Chewy molasses cookies with double ginger, hints of espresso, and lots of dark chocolate that melts in your mouth.
These Double Ginger Molasses Cookies are made in partnership with OXO in exchange for product and a donation to Cookies for Kid's Cancer.
This double ginger molasses cookies recipe features:
- This recipe is Dorie Greenspan’s and it comes from her book of cookies labeled Dorie’s Cookies.
- Chewy molasses cookies are baked in muffin tins for uniform shapes and cake-like appearance.
- The cookies contain both powdered ginger and crystallized ginger making them extra rich in flavor.
- Each bite it loaded with bits of melty chocolate and hints of espresso.
I partnered with OXO to bring you this post in order to raise awareness for Cookies for Kid’s Cancer which was founded by two OXO employees after their son’s battle with pediatric cancer.
OXO has offered to donate to the Cookies for Kid’s Cancer in exchange for a blog post all about Dorie Greenspan’s cookies and OXO products. Each donation supports pediatric cancer research.
They do this every year and are willing to donate up to $100,000. I just couldn’t say no to such a great cause.
I chose to bake Dories Double Ginger Molasses Cookies because are fitting for the upcoming holiday season. Her recipe yields such flavorful, chewy cookies much like my chewy gingersnap cookies. They are rich with bits of ginger throughout and have chunks of chocolate that melt in your mouth with each bite.
Start by mixing the wet ingredients together with OXO’s Illuminating Digital Hand Mixer. It lights up to guide you and has intuitive digital controls to steadily increase or decrease speed.
It’s flat, stable base allows it to be stored upright with the beaters attached using the onboard beater clip.
Once the wet ingredients are well combined, add in the dry ingredients and mix until barely incorporated. Use OXO’s Medium Silicone Spatula to fold in bits of chocolate and crystallized ginger until it’s evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Shape the dough into 1 and ½ tablespoon sized balls. OXO’s Medium Cookie Scoop is perfect for this. It has soft grips to absorb the pressure while you squeeze to smoothly release the cookie dough.
Each ball of cookie dough is rolled in sugar before baking.
Bake the cookies in OXO’s Non-Stick Pro 12 Cup Muffin Pan for cookies that are uninformed in shape. The pan is made with a ceramic-reinforced, two-layer, commercial-grade coating that provides ultimate non-stick release and is scratch-, stain-, corrosion- and abrasion-resistant. Its unique micro-textured pattern ensures even baking.
Double Ginger Molasses Cookies
I have my friend Christine Beck, who is, like me, a Paris part-timer, to thank for this recipe.
The cookies belong to the chewy-molasses-cookie family, but they have so much flavor and so many surprises that they transcend the familiar. For starters, there’s both crystallized ginger and powdered ginger, lots of chopped dark chocolate and an optional bit of instant espresso too, which I tacked onto the recipe because I’m an incorrigible tinkerer.
I also tinkered with the way these are baked. Classic molasses cookies are scooped, molded into balls, rolled in sugar and then pressed with a fork before baking, and you can make these cookies that way. Or you can do what I do: Mold them in muffin tins, which turn out more uniformly shaped cookies that teeter on the brink of becoming gingerbread cakes.
A word on crystallized ginger: Crystallized, or candied, ginger is sliced fresh ginger that is cooked in syrup, dredged in sugar and dried. You can usually find it in the supermarket alongside other dried fruits or in the spice section. If the ginger isn’t moist and pliable, steam it before using: Put it in a strainer over a saucepan of simmering water, cover and let warm and soften for about 5 minutes; pat dry, chop and use. If you can’t find crystallized ginger, you can omit it or mix 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger with 2 teaspoons sugar and let stand for about 10 minutes, until the ginger is syrupy.
Ingredients
- 2 and ¼ cups all-purpose flour, (306 grams)
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 to 2 teaspoons instant espresso, to taste (optional)
- 1½ teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 and ½ tablespoons sticks unsalted butter, cut into chunks, at room temperature, 12 ; 6 ounces; 170 grams
- ⅓ cup sugar, 67 grams
- ⅓ cup packed light brown sugar, 67 grams
- 1 large egg yolk, at room temperature
- ½ cup unsulfured molasses, 120 ml
- 1½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup chopped crystallized ginger or 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger mixed with 2 teaspoons sugar, 55 grams, see headnote
- 7 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped chip-size, 200 grams
- Sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, cocoa, espresso (if using), spices, baking soda and salt together. Working with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the butter and both sugars together on medium-low speed for about 3 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed, until fully blended. Add the yolk and beat for 1 minute, then add the molasses and vanilla, beating until smooth. Turn off the mixer, add the dry ingredients all at once and pulse the mixer until the risk of flying flour passes. Working on low speed, mix the dough until the flour is almost but not completely incorporated. Add the crystallized ginger (or the sugared fresh ginger) and chocolate and mix until the dry ingredients disappear into the dough and the ginger and chocolate are evenly distributed. If you’ve got bits of dry ingredients on the bottom of the bowl, mix them in with a flexible spatula.
- Gather the dough into a ball, flatten it and wrap it in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Getting ready to bake: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat it to 350 degrees F. Butter or spray regular muffin tins or, if making free-form cookies, line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Have a medium cookie scoop at hand. Alternatively, you can use a rounded tablespoonful of dough for each cookie. If you’re using tins, find a jar or glass that fits into them and can be used to flatten the dough; cover the bottom in plastic wrap. Spoon some sugar into a wide shallow bowl.
- For each cookie, mold a scoop or spoonful of dough into a ball between your palms, then turn it in the sugar to coat and put in a muffin cup or on a baking sheet, leaving 2 inches between each ball of dough. If using tins, use the jar or glass to flatten each ball until it almost reaches the sides of the cup. If it’s free- form, press to flatten to about 1?2 inch thick.
- Bake the cookies for about 13 minutes, rotating the tins or sheets top to bottom and front to back after 7 minutes. The cookies should be lightly set around the edges and softer in the center. Transfer the tins or sheets to racks and let the cookies rest for 15 minutes before unmolding them and/or placing them on racks to cool completely.
- If you’re baking in batches, make certain to start with cool tins or baking sheets.
Ginger-Chocolate Ganache
- To make a ganache that you can use to finish the cookies, bring 2?3 cup heavy cream and four 1?4-inch-thick slices of fresh ginger to a boil in a small saucepan. Turn off the heat, cover the pan and allow the cream to infuse for 20 minutes. Return the cream to the boil, then remove the ginger and pour half of the cream over 6 ounces finely chopped bittersweet chocolate. Wait for 30 seconds, stir gently and then stir in the remainder of the cream. Dip the top or one side of each cookie in the chocolate and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Chill for 20 minutes to set the chocolate. Bring the cookies to room temperature before serving.
Storing
- You can refrigerate the dough for up to 3 days. You can also scoop out the dough, shape into balls and freeze the balls on baking sheets; when they’re firm, pack them airtight and keep frozen for up to 2 months. Remove the dough from the freezer and let the balls sit at room temperature for at least 15 minutes, then roll in sugar and bake. The baked cookies can be kept in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 4 days. They’ll get a little drier and a little less chewy, but that will make them even better for dunking.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 36 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 88Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 57mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 1g
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the values shown are just an estimate.
Recipe from Dorie’s Cookies by Dorie Greenspan
Ashley@blondegirlcravings says
Fantastic post. OXO really is the best!
Jen says
Thanks, Ashley! I love OXO!!
Natalie | Natalie's Food & Health says
This melt in your mouth cookies are just delicious. You've included all my favorite ingredients - ginger, dark chocolate cinnamon AND espresso 😀 Love it! I have to try this cookies! Sharing this 😉
Jen says
Thank you so much, Natalie! I wish I could take credit for these delicious cookies but it's Dorie Greenspan's recipe. She's a rock star baker!!
Manali@CookWithManali says
What a great cause and of course the cookies sound wonderful 🙂
annie@ciaochowbambina says
A great cookie for a great cause! Loving everything about this, Jen!! A perfect treat for fall! 🙂
Michelle @ Vitamin Sunshine says
These sound like a dream! And I love OXO 🙂
Jen says
OXO is truly amazing for participating in such a great cause!
Blair says
Delicious! Soft and chewy molasses cookies are one of my all-time personal faves. I love the idea of making them in the muffin tin (and adding the crystallized ginger). I bet these taste amazing!
Jen says
They were so good! I can't wait to try more of Dorie's cookies!
Medha says
Crystallized ginger arounds delicious! These look soooo yummy 🙂
Jen says
I can eat the crystallized ginger all by itself. It's like candy!
Aish Padihari says
Great cause! Kudos. I feel like, I can almost smell the cookies since I use ginger a lot - a LOT in my cookings.
Jen says
These were truly amazing with all that ginger!
Elizabeth says
Loving the sound of these, and for such a great cause too! Yummy cookies, for sure - anything with ginger and molasses has my vote! 🙂
Platter Talk says
Those coolies look amazing! I love the espresso idea and would love to sink my teeth into one right NOW!
Thanks!
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says
What a great cause, Jen! And these cookies look amazing! I've never had molasses cookies quite like this before. I'm loving the texture and flavor!
Jen says
They are the best cookies I've had! They came out extra soft and chewy. And the bits of chocolate just melt in your mouth. It's heaven!