Gingerbread Crinkle Cookies
Soft, chewy gingerbread crinkle cookies coated in powdered sugar—your new favorite Christmas crinkle cookies recipe. Easy to make, festive, and perfect for holiday baking!
Yields 16 cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- ½ cup (100 g) light brown sugar, gently packed
- 1 large egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60 ml) unsulphured molasses
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour, (stir, spoon & level)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
Coating
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar, for rolling
- ¾ cup (90 g) powdered sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar together. Mix in the egg, vanilla, and molasses until combined, scraping the bowl as needed. (May look a little curdled/separated, but will come together with the dry ingredients.)
- In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Add to wet ingredients and mix until combined.
- Use a #30 cookie scoop (about 2 Tbsp of cookie dough) to scoop the dough into balls and place them on a parchment or silicone lined tray. (They can be close together, just not touching. Do NOT roll dough balls with hands to keep a rough surface area to ensure the most cracks.) FREEZE for 20-30 minutes until firm.
- While dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line half sheet pans with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Set aside.
- Once chilled, roll each dough ball in granulated sugar first, then powdered sugar and place them on the prepared baking sheets about 2-3 inches apart (no more than 8 per tray). NOTE: Keep extra cookies chilled while you bake each pan and only coat the dough in the sugars just before baking.
- Bake at 350˚F for 12-14 minutes until the cookies spread and the cracks look almost matte, not very wet (just slightly underbaked). (NOTE: The spreading and cracking mostly happens during the last 5 minutes of bake time.) Allow the cookies to rest for 5 minutes on the tray, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
- FYI: The cookie dough is really THICK, so use a stand mixer. If you only have a hand mixer, go ahead and mix the wet ingredients, then mix in the dry ingredients by hand with a spoon/spatula.
- TO STORE: Store gingerbread crinkle cookies in an airtight container or on a plate covered tightly with plastic wrap for up to 5 days. Some of the powdered sugar may absorb into the cookies the longer they are stored.
- TO FREEZE: Scoop cookie dough balls onto a parchment or silicone lined baking sheet. Set in the freezer for 1-2 hours until very firm. Then transfer frozen dough balls into a freezer-safe zip-top bag and freeze for up to 3 months. NOTE: Do not coat dough balls in the sugars until ready to bake. You will need to bake the cookies roughly 3-5 minutes longer, if baking from completely frozen. Otherwise let them sit out at room temperature for 10-15 minutes before coating with sugar and baking as written.
- NOTE: I do not recommend freezing these cookies after they are baked due to the powdered sugar and moisture from the freezer.
Nutrition
Serving: 1 cookie | Calories: 189kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 6g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 80mg | Potassium: 113mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 19g | Vitamin A: 193IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 24mg | Iron: 1mg