Just Like Starbucks Ginger Molasses Cookies Copycat Recipe (2024)

You don’t have to go all the way to Starbucks to enjoy gingersnap molasses cookies. You can recreate your own Starbucks ginger molasses cookies in the comfort of your own kitchen! I am sure you will agree that this is the best ginger molasses cookie recipe. If you are a fan of gingerbread cookies, you will love these!

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A Starbucks ginger molasses cookies recipe is a great recipe to choose if you want sweet, chewy cookies for the holiday season. In fact, this homemade version might even be better than Starbucks ginger molasses cookies!

These are sweet, soft and delicious and I guarantee one of these chewy ginger molasses cookies just won’t be enough. Taste the best ginger molasses cookie recipe and you’ll want to help yourself to another!

Starbucks ginger cookies are just as good with a cup of coffee as a snack as they are topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for dessert. You can enjoy all the benefits of Starbucks copycat ginger molasses cookies without having to go to a coffee shop.

A Look at the Ingredients

To prepare homemade Starbucks Christmas cookies, you’re going to need some pantry staples and equipment like a wire rack and airtight container.

Flour, sugar, butter, egg, baking soda, salt, and sugar combine for these copycat Starbucks ginger molasses treats. Go ahead and use shortening instead of unsalted butter if you prefer. The two are pretty much interchangeable in most baking recipes.

Ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg also go into the mix to add warm, earthy flavours to your favourite cookie. The main flavours in the finished homemade Starbucks Christmas cookies will be the richness of the molasses and a subtle hint of spice.

How to Make Homemade Starbucks Christmas Cookies

The first thing to do, to make gingersnap molasses cookies, is cream together the butter and brown sugar. Next, add the molasses and then the egg. Mix in the dry ingredients, namely the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices, and gather up the dough.

Roll about ¼-cup of the dough into a ball and roll it in white sugar. Put it on a parchment lined baking sheet and press down with moistened fingers. Repeat with the rest of the dough and sugar. Now all that’s left to do is get to work and bake cookies!

Tips for Making Starbucks Gingerbread Cookies

Before you begin mixing the ingredients together you should preheat the oven. By the time it’s warm enough your dough should be ready. Also, line a cookie sheet or two with parchment paper.

This recipe makes 12 cookies but, just like real Starbucks ginger molasses cookies, they are big. So I recommend adding no more than 6 cookies to each baking sheet. You can bake one batch of 6 and then the other.

For a real copycat Starbucks ginger molasses flavour, stick to the quantities specified in the recipe. The finished cookies should have a hint of spice. I know some festive cookies are heavily spiced but that’s not true of these.

You can add as much of each spice as you like, of course. But I prefer the main flavour being the molasses, just to keep these true to the Starbucks gingerbread cookies taste.

It’s handy to coat the ¼-cup scoop with some non-stick cooking spray before scooping up a cookie-sized piece of dough. It just comes out a little bit easier if you do this.

What Kind of Molasses to Use

I recommend using regular un-sulphured molasses. The reason for that is blackstrap molasses is too strong here. Blackstrap would obliterate the delicate spice flavours in the Starbucks molasses cookies, so I wouldn’t use it to make the best ginger molasses cookie recipe. Baked cookies are better with delicate flavours, especially when, like these, they boast a spicy-sweet deliciousness.

If you have blackstrap molasses and want to use that, then I would suggest swapping the dark brown sugar in the recipe for light brown sugar. I might also increase the amount of ginger.

What’s the Difference between Molasses and Gingerbread Cookies?

So these cookies contain molasses and ginger. So, are they molasses cookies or gingerbread? The main difference between these types of cookies is gingersnap cookies are crisp and snappy while molasses cookies are soft in texture.

Molasses cookies typically contain ginger but much less than you’ll find in gingerbread or gingersnap cookies. Either variety is ideal for Christmas time though and also a great idea for gifts.

Where Does Molasses Come From?

Since molasses is one of the main flavours in Starbucks ginger molasses cookies, you might like to know more about this ingredient. As you know, molasses is a dark, thick, sweet syrup. It’s made during the sugar-making process.

After sugar beets or sugar cane is crushed, the juice is extracted then boiled down to make sugar crystals. The brown syrup left behind after the sugar is removed is the molasses. Repeating this process results in different molasses types.

Sulphured molasses has been treated with sulphur dioxide which works as a preservative. Because you can vaguely taste it, I prefer un-sulphured molasses. Most molasses from the grocery store is the un-sulphured kind.

Light molasses is the most common type sold and the best one for pies, cakes, and these Starbucks ginger molasses cookies. It gives a wonderfully sweet, rich flavour without being too strong. If a recipe doesn’t specify which type to use, then use this.

What about Dark Molasses?

Dark molasses is the result of re-boiling the light molasses and this is thicker, richer and less sweet. It tastes very strong and pairs nicely with ginger to make ginger cake. You can also add it to barbecue sauce or baked beans for richness.

Boil the syrup a third time and the result will be blackstrap molasses, which is very dark, very thick and slightly bitter. It is often added to livestock feed since it’s a little richer in nutrients than other types. It can be used in BBQ and on meats but isn’t the best choice for gingersnap molasses cookies.

Find these cookies and others in my holiday cookie box

If you like these gingerbread molasses cookies, you might also like White Chocolate Dipped Ginger Cookies, Chocolate Dipped Peppermint Meringue Kiss Christmas Cookies or Nutellotti Soft Nutella Cookies with Filling.

Just Like Starbucks Ginger Molasses Cookies Copycat Recipe

These homemade Starbucks Christmas cookies are perfect for the holidays. I find this to be the best ginger molasses cookie recipe and would recommend making plenty of Starbucks ginger molasses cookies this year!