Recipe: Big, Soft & Chewy Molasses Ginger Spice Cookies with (or without) Raisins (2024)

An old-fashioned, inexpensive treat that brings back memories—and creates them.

There's no doubt about it—big cookies make people happy. I started baking and selling oversized cookies 25 years ago, and everyone from little kids to big men goes crazy for them.

Bite-sized cookies, like these addicting

What'sespecially nice is when one cookie batter will give you two completely different cookies, just by changing the size.My 2-inch Molasses Ginger Spice Snaps are cute and crunchy, and one batch bakes up 12 dozen cookies that store really well.

But stir in some raisins and portion them out with a large scoop instead, and youget two dozen soft and chewy treats thatmake me thinkof ice skating and red mittens and crackling fires and early Christmas morning—and are always greeted with smiles even bigger than they are.

Big, Soft & Chewy Molasses Spice Cookies

Makes about two dozen 4-inch cookies

**Click here to print this recipe**

The key to makingreally goodspice cookies is to use the best and freshest spices you can find. If you can't remember when you bought that dusty jar of ground ginger or cloves, it's time to tossit out.Freshly ground nutmeg is wonderful, and whole nutmeg will last for years. Plus you get to use a cute little grater to make it.

As with most cookies, these freeze beautifully. If desired, you can substitute 2 sticks (1cup)of the butter with non-hydrogenated vegetable oil sticks, such as Earth Balance.

Ingredients:

1½cups (3 sticks/12 ounces) organic butter, softened

2 cups granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1/2 cup molasses (not blackstrap)or cane syrup (I use Steen's cane syrup)

4 cups organic all-purpose flour

4 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons ground cinnamon

4 teaspoons ground ginger

2 to 3 teaspoons ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg (or 1 teaspoon pre-ground)

1½ cups organic raisins(optional)

Instructions:

Heat the oven to 375°.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer (I use a hand held mixer) on high speed for about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs and molasses until well blended.

Reduce the speed and mix in the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg until well combined. (You can mix the dry ingredients together first in a separate bowl, but I never do.) Stir in the raisins if you're using them.

Thedough will be very soft, so put it in the fridge or freezer for a little while to harden up (very cold dough will take a minute or two longer to bake).

Use a 1/4-cup scoop or 1/4-cup measure to portion out the dough, and place thecookies on a heavy duty baking sheet lined with unbleached parchment paper (this is wonderful stuff, and you can reuse the same piece for the entire batch of cookies).The cookies will spread; sixwill fit on a half-size commercial sheet pan (approximately 13" x 18").

Bake the cookies until the centers are set, about 15 to 18 minutes. For crunchier cookies, bake them a few minutes longer. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. Store cookies in an airtight container for several daysor freeze.

Sweet tooth still not satisfied? Try these other Farmgirl Fare treats:

Cookies and Bars

Muffins and Scones

Cakes, Tarts, and More

Still hungry? You'll find links to all my sweet and savory Less Fuss, More Flavor recipes in the Farmgirl Fare Recipe Index.