Grandma's Gingersnaps Recipe • Jessica Lynn Writes (2024)

I originally published this gingersnaps recipe back in 2011, but it desperately needed a refresher (not on the actual recipe—that hasn’t changed—just the post itself. New pictures to come after we make some fresh batches this year!

Jump to Recipe

Let’s just get this out of the way first: this gingersnaps recipe will change your life. They’re full of holiday spice, and come out perfectly soft and chewy with that classic “snap” baked in there, too.

Gingersnaps Recipe: a family recipe

Not to mention, but this gingersnaps recipe comes straight out of myfamily’s recipe book, and it dates back to 1962, which makes it even more special.

While my photo-copied page doesn’t look near as “worn” as the original, I still have fond memories every time I make them.

My History with Gingersnaps

Growing up, I developed a reputation during the holiday season at my house: it was assumed that I would take the most glorious nap on the couch while my younger brother and mom made Christmas goodies for alllllll the neighbors

I would start out helping by donning an apron and putting my hair in a messy bun, but somewhere between my favorite no-bake oatmeal cookies, the melt-in-your-mouth English toffee my mom made, mini-loaves of bread and countless other goodies, I’d come down with all the classic symptoms of needing a nap.

My eyes would get heavy, the yawning was more prominent, and the only thing I wanted to do was rest my head on a comfy pillow.

So that’s exactly what I would do.Every. Single. Year.

Luckily, my brother would help my mom finish the desserts while I dozed. Some help I was, right?

My mom was awesome and knew better, as moms usually do, and always saved one last cookie for me to help make after I had my nap: gingersnaps.

I loved making these, because they were so fun to create—my brother and I would roll them into tiny little balls, plop them in a bowl with sugar and sprinkle the tiny crystals all over them until you could hardly tell there was dough underneath.

Making Gingersnaps Today

These days I have flashbacks to all of those baking days (aka my glorious nap time) with my mom that I took for granted.

Thankfully, I’ve continued the tradition of having my kids help us with making these—rolling the dough into balls and dipping them in the sugar is their favorite part, just like it was for me.

Gingersnaps also happened to be my dad’s favorite cookie, which meant that besides quadrupling the recipe for the holiday bake-a-thon at our house, we’d also make them for his birthday and any other random just-because day.

In fact, we used to make so many of them so often that I swore off ginger for at least a decade. True story. I would find something else to eat or make if ginger was in any dish, because I had visions of gingersnaps dancing in my head.

Thankfully, I got over that ridiculousness and now enjoy ginger again. Especially with this gingersnaps recipe.

If you need a quick and easy cookie to make—especially with your little ones—this is it. It’s a staple on our holiday cookie baking menu.

Gingersnaps Recipe

This gingersnaps recipe makes around five dozen and they’ll keep for quite awhile, although I don’t know how since they’re so gosh-darn tasty!

Pro tip: Dunk them in your morning coffee (the way my dad used to) or enjoy them as-is, the flavor is magical and they practically melt in your mouth.

If you try these, please let me know what you think of them. They’re a favorite of ours, so I hope they’ll be a favorite for you, too!

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