are incorporated.
- Scoop the cookie dough into small, 2 Tablespoon sized balls. Roll each ball in granulated sugar and stick on a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Bake cookies in a preheated, 375 degrees F oven on convection bake for about 7-8 minutes. After 7-8 minutes, the cookies should be puffy with the edges just a little crispy. Let the cookies cool on a baking sheet for 5-10 minutes until they set up completely. If you don't have the convection bake feature, bake the cookies at 375 degrees F for about 8-10 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I have made this recipe three times, and the last one was a triple batch! I ALWAYS get asked for the recipe, or just another plate of cookies. I can’t have chocolate so this is a great bitter sweet chewy cookie option. Thanks again Amy
A triple batch sounds like a must! Thanks for the review.