This crispy ginger shortbread cookies recipe has 5 ingredients, no eggs, and no molasses. It’s more like a shortbread than a gingersnap, and it’s a nice choice for Christmas or when you’re looking for a spicy and light-flavored dessert.
These ginger shortbread cookies are based on a recipe from the 1903 edition of Marion Harland’s Complete Cookbook.
The recipe was for gingersnaps, but I think a better description is Ginger Shortbread. These are very buttery and crisp, and the ginger comes through after you eat the cookie.
I’ve adapted the recipe so that there’s more ginger because the original only called for 1 Tbsp. If you like them less spicy, you can reduce it.
This article includes affiliate links that will pay a commission if they’re used to purchase something. As an Amazon associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
Ginger Shortbread Cookie Recipe
Equipment
- 1 mixing bowl
- 1 wooden spoon or silicone spatula for mixing
- 1 #70 ice cream scoop or tablespoon for making dough balls
- 2 cookie sheets
- Parchment paper
Ingredients
- 1 cup room temp butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups AP flour
- 2 Tbsp ginger
- 1 tsp baking soda
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 F
- Line the pans with parchment paper.
- Stir butter, sugar, ginger and baking soda in a bowl by hand, then stir in flour until the dough is too stiff to stir in more, Don't knead or use a mixer.
- Use a #70 ice cream scoop, or about a rounded teaspoon size, make balls of dough. Roll them in your hands, pat them flat, and place them on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
- Bake about 15 minutes to a moderate brown color and leave them on the pan as they cool.
Equipment list for the cookies.
These are some of the things you’ll need to make the cookies, and the ones that I like on Amazon:
For a recipe for sunflower seed butter cookies, click here.
Baking tips for crispy cookies.
Choose a recipe that’s specifically for a type of cookie that’s supposed to be crispy. Some suggestions are tuilles, fortune cookies, gingersnaps, crispy oatmeal cookies.
You don’t need to use a mixer for these cookies, it will develop too much gluten if you mix them too much. Mix them by hand to keep the gluten short. If you do use a mixer, don’t beat on a high speed!
Cookie dough that bakes crispy tends to have more fat and sugar, and are usually lower in moisture. The best fat to use is butter, because it melts faster and lets the cookie spread out as it bakes, making it crispier when it’s baked.
To keep your cookies crispy in storage, use an airtight container so that they don’t absorb moisture from the air and soften up!
