Molasses Cookies
This vegetarian builds vegetable shortening and molasses into a crowd-pleasing meal you can have ready in about 65 minutes. You'll find the full ingredient list (with a scaler to change the servings), 7 steps of method, substitutions, and ideas for what to serve alongside.
You'll mainly reach for oven and whisk. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention. As written, it's meat-free.
What you'll need
Shopping list (2)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
🔁 Unit converter
How to make it
- Preheat the oven to 175 C (350 F) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Stir the vinegar into the milk and set aside to sour for a few minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt.
- In a large bowl, cream the shortening and sugar together until light, then beat in the egg, molasses and the soured milk until smooth.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet, mixing until a soft dough forms, then chill the dough in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes to firm up.
- Roll the dough into walnut-sized balls, roll each one in the extra sugar, and place them about 5 cm apart on the prepared sheets.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until the tops are crackled and set but the centres still look slightly soft.
- Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
You'll use: Oven · Whisk · Baking sheet
Ingredient substitutions
- Milk
- any unsweetened plant milk · ½ cup evaporated milk + ½ cup water
Tips & common questions
How long does Molasses Cookies take to make?
About 65 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 12 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of milk?
Try any unsweetened plant milk. See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
Is Molasses Cookies vegetarian?
Its ingredients contain no meat or fish, so it's suitable for vegetarians. Check any cheeses for animal rennet if that matters to you.
Related recipes
Molasses Cookies is an original recipe developed in-house by Consomee. Photo: Blackstrapmolasses.JPG by Badagnani, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure on top — how we source recipes.