Gingerbread Blossoms
These soft-baked gingerbread blossom cookies are packed with warm spices like ginger, cinnamon, and molasses, then rolled in sugar for a sweet, crackled finish. Once baked, each cookie is crowned with a Hershey's Hug or Kiss, creating a delicious holiday-worthy treat that perfectly balances rich spiced flavor with creamy chocolate.
Equipment
Ingredients
Cookies
- 2 ¾ cups (388 g) plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 ¼ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 12 Tbsp salted butter room temperature
- ½ cup (100 g) packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 7 Tbsp molasses *see note
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
For finishing
- ½ cup granulated sugar for rolling
- About 32 Hershey’s Hugs or Kisses
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg.
- In a large bowl, using a hand mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar for about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides as needed. Add the molasses, eggs and vanilla and mix until as combined as you can get it. *see note.
- Add the dry ingredients into the large bowl and mix until combined. Cover the bowl and refrigerate at least an hour.
- Scoop about ½ cup granulated sugar into a small bowl and set aside. Preheat your oven to 350°F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper during the last about 20 minutes of refrigeration time.
- Scoop the dough into 1 ½ tablespoon sized balls then roll the cookies in the bowl of sugar and place a few inches apart on the baking sheet. Bake for about 11-14 minutes or until the edges appear set. Try not to overbake.
- Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Remove from the baking sheet and press a Hug or Kiss into the center of each cookie. The chocolate will melt slightly but will firm up as the cookies cool. This can take up to 2 hours. If you want to speed up the process, you can place them in the freezer. Repeat this process until all the dough is baked.
Notes
- If you use unsalted butter, increase the salt in the cookies to ¾ teaspoon.
- *Don’t use blackstrap molasses. It will make your cookies more dry and bitter tasting.
- After you add the eggs and molasses the mixture may not fully combine and look slightly curdled. This is okay.
- You can use a stand mixer with a paddle attachment instead.
- Make sure to unwrap the chocolate before putting them on the cookies.
- I recommend refrigerating the dough for an hour. It’s more likely to spread while baking if you don’t. If you refrigerate longer than about 90 minutes, let the dough sit out at room temperature for about 15-30 minutes before rolling, depending on how long it’s been in the fridge. Refrigerate the dough up to 3-4 days before baking.
- Store Cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days.
- Flash freeze cookies in a single layer for 30 minutes before placing in a freezer bag for up to 3 months. This helps prevent the cookies from sticking together while freezing.
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