Soft Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies are the perfect holiday cookie! They’re a great blend of chocolate and gingerbread flavors, with a chocolate star in the middle, and they keep their soft and chewy texture for days.
I first shared this recipe four years ago, and since then, these cookies have become a yearly tradition with my family. This year, I’ve updated the post with bigger photos and a video recipe showing how to make them. I hope you’ll check out the video showing how it’s done, and then try them yourself–I know you’ll love them!
Put down the cookbooks! I have found the perfect Christmas cookie. Bold words, I know. But hear me out.
First of all, they’re cute. Some might even say “cute as a button.”
Second, they’re packed with holiday flavors like cinnamon, ginger, molasses, chocolate (chocolate is an every-time flavor!), and orange zest.
Third, one batch make a ton—about 5 dozen cookies. That’s going to go a long way toward filling holes in your cookie plates!
And finally, these cookies have the most desirable holiday trait of all, which is that they stay moist for a crazy long amount of time. Like, a week later, after being stored at room temperature in a plastic tub, they’re still soft and delicious with nary a stale crumb. If I didn’t make them myself, I would suspect preservative shenanigans.
But I did make them myself, and I practically ate all of them myself, so I can vouch for the stay-softiness, and easy-of-makingness, and just general deliciousness of these cookies.
They may not look like the fanciest cookie—in fact, Jason said several times, with an almost insulting amount of surprise in his voice, “Wow, these taste way better than they look!”*—but they do have a certain sweet charm to them, especially when topped with a star-shaped chocolate button. I used Brach’s milk chocolate stars, which can usually be found in the Baking aisle around the holidays. If you can’t find them, then unwrapped Hershey’s kisses would be a good substitute.
*A classic example of the complisult, the love child of a compliment and insult. Hurts so good! However, Jason does an unholy amount of dishes for me, so he gets a complisult pass every now and then.
The flavor of these cookies is heavy on the gingerbread, and lighter on the chocolate. I based them on a gingersnap molasses cookie recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction, but added cocoa to the dough, as well as a little orange zest. The orange may seem out of place, but I think it ties together the ginger and chocolate elements, while adding a light, fresh flavor that keeps the ginger taste from becoming too intense. If you’re suspicious, you’re welcome to leave it out…but really…don’t you trust me?
And thus ends the quest for the perfect holiday cookie. Now you’ll just have to take all that time you were going to spend testing recipes and devote it to online shopping instead. You’re welcome!
P.S. Just can’t get enough of that chocolate-gingerbread flavor combination? You’ve got to try these Gingerbread Chocolate Chip Cookies!
❤️ MUST-MAKE CHRISTMAS RECIPES:
- Christmas Pinwheel Cookies
- Gingerbread Cookie Mug Toppers
- Chocolate Truffle Peppermint Crunch Cookies
- Gingerbread Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Big Soft Sugar Cookies
- Pecan Snowball Cookies
- Candy Cane Cookies
Gingerbread Cheesecake
Gingerbread Chocolate Chip Cookies
Soft Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 12.3 oz all-purpose flour (2 3/4 cups)
- .75 oz unsweetened cocoa powder (1/4 cup)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 oz unsalted butter (3/4 cup), at room temperature
- 5.6 oz brown sugar (3/4 cup), packed
- 1.75 oz granulated sugar (1/4 cup), plus extra for rolling
- 4.5 oz unsulphured molasses (1/3 cup), unsulfured
- 1 large egg at room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp packed orange zest (from 1/2 large orange)
- 60 milk chocolate stars or chocolate kisses
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, all spices, and salt. Set aside for a moment.
- Place the unsalted butter and both sugars in the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat them together on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute.
- Add the molasses, egg, vanilla extract, and orange zest, and beat until well-mixed. The mixture might look a little broken at this point. Stop the mixer and add the dry ingredients. Mix on low speed until just a few streaks of flour remain. Finish mixing by hand, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl well with a spatula.
- Turn the dough out onto a piece of cling wrap, and wrap it well. Chill for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Pour some granulated sugar into a shallow bowl. Roll the chilled cookie dough into small 1-inch balls and roll the balls in granulated sugar. Place them 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 F for 7-8 minutes, until puffed and dry in the center, but still soft.
- Remove the tray from the oven, and immediately press a chocolate star or unwrapped chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie. Let them cool completely on the baking sheet. These cookies keep amazingly well and, if stored in an airtight container at room temperature, will be soft and moist for up to a week after baking.
Video
Recipe Notes
Measuring Tips
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Want to learn more about baking measurements and conversion?
Mmmmm I just added these to my Christmas cookie list! 🙂
http://www.prettybitchescancooktoo.com
Awesome! You will have some very happy friends and family!
These look amazing..one question though. Not seeing egg on the recipe ingredient list but seeing it in instructions. I assume it is ONE EGG?? Making these later today
Hi Meg, it’s listed after molasses: 1 egg, at room temperature. Let me know how they go for you!
These are fabulous – our new favourite cookie!
These are outstanding. They were a hit in my crowd.
I made these cookies and took hem for dessert on Thanksgiving and every single person wanted the recipe (I sent the link Then I made them as a dessert for a Christmas concert – they were a total hit!! These are the best and are my favorite cookies! Thanks for making me look good!
Elizabeth. I quick question. Can these cookies be frozen and for how long? I want to make them now for Christmas because I do not have time right before the holiday.
Hi Karen! These cookies freeze beautifully. Assuming good conditions (they’re stored in freezer-quality bags, and your freezer that stays cold and doesn’t defrost/re-freeze) they should be good for 3-4 months. You could also make the dough and scoop them now, then bake them shortly before Christmas for optimum freshness. If you do this I would recommend scooping them and setting them on a baking sheet covered with parchment or waxed paper, then freezing them. Once frozen you can transfer them to freezer gallon-sized Ziploc bags. To bake, put them on the baking sheets and let them sit at room temp until no longer frozen before baking, and you’re good to go!
I saw these and the look and the name of them stopped me from scrolling. This is a very different looking and sounding cookie. I can’t wait to make them, try them and share them!!! Thank you!
It makes me so happy to hear that! Thank you so much! Happy cooking 🙂
Really good.
Thanks dave!
These look great! But confused by the 4.5 ounces equals 1/3 cup molasses? If 8 ounces in a cup…
Hey Chris, I actually get this question a lot. When we are talking about weight measurements its actually not true that 8 oz equals a cup. For more information you can follow this link. Thanks so much! https://www.sugarhero.com/frequently-asked-questions/#measurements