Easy & Delicious Ginger Crinkle Cookies: Soft & Chewy Cake Mix Recipe
Prepare to fall in love with these incredibly simple yet utterly delicious ginger crinkle cookies! If you’re searching for soft, chewy ginger cookies with that perfect spicy kick and a beautiful powdered sugar crackle, look no further. What makes this recipe truly stand out is its secret weapon: a boxed cake mix! Yes, these gingerbread crinkle cookies are not only bursting with classic, comforting flavors but are also remarkably easy to make, making them ideal for busy holidays or whenever a craving strikes.
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If you’re a fan of the warming spices and delightful texture of these ginger crinkle cookies, you’ll surely enjoy exploring other fantastic cookie recipes. For more easy and delicious treats, make sure to try my Brownie Mix Cookies with White Chocolate, Cherries and Pistachios, my Oatmeal Cranberry Pecan Cookies, or my Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies with Cinnamon Sugar! Each offers a unique flavor profile perfect for any occasion.
The Irresistible Appeal of Spicy Ginger Crinkle Cookies
These soft ginger cookies embody everything you adore about classic gingerbread: the rich, deep notes of molasses, the pungent warmth of ginger, and a harmonious blend of other beloved spices like cinnamon. Each cookie is then generously rolled in powdered sugar, creating that iconic, eye-catching “crinkle” effect as they bake. The contrast of the dark, spicy cookie with the bright white sugar is not just visually appealing but also adds a lovely layer of sweetness.
But the true magic of this recipe lies in its incredible simplicity. Forget hours of measuring and mixing; these cookies are exceptionally easy because they’re made with a boxed cake mix! This ingenious shortcut streamlines the baking process without compromising on flavor or texture. Just like my popular Strawberry Cheesecake Cookies or Lemon Blueberry Cookies, a simple spice cake mix forms the foundation for these old-fashioned ginger crinkle cookies. So, when time is short, and the craving for homemade goodness is strong, these cake mix ginger cookies are your perfect solution. You don’t need to spend an entire day in the kitchen to enjoy traditional flavors, unlike making German Lebkucken from scratch.
The Science Behind the Crinkle: Why Gingerbread Cookies Crack
Have you ever wondered what creates those beautiful, spiderweb-like cracks on crinkle cookies? The “crinkle” effect is a delightful result of a specific baking phenomenon. It occurs because the outside layer of the cookie dough sets and hardens faster than the inside when exposed to the oven’s heat. As the cookie continues to bake, the interior expands and cooks, pushing outwards against the already-set exterior. This internal expansion causes the surface to crack and separate, forming those characteristic lines.
This natural process is significantly enhanced by generously coating the cookie dough in powdered sugar before baking. The powdered sugar doesn’t just add sweetness and visual appeal; it actively draws out moisture from the outer layer of the cookie. This creates a drier, more brittle crust on the surface. When the moist interior expands, this brittle outer layer breaks more dramatically, emphasizing the crinkle effect even more. The result? Stunning, deeply crinkled tops on these moist and chewy molasses ginger crinkle cookies, making them as beautiful to look at as they are delicious to eat!
If you’re captivated by the crinkle texture, you might also enjoy these ube crinkles for a unique flavor, or for other delightful cookie experiences, try my Chocolate Filled Cookies, or my Coconut Pecan Cookies!
Key Ingredients for the Best Ginger Crinkle Cookies
Crafting these delectable soft ginger cookies requires a few simple ingredients, many of which you likely already have in your pantry. The genius of this recipe lies in how a few key components come together to create such a rich and satisfying treat:
- Spice Cake Mix: This is the superstar ingredient that makes this recipe incredibly quick and easy. By using a standard 15.25-oz box of Betty Crocker Spice Cake Mix (or similar brand), we bypass the need for multiple dry ingredients, baking soda, baking powder, and sugar. We’ll only use the dry mix itself, not a prepared batter, providing a perfectly spiced and flavored base for our chewy ginger crackles.
- All-Purpose Flour: While the cake mix provides much of the structure, a small amount of additional all-purpose flour helps to slightly thicken the cookie dough. This ensures the cookies maintain their shape during baking and contributes to their delightful chewy texture without making them overly dense.
- Vegetable Oil: The secret to incredibly moist and tender ginger crinkle cookies! Vegetable oil, a neutral-flavored fat, keeps these cookies wonderfully soft and contributes significantly to their characteristic chewiness. It also helps prevent them from drying out, ensuring they stay fresh for longer.
- Eggs: Large eggs are essential for providing structure, richness, and a slight lift to our cookies. They bind the ingredients together, adding moisture and creating that desirable soft interior.
- Molasses: For an authentic old-fashioned ginger crinkle cookies flavor, unsulphured molasses is a must. I highly recommend using Grandma’s Original Molasses or a similar mild, unsulphured variety. This dark, syrupy ingredient provides the signature deep, caramelized sweetness and moist texture that is synonymous with classic gingerbread. Its unique flavor profile is truly irreplaceable.
- Cinnamon and Ginger: To truly enhance and amplify the warm, spicy notes inherent in the spice cake mix, we add extra ground cinnamon and ginger. This boost ensures our soft ginger cookies deliver that bold, classic gingerbread flavor that makes them irresistible. If you love these spices, you’ll also enjoy my Cake Mix Apple Cobbler!
- Powdered Sugar: Last but certainly not least, powdered sugar is crucial for creating the stunning crinkle effect. Before baking, each ginger molasses crinkle cookie is generously coated in this fine sugar. As the cookie bakes and expands, the powdered sugar creates a beautiful white contrast against the darker cookie, forming those iconic cracks.
Minimal Equipment for Maximum Flavor
One of the many joys of this ginger crinkle cookies recipe is its simplicity, extending even to the equipment you’ll need. This is truly a one-bowl wonder that requires minimal fuss! You won’t need any fancy electric mixers or even a whisk. These easy ginger cookies come together beautifully with just a sturdy wooden spoon, making them the perfect low-stress holiday cookie for beginners and experienced bakers alike. Here are a few essential tools that will help you:
In addition to a large mixing bowl and a wooden spoon, consider having a baking sheet (preferably lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat for easy cleanup and even baking) and a cooling rack ready. These humble tools are all you need to create a batch of these fantastic chewy ginger crackles!
Troubleshooting: Why Don’t My Ginger Cookies Crackle on Top?
Achieving those perfect crinkles is key to the charm of these ginger crinkle cookies. If your cookies aren’t developing those beautiful cracks, the most common culprit is an oven that isn’t hot enough. The rapid temperature change is crucial for the outer layer to set quickly before the inside expands. An accurate oven temperature ensures this process happens correctly. You can easily check the calibration of your oven with an oven thermometer to make sure it’s fully preheated and maintaining the correct temperature throughout baking. Additionally, ensure your dough balls are rolled thoroughly in powdered sugar, as this coating greatly assists in the crinkling process.
Troubleshooting: Why Are My Crinkle Cookies Flat?
Flat cookies can be disappointing, but thankfully, this issue is usually easy to resolve with a few adjustments. There are a couple of primary reasons your ginger crinkle cookies might be spreading too much:
- Insufficient Chilling: Chilling the dough is a critical step that often gets overlooked. Cold dough is firmer and less likely to spread quickly when it hits the warm baking sheet. It allows the butter (or in this case, oil) to solidify, providing a more stable structure. Make sure you chill your dough for at least an hour, or even longer if time allows, before scooping and rolling. This step also helps the powdered sugar adhere better, contributing to a more pronounced crinkle.
- Incorrect Flour Measurement: While cake mix takes care of most of the dry ingredients, the added all-purpose flour plays a vital role in the dough’s consistency. Too little flour can lead to a dough that is too wet and spreads excessively, resulting in flat cookies. To ensure accuracy, especially with flour, I highly recommend using a kitchen scale to measure by weight (32 grams for ¼ cup) rather than volume. This eliminates inconsistencies that can occur from packing flour differently into measuring cups.
By paying attention to these details, you’ll be well on your way to perfectly plump, crinkled, and chewy ginger crackles!
Molasses Ginger Crinkle Cookies: Expert Tips and FAQs
Mastering these delightful molasses ginger crinkle cookies is easy with a few key tips and answers to common questions:
Chilling the dough is a non-negotiable step for perfect ginger crinkle cookies. Cold dough is much easier to handle, allowing you to form perfectly round cookie balls without them becoming sticky. More importantly, chilling prevents the powdered sugar from melting into the dough, ensuring that beautiful white coating remains intact to create dramatic crinkles. Aim for at least 1 hour of chilling, but a bit longer won’t hurt!
Don’t just lightly dust these soft ginger cookies! The method I recommend is to firmly roll each dough ball into the powdered sugar, pressing gently but deliberately to ensure the sugar adheres to all sides. This firm coating is essential for a pronounced crinkle effect. After coating, allow any excess sugar to fall off before placing the dough on your baking sheet to prevent large clumps of sugar on your finished cookies, which can burn or create an uneven texture.
The type of molasses you choose can significantly impact the flavor and texture of your ginger crinkle cookies. Molasses varies widely in sweetness, consistency, and whether it’s sulphured or unsulphured. For this old-fashioned ginger crinkle cookies recipe, mild unsulphured molasses is paramount. Unsulphured molasses is typically sweeter and free of preservatives. It comes in mild, dark, and blackstrap varieties. Mild unsulphured molasses provides a balanced, less bitter flavor, making it perfect for baking. I specifically recommend Grandma’s Original Molasses or a similar light unsulphured brand for the best results, as it enhances the classic gingerbread spice without overwhelming it.
While some gingerbread cookies are designed to be crisp, these molasses ginger crinkle cookies are meant to be beautifully soft and delightfully chewy! The oil and molasses in the recipe contribute to their tender interior, while the light crunch from the powdered sugar coating offers a pleasant textural contrast.
These chewy ginger crackles stay fresh and delicious when stored properly. You can keep them in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. For longer storage, they freeze beautifully for up to 2 months. Simply thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to enjoy them again!
While a spice cake mix is recommended for traditional gingerbread flavor, you can certainly experiment! A yellow cake mix or even a vanilla cake mix could work, but you’ll want to increase the ground ginger and cinnamon significantly, and potentially add a touch of nutmeg or cloves to achieve that signature spicy gingerbread profile.
Absolutely! These soft ginger cookies are wonderful as is, but you can enhance them with various mix-ins. Consider adding white chocolate chips for a sweet contrast, finely chopped candied ginger for an extra spicy kick, or even a handful of chopped pecans for a delightful crunch. Just fold them into the dough after mixing all other ingredients.
If you try this delightful recipe, I would absolutely love it if you could leave a star review rating and comment below! Your feedback is invaluable and it’s so wonderful hearing about your baking adventures. And don’t forget to share your delicious creations with me by tagging @chenee_today on Instagram!
More Irresistible Holiday Cookie Recipes You’ll Love
The holiday season is synonymous with baking, and there’s nothing quite like a homemade cookie to spread cheer. If these spicy ginger crinkle cookies have ignited your festive baking spirit, here are more delightful Christmas cookie recipes to add to your repertoire. From classic flavors to unique twists, these recipes are perfect for cookie exchanges, gift-giving, or simply enjoying with a warm cup of cocoa:
- Peppermint White Chocolate Sugar Cookies: A dazzling combination of cool mint and sweet white chocolate.
- No Chill Gingerbread Cookies with Stout and Brown Butter Cream Cheese Frosting: A sophisticated take on classic gingerbread, surprisingly easy to make.
- No Spread Sugar Cookies: Perfect for cut-out designs, these cookies hold their shape beautifully.
- Salted Caramel Thumbprint Cookies with Cinnamon Sugar: A sweet and salty treat with a delightful chewy texture.
- Lemon Curd Cookies: Bright and zesty, offering a refreshing contrast to traditional holiday flavors.
- Cranberry White Chocolate Shortbread Cookies: Elegant and buttery, with bursts of tart cranberry and sweet white chocolate.
📖 Recipe
Ginger Crinkle Cookies
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Equipment you may need
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¾ sheet baking pan
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silicone baking mat
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parchment paper
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mixing bowls
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wooden spoon
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measuring cups and spoons
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cooling rack
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plastic wrap
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup unsulphured molasses – you’ll want mild/light unsulphured molasses
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 15.25-oz spice cake mix
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour – (32 grams)
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup powdered sugar – for rolling
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C) and prepare a large baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or a silicone baking liner. This ensures easy release and even baking for your ginger crinkle cookies.
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In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except the powdered sugar. Use a sturdy mixing spoon to stir everything together until it is fully combined and forms a thick, uniform dough. This dough will be sticky.⅓ cup unsulphured molasses, 2 teaspoon ground ginger, 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 15.25-oz spice cake mix, ¼ cup all-purpose flour, ⅓ cup vegetable oil, 2 large eggs
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Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and chill the dough in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. This crucial step helps the dough firm up, making it easier to roll and preventing the cookies from spreading too much during baking, ensuring beautiful chewy ginger crackles.
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Once chilled, roll the dough into 1-inch (2.5 cm) balls. Then, roll each ball generously into the powdered sugar, pressing down firmly to ensure the sugar adheres well to all sides. A thick coating is key for pronounced crinkles.1 cup powdered sugar
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Place the coated dough balls about 2 inches (5 cm) apart on your prepared baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. The cookies should be set around the edges but still appear soft in the center for that perfect chewy texture.
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Allow the gingerbread crinkle cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before carefully transferring them to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. This helps them set up without breaking and further develops their texture.
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