If you love molasses, these soft Gluten Free Molasses Cookies are for you. I used classic blackstrap molasses to give this old-fashioned molasses cookie recipe a huge amount of flavor!
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I often think about family recipes and how to make them gluten free. I am almost obsessive as I get older because I want to ensure these recipes are preserved for my kids.
If you are a cookie fanatic, check out all of my Gluten Free Holiday Cookies for even more delicious cookie recipes to try!
Why my husband loves these gluten free molasses cookies:
- These old-fashioned molasses cookies are really easy to make.
- You can enjoy these delicious soft gluten free molasses cookies all year long!
- No specialty ingredients exist, and you can find everything you need at your local grocery store.
You may also love this simple Gluten Free Pumpkin Molasses Cookies recipe.
Made these Molasses cookies for the first time and they are delicious and really easy to make. Thank you so much for this recipe.”
bev, blog comment
Flour Blends Tested:
- King Arthur Measure for Measure—This blend works really well in my recipes. I don’t have to let the flour blend rest in the batter.
- Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 Blend—This blend also works well, but this flour blend does benefit from resting the batter for 15 minutes before baking. The rest allows the rice flour in this blend to soften, so you don’t have gritty baked goods.
Ingredient Notes:
For the full list of ingredients and amounts, please go to the recipe card below.
- Gluten Free Flour – I tested this recipe with the two blends above. Other blends should also work well.
- Xanthan or Guar Gum – If your flour blend doesn’t contain one, add a teaspoon.
- Molasses – Use regular or blackstrap molasses.
- Eggs – Use size large.
- Butter – Please use unsalted butter. If you are dairy-free, use Earth Balance.
- Molasses – Most molasses should be gluten free, but check my gluten free molasses list to ensure your brand is safe.
Step-By-Step Photos and Directions:
It is so easy to make this gluten free molasses cookies recipe. All you need is 20 minutes to make them. Preheat the oven to 350º F and check to ensure the rack is in the middle position.
Step 1: Add the dry ingredients to a large
Step 2: Add the wet ingredients to a medium-sized bowl and whisk to blend.
Note you can use a standing mixer with a paddle attachment to mix the cookie dough if you prefer.
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Your wet ingredients will look like this when whisked. I love the deep brown color!
Step 3: Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Like in this picture, Your gluten-free molasses cookie dough will be a little stiff.
📢 Sandi says: Every gluten-free flour blend has a different starch-to-grain ratio. The brand of gluten-free flour you use will affect the moisture of the batter. If your cake batter is too runny, add more flour, and if it is too thick, add more liquids.
Read Why Gluten-Free Flour Blends Vary to learn more about this.
Step 4: Use a cookie scoop to drop cookie dough balls onto a parchment paper-lined
Step 5: For best results, I like to smoosh the cookies down a bit. You can use the bottom of a glass or a fork to press cross marks on the cookies. This will help flatten the cookies a bit before baking.
Optional: Sprinkle coarse sugar over each cookie. Bake at 350º F for 10 minutes. Remove the baked cookies from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack. Enjoy!!
Cookie Baking Tips:
- Use room-temperature butter and eggs. This dramatically helps how your cookies will turn out. You’ll thank yourself later if you try it.
- Take special care to measure correctly. If you add in too much gluten free flour or other ingredients, it can mess with the cookies as they bake. If they don’t have the proper ratios of ingredients, you may end up with a disaster.
- Chill the dough when possible. I know you are probably ready to eat your cookies right now, but taking a few minutes to chill the batter makes them less likely to spread.
- Your oven temperature may be off. Periodically, check your oven temperature to make sure it’s right. Otherwise, the cookies will, for sure, spread if it’s not accurate.
- Don’t let the cookies sit on the pan too long. After they have baked, only let them sit for up to 5 minutes on the baking sheet. The pan will still be hot, so continue baking them otherwise.
For more baking tips, check out my Gluten Free Baking Tips.
Frequently Asked Questions:
Most molasses should be gluten free. Check this article to see if your brand of molasses is gluten free.
Store the cookies in an airtight container in the fridge. They will keep fresh for up to four days.
Unfortunately, the dough is too soft to use cookie cutters. You can thicken the dough with additional flour if you want to use cookie cutters.
Yes, you can easily freeze these cookies. Place room-temperature cookies into a freezer-safe bag. They will keep fresh for up to four months in the freezer.
Gluten Free Cookies With Molasses:
- Gluten Free Pfeffernusse Cookies
- Easy Gluten Free Gingerdoodles
- Gluten Free Gingerbread Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Gluten Free Gingerbread Biscotti (decorated like Christmas trees!)
Love This Recipe?
If you made and enjoyed this recipe, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a comment below. Please include which flour blend you used. This will help others know this recipe is delicious. Thank you!
Gluten Free Molasses Cookies
Equipment
- Cookie sheet
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- ½ cup cane sugar
- ¼ cup molasses
- 1 large egg
- 1 ½ cups gluten free flour blend * see note
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder aluminum-free
- ¾ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large mixing bowl, add 1/2 cup cane sugar, 1 1/2 cups gluten free flour blend, 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder, 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger, and a dash of salt. Whisk to blend the ingredients.
- In a smaller mixing bowl, add 1/2 cup unsalted butter (partially melted), 1/4 cup molasses, and 1 large egg Whip them together with a whisk.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Use a cookie scoop to drop the cookie batter into balls on a cookie sheet.
- Use a fork to press the cookies down. (You can see this in the video!) Optional sprinkle course sugar on top of each cookie.
- Bake the molasses cookies for 10 minutes until done. The baking time can vary depending on the size of the cookies. Remove the cookies from the oven and slide them on the parchment paper onto a cooling rack.
Video
Notes
- You can make this recipe dairy-free by using vegan butter or coconut oil.
- I tested this recipe with Bob’s GF 1:1 blend. Other blends should work well. If your blend doesn’t contain xanthan gum or guar gum, add 1 teaspoon to your flour blend.
- Optional: sprinkle the cookies with coarse baking sugar before baking.
- These cookies will keep fresh for up to 4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. They also freeze well. Place cooled cookies into a zipper-style freezer bag. Squeeze out the extra air and place in the freezer.
SPECIAL NOTE
Please know that every gluten free flour blend has a different starch to grain ratio. If you use a blend I didn’t test, my rule of thumb is to add more flour if your dough or batter is wet and add more liquid if the dough or batter is too dry!
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
(*Note, this recipe was updated from a 3/2017 post on my old blog, Grandmas.)
You state in recipe note Bob’s red mill 1:1 flour but in the recipe the highlighted flour goes to amazon king arthur 1:1 flour, which is it
Both work great. I like King Arthur better because it isn’t as gritty, but if you use Bob’s, let the batter sit 15 minutes so the rice flour can soften.
Made these Molasses cookies for the first time and they are delicious and really easy to make. Thank you so much for this recipe.
I am so glad you loved the cookies, Bev. Thank you so much for coming back to let me know :-).
Good taste, and a soft cookie. Ovens are different so I had to bake a few minutes longer, and left them on the sheet pan for 5 minutes to help them stiffen. If you like a softer, fluffier crinkle, this is your cookie.
I also bumped up the flavor with a bit of allspice and a bit more clove. Great base recipe.
Allspice and clove sound like great additions. Thank you so much Berni!