Chewy Molasses Cookies

This recipe for chewy molasses cookies is honestly the one and only molasses cookie recipe you will ever need.

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The Story

I’ve had this cookie recipe for well over a decade. I know it has been around that long because I got it back when I was a junior in high school.

For the better part of my four years in high school, I used my “president of the student council gets mostly A’s” façade to get away with many things. One of these things was being a teacher’s aid for the same teacher for three years straight. Now in terms of book learning, being a teacher’s aid is useless. If you look at it in terms of life learning, it is priceless.

The teacher I aided for was my social studies teacher, Mr. Maurer. I spent countless hours hanging out with Mr. Maurer and a few other neighboring teachers during that block of classes. Honestly I can’t remember any conversations specifically. I know at that time, they were a group of thoughtful, good humored adults that I felt I could trust. It was incredibly important to me.

The Cookies

Okay so where do the cookies come in? Maurer (we rarely used the Mr.) has a wife who is equally, if likely not more so, excellent. During the Christmas season she would send molasses cookies to school for her husband.

One day he was kind enough to share them with me. They were and remain to this day the best molasses cookies I have ever had. His wife (who I am not naming for the sake of internet privacy) sent a whole container just for me and the recipe. The recipe has been in her family for years. On the photo of the recipe page it says “Grandma Torborg”.

Thank you Grandma Torborg and Mrs. Maurer for the recipe. Thank you Mr. Maurer and all those great teachers out there for all the craziness you put up with and the friendship you offer your students.

What is Molasses?

Molasses is essentially a bi-product of making sugar. To make sugar, juice from sugar cane or sugar beet is pressed out of the plant. The juice is boiled down until sugar crystals form. The crystals are removed, and the dark syrupy liquid that remains is molasses. The crystals are cooked down a few more times, each time the remaining liquid gets darker and more potent, which gives you different types of molasses.

What are the different types of molasses?

Sulphured or Unsulphured

During the sugar making process, Sulphur may be added to immature sugar cane to make it sweeter. I don’t think I’ve ever had sulphured molasses but apparently it can give it a chemical flavor. No thanks.

Light Molasses

This is the syrup that comes from the first boiling of the sugar. It is lighter in flavor and would be best used in cakes, cookies, etc. Consider this your all purpose molasses.

Dark Molasses

Dark molasses comes from the second boiling of the sugar and so it is richer and stronger in flavor. If you are making ginger bread or cake you can use this. I’ve used it for cookies before too. This is your molasses to use for meats or savory dishes.

Blackstrap Molasses

This comes from the final boiling of sugar and is very dark, thick, and bitter. Over at Southern Living they don’t recommend using it for any sweet dishes. Personally I have used it for these cookies before and I think they still tasted great.

We also use blackstrap on the farm for adding to feed and warm water for new mamas.

Ingredients for Chewy Molasses Cookies

For this recipe you will need:

• 1 1/2 Cups of Shortening (I’ve used butter and lard for these)
• 2 Eggs
• 2 Cups Brown Sugar
• 1/2 Cup Molasses (light or dark)
• Baking Soda
• Cloves
• Cinnamon
• Ginger
• Dash of nutmeg
• Salt (scant)
• 4 Cups of Flour
• White sugar for rolling the cookies in

Supplies for Making Cookies

• Cookie Sheets
• Mixing Bowl
• Measuring Spoons
• Measuring Cups
• Wood spoon for stirring

How to Make Chewy Molasses Cookies

First make sure your shortening is at room temperature. I typically use all butter or a blend of butter and lard.

Next, whisk up two eggs and 2 cups of brown sugar.

Add in 1/2 cup molasses.

Whisk in the shortening.

In a separate bowl combine 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp cloves, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ginger, a dash of nutmeg, and 1 tsp salt.

Once the spices are thoroughly mixed, whisk in 4 cups of all purpose flour.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined. The dough will be thick and dense, almost like a wet bread dough.

Flour your fingers and scoop out a ball of dough. The size is up to you. I typically do a plump spoonful, a little smaller than a golf ball.

See my notes below for how to make plump or thin cookies.

Next, roll the ball in sugar and place it on a parchment lined cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees F for 12-14 minutes.

Let the cookies cool on the sheet for five minutes before transferring them to a wire rack.

How to Get Flat or Fat Molasses Cookies

Some people like a puffy, fat molasses cookie. Others like a wide thin one. The variables you can fiddle with to adjust your cookie is the butter temperature, amount of baking soda, and size of your dough balls.

If you want a larger flat cookie, use more dough per cookie and warmed/slightly liquid butter or shortening. Use 1 tsp instead of 2 tsp baking soda.

If you want a smaller plump cookie, use less dough per cookie and shortening that is just warm enough to cream into the other ingredients. Use 3 tsp baking soda.

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