Soft and Chewy Gingersnap Cookies

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By now, you all know how much I love the holidays…like, all the holidays, except for maybe St. Patrick’s Day (but if I was Irish, I’m sure I’d love that one too). I love decorating my house, cooking up traditional meals, and giving my family lasting memories! The one thing I love the most of all, however, is baking Christmas cookies!! It’s one of the traditions that I hold near and dear to my heart, and it’s even better now that I have Sky to help me bake them. It generally takes me two entire days to get through baking and decorating all of my cookies, but I get the greatest joy out of packaging them up for my family, friends and co-workers…and of course keeping several at home for us and Santa! The two favorites in our house are my Italian Ricotta Cookies and my Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, so they undoubtedly get made every year, but I have favorites from my childhood as well that I also occasionally throw into the mix, like my Soft and Chewy Molasses Cookies, my Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Cookies, and my Soft and Chewy Gingersnap Cookies I am about to share with you right now…are you starting to see a pattern here? LOL!

Clearly, soft and chewy cookies are my jam…but I also like them to be big (like, bigger than the palm of my hand), and that is EXACTLY what these cookies are! Yes, a traditional gingersnap cookie is thin and crunchy (thus the name…gingerSNAP), but I love the the flavor of gingersnap cookies, so I morphed the traditional cookie into my own version that eliminates the threat of breaking a tooth when you eat one. The result tastes like you are biting into Christmas. Seriously…you simply have to try them and see for yourself!

To make these cookies, you are going to need flour, baking powder, baking soda, Himalayan pink salt, salted butter, granulated sugar, dark brown sugar, unsulphured molasses (my favorite is Grandma’s Molasses), vanilla extract, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, cayenne pepper (trust me on this), eggs, and additional granulated sugar to roll your cookie dough balls in before baking.

Begin by preheating your oven to 350˚F and preparing two cookie sheets by lining them with ungreased silpats; set aside.

Then, in a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a separate large bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat together your butter and sugars until they are creamy and well-combined. Add in your molasses, vanilla extract, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and cayenne pepper (as I said above…trust me on this…the cayenne pepper accentuates the ginger in these cookies and leaves behind a pleasant, lasting, bite on your lips). Beat your mixture until all of your ingredients are completely incorporated. Beat in your eggs. Then, gradually mix your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients until they are fully combined. Refrigerate your dough for 30 minutes before rolling out your cookie dough balls and baking them.

After your cookie dough has chilled for 30 minutes, use a large cookie scoop to scoop a generous amount of dough into your hand. Then, roll your dough between your palms to form a smooth ball. Roll your cookie dough balls around in granulated sugar until they are completely coated, and place them on your prepared cookie sheets approximately 2 inches apart. Bake your cookies for 11-13 minutes (if you prefer to make your cookies smaller than mine, just make sure you reduce your baking time to 10-11 minutes). Cool your cookies on your cookie sheets for about 2 minutes before removing them to wire racks to cool completely. Store your cookies in an airtight container topped with a piece bread (this is my little secret for keeping my cookies soft and chewy for several days. The moisture from the bread will keep the cookies fresh, soft, and chewy. Just make sure you rest your bread on a piece of parchment paper rather than the surface of your cookies, as the bread will make whatever cookies it touches gooey).

I hope these Soft and Chewy Gingersnap Cookies make it on your cookie list for this year and remind you of Christmas for years to come. I promise you, they will not disappoint!

For more of my Christmas cookie recipes, please make sure you check out my Italian Ricotta Cookies, Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Soft and Chewy Molasses Cookies, and Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Cookies.