Here’s a different addition for your holiday cookie plate: soft chocolate cookies with fudgy centers that surprise with a burst of ginger. They are warming, wintery, and indulgent.
Why will you love these chocolate ginger cookies?
Ginger is a classic winter spice, but it’s not only for gingerbread. These cookies combine the pronounced, warming flavor of ginger with the indulgence of chocolate for a tasty, surprising combination. They have a lovely texture with soft, fudgy centers and chewy pieces of crystallized ginger. Unlike most Christmas desserts, these cookies are quick to mix with no special equipment required—just a few bowls and a hand whisk. Anyone can make them!
Chocolate ginger cookies ingredient notes
Ground ginger. To achieve a pronounced ginger flavor, we need a lot of it. If you prefer a milder flavor, though, you can reduce the amount by up to 30%. This way, the ginger flavor will still be noticeable but not so dominant.
Crystallized ginger pieces add extra bursts of ginger flavor and chewiness to the texture. Also, make these cookies double ginger!
Cocoa powder is the purest form of chocolate flavor. Since it tends to clump, be sure to sift it with flour to ensure it is evenly distributed through the dough.
A combination of brown sugars. I use light and dark brown sugar in these cookies to achieve a deep flavor and a chewy texture. The molasses in brown sugar reacts with the baking soda, which softens the texture and makes the cookies spread. Therefore, don’t substitute white sugar for brown sugar. If you don’t have dark muscovado sugar, replace it with an equal amount of light brown sugar.
Melted butter makes the process even simpler because you won’t have to wait for the butter to soften for creaming.
Chocolate chunks create melty chocolate puddles inside the cookie. You can replace them with chocolate chips if you have them on hand or prefer that the chocolate keep its shape in the oven.
Baking soda is an essential ingredient in chocolate chip cookies because it helps them spread. Don’t skip it!
Chocolate Ginger Cookies
- Beginner Friendly
Soft chocolate cookies with fudgy centers that surprise with a burst of ginger. They are warming, wintery, and indulgent.
Perform time: 15 min
Rest / Chill time: 2 h
Bake time: 12 min
Total time: 2 h 27 min
Ingredients
Yield: 12 cookies
- 120 g / 4.2 oz semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips (~50%)
- 100 g / 3.5 oz crystallized ginger
- 140 g / 4.9 oz wheat flour (all-purpose or plain)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 15 g / 0.5 oz ground ginger
- 20 g / 0.7 oz cocoa powder (Dutch processed)
- 100 g / 3.5 oz light brown sugar (unrefined, Demerara)
- 40 g / 1.4 oz dark Muscovado sugar
- 140 g / 4.9 oz unsalted butter (melted)
- 1 medium egg (~50 g / 1.8 oz)
Yield: 24 cookies
- 240 g / 8.4 oz semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips (~50%)
- 200 g / 7 oz crystallized ginger
- 280 g / 9.8 oz wheat flour (all-purpose or plain)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 30 g / 1.1 oz ground ginger
- 40 g / 1.4 oz cocoa powder (Dutch processed)
- 200 g / 7 oz light brown sugar (unrefined, Demerara)
- 80 g / 2.8 oz dark Muscovado sugar
- 280 g / 9.8 oz unsalted butter (melted)
- 2 medium eggs (~100 g / 3.5 oz)
Yield: 36 cookies
- 360 g / 12.6 oz semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips (~50%)
- 300 g / 10.5 oz crystallized ginger
- 420 g / 14.7 oz wheat flour (all-purpose or plain)
- 1½ tsp baking soda
- ¾ tsp salt
- 45 g / 1.6 oz ground ginger
- 60 g / 2.1 oz cocoa powder (Dutch processed)
- 300 g / 10.5 oz light brown sugar (unrefined, Demerara)
- 120 g / 4.2 oz dark Muscovado sugar
- 420 g / 14.7 oz unsalted butter (melted)
- 3 medium eggs (~150 g / 5.3 oz)
Yield: 48 cookies
- 480 g / 16.8 oz semisweet chocolate or chocolate chips (~50%)
- 400 g / 14 oz crystallized ginger
- 560 g / 19.6 oz wheat flour (all-purpose or plain)
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 60 g / 2.1 oz ground ginger
- 80 g / 2.8 oz cocoa powder (Dutch processed)
- 400 g / 14 oz light brown sugar (unrefined, Demerara)
- 160 g / 5.6 oz dark Muscovado sugar
- 560 g / 19.6 oz unsalted butter (melted)
- 4 medium eggs (~200 g / 7 oz)
Directions
1.
Roughly chop the chocolate and cut the crystallized ginger into smaller pieces. Set some of each aside for decoration.
2.
In a bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, and cocoa powder. Mix well and set the mixture aside.
3.
In a separate bowl, combine both sugars and melted butter. Mix through.
4.
Add the egg and mix until the consistency is even.
5.
If you still see some large dark sugar lumps, press them against the side of the bowl with the spoon to break them up.
6.
Sift in the flour mixture and add the chocolate chunks and crystallized ginger pieces. Mix just until the dough comes together and there is no visible dry flour left. The dough will be soft and greasy.
7.
Refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours.
8.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow it to sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes, or until it is scoopable. However, do not allow it to soften completely.
9.
Use a scoop to portion the dough, then shape the balls with your hands.
10.
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F (without a fan).
11.
Place the dough balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving a generous amount of space between each ball.
12.
Slightly flatten the balls with your hands to encourage spreading.
13.
Bake one sheet at a time on the middle rack of the oven for 10-12 minutes. The cookies are done when the edges are set yet soft, but the centers are still very soft and even look underbaked. You shouldn’t be able to lift the cookies from the sheet yet.
14.
Decorate the cookies with the chocolate chunks and crystallized ginger pieces you set aside earlier while they are still hot and soft.
15.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet until they are firm enough to lift. Then, transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
Extra tips for success
These cookies have a strong ginger flavor. If you prefer, you can reduce the ground ginger amount by 30%, so it’s still noticeable, but milder.
Both cocoa powder and ground ginger tend to clump together. Sift the flour mixture into the dough to remove the lumps, ensuring an even texture and flavor.
You can use chocolate chips instead of chocolate chunks, if you prefer. The chocolate chips will keep their shape in the oven, while the chocolate chunks will melt and create chocolate puddles.
If you would like to store the dough in the refrigerator for an extended period of time, be sure to cover it well with plastic wrap. The dough can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.
Place the dough balls on a cool baking sheet. If you only have one baking sheet, wait until it fully cools after baking the first batch. If you put dough balls on a hot baking sheet, they will spread too much and bake too quickly.
Don’t overbake your cookies! Remove them from the oven when their centers are still very soft; they will firm up as they cool. If you overbake, you will lose soft, gooey centers, and your cookies will be crunchier and dry up more quickly.
Storage directions
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. After that, the cookies will dry out.
