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The best ever chewy Brown Sugar Maple Ginger Cookies. A cross between a really great ginger cookie and a delicious chocolate chip cookie. Made with dark brown sugar, rich molasses, ginger, and the real secret…chocolate chips! These cookies are generously glazed with a sweet, thick, and creamy maple glaze that melts in your mouth. There’s really nothing not to love! The perfect holiday cookie to bake, share, and gift this holiday season!
I’ve never been someone who’s picked a ginger cookie over say a chocolate chip cookie. But I know so many of you guys love them, and I love to bake them around the holiday season. They’re perfect for gifting, and I will admit, they always smell delicious while baking.
Since I’m making ALL the Christmas cookies I can this December, I really wanted to figure out how to make a ginger cookie be extra delicious. Not just gingery and good, but gingery and really darn delicious, with perfect edges and chewy middles. These cookies are that. Soft, chewy, filled with molasses and a good amount of ginger, plus sweet and chocolatey.
And the vanilla maple glaze really makes them special, maybe even a little over the top.
These have been on my list since mid-November. I wasn’t sure I’d make them, but I’m so glad I did!
The doughy details
Beat the butter with dark brown sugar, then add the eggs and molasses. Next, add the dry ingredients and stir in some chocolate chips. That’s the dough…and as you can tell, it’s simple as can be.
Roll the dough into decently sized balls using buttered hands. The buttered hands are key, the dough is on the sticker side, so the butter helps to roll without drying the cookies out.
Then just bake. That’s literally it for the cookie. No fuss, but totally delicious.
On to the glaze
This glaze is everything. I first used it with my maple cookies back in the fall and it’s been a favorite ever since. It’s what makes these cookies really melt in your mouth.
It’s simply butter, maple syrup, vanilla, powdered sugar, and salt.
Once you’ve finished the glaze, drizzle it over each cookie. You can eat them warm or allow them to cool, either way, they are delicious.
A few important things
One thing that really sets these cookies apart from other molasses-based cookies is extra molasses (and chocolate chips). I like to use a bit more molasses than most molasses cookie recipes call for. I wanted each cookie to be extremely chewy and for the molasses flavor to really be pronounced. So, I upped the amount of molasses and added vanilla extract. This combo does a nice job of highlighting the molasses and ginger flavors. The result is a perfectly chewy molasses cookie with hints of vanilla and ginger throughout.
Then, of course, the chocolate. It’s not expected, but everyone loves the addition of chocolate…and the sweet mapley glaze on top.
Looking for Christmas cookie recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Easy Vanilla Bean Christmas Lights Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Brown Sugar Maple Ginger Cookies be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Brown Sugar Maple Ginger Cookies
Servings: 22 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 215 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) salted butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup blackstrap molasses
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Maple Glaze
- 4 tablespoons salted butter
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/2-3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- 1. Position an oven rack in the upper 1/3 of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 2. In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the egg and molasses and mix until evenly combined. Add the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt, beating until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. 3. Rub your hands with butter and roll the dough into tablespoon-size balls (if the dough is too sticky, chill for 20 minutes). Place on the prepared baking sheet, spacing the cookies 2 inches apart. Bake for 9-12 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to set around the edges, the centers should be a little doughy. Let cool on the pan. 4. Meanwhile, make the glaze. Melt together the butter and maple syrup in a small pot over medium heat. Remove from the heat and whisk in the powdered sugar, vanilla. and a pinch of salt. Drizzle or dip the glaze over each cookie. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
This post was originally published on December 7, 2021
The base of this cookie is truly great. However, I have found that the chocolate and particularly the icing are distracting and overly sweet. The flavors were competing in a confusing and overwhelming way. However, I’ve made the cookie part (no chocolate) several times and I absolutely love it! I roll it in turbinado sugar before baking. It’s my favorite spiced molasses cookie, and I’ve made many.
Hey Angela,
Thanks so much for making this recipe and sharing your feedback! So glad to hear you enjoy the cookie portion:)
I made these for the holidays one year, and they are now my mom’s favorite cookie! I add almost double the ground ginger to the cookie batter since we love the gingerbread flavor. And for the maple glaze I add more powdered sugar to thicken it. Thank you!
Hi Karen,
Amazing! So glad this recipe always turns out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it so often! Have a wonderful weekend!💐
I love these cookies and have made them 4 times- currently in the oven. I just cannot figure out how to make them NOT cakey. Everyone loves them regardless. I use regular molasses, but doubt that is the reason. Any ideas?
Hey Tori,
So glad to hear have you been enjoying this recipe!! I would try tapping your baking sheet on the counter while the cookies are baking. This should give you a flatter, less cakey cookie. xx
These were amazing!! Couldn’t stop eating them 🙂 definitely let the glaze cool for a bit before drizzling and don’t let them over bake. This recipe is a keeper for the upcoming holidays!!
Hey Amanda,
So glad to hear this! Thank you so much for trying this recipe and your comment! Have a nice November! xx
I bought the special black strap molasses and followed the recipe, but the cookie was too “cakey” for my taste. Also, the glaze turned out runny and not white as pictured.
Hey Renee,
Thanks so much for trying these cookies and sharing your feedback. So sorry to hear they were not enjoyed. If there is anything specific that I can help with, please let me know! xT
Black strap molasses is a very different product than regular molasses and it’s the reason your cookies turned out cakey. I absolutely would NEVER use black strap for baking, the flavor is very bitter and the texture is not great for cookies.
I am afraid that these basically tasted like chocolate chip cookies, and the more subtle spice flavors were overcome by the strength of the chocolate flavor—I think the recipe might be better minus the chocolate.
Hi there,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, sorry to hear they weren’t enjoyed! Xx
Making these AGAIN! Hopefully I will be able to taste a couple before they are gone!! Soo great – the entire family loved them. Even the naaa sayers who do not like ginger or anything around ginger. Haha. Making these every year now. Thanks – Katie
Hi! Thank you so much for giving the recipe a try! Hope you have a wonderful New Year! 🙂 xT
The cookies turned out amazing, per usual, but I could not get the frosting to set. Admittedly I do not often make frosting, but it seemed pretty straight forward. I added about 1 cup of powdered sugar and it still was runny. I don’t see how it’s going to firm up. What did I do wrong?
Hi there! I would make sure your butter has cooled down a little bit before adding the other ingredients! xT
Hello. Would unsulphured molasses work if I can’t find blackstrap? Thank you.
You can just use regular molasses if you’d like! 🙂 xT
I made these cookies again to take to my sister’s for the weekend. They were gone in an instant! So easy to make and delicious! Thank you for this lovely recipe.
Thank so so much Denise! Love to hear that! 🙂 xT