Soft Molasses Cookies (gluten-free + egg-free + vegan)
Welcome to Christmas Cookie season! Today I am sharing my recipe for gluten-free and egg-free soft molasses cookies. These cookies are delicious and so easy to make, I am sure you will enjoy them. Although I normally use Sucanat to sweeten them (unrefined dried cane juice), I have also tried making them using coconut sugar. I brought a batch, made with coconut sugar, to our large Thanksgiving gathering this year and they were a hit with the children! I have a 2-pound bag of coconut sugar I am giving away today, so be sure to leave a comment to enter!
The trick to making perfect molasses cookies is to CHILL the dough for at least an hour or more! If you are hasty and don't wait for the dough to chill completely, the fat will spread quickly while baking before the other ingredients have a chance to set up. This leads to very flat, thin cookies. The dough can actually be chilled for days before baking. I store mine in a large, tightly covered glass container. I don't use plastic wrap if I don't have too.
Soft Molasses Cookies
Soft, warm molasses cookies straight from my mother’s kitchen were one of my favorite cookies as a child. I love the rich flavor of molasses combined with the warming, spicy flavors of the cinnamon and ginger. Here I have made them vegan and gluten-free, and still just as delicious as I remember them.
Dry Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- To start, make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature, especially the applesauce.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together the sorghum flour, tapioca flour, baking soda, xanthan gum, sea salt, cinnamon, and ginger.
- In a separate mixing bowl, beat the palm shortening, sugar, and molasses together with an electric mixer. Add the applesauce, vanilla, and ground flax seeds; beat for another 60 seconds.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and beat together. Continue to beat for another minute or until the ingredients are well-combined and the dough thickens.
- Cover bowl with a plate and chill dough in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour (or place dough in a sealed glass container for longer chilling).
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a large cookie sheet.
- Remove bowl from refrigerator and form dough into little balls with the palms of your hands. Place each ball on the greased cookie sheet spaced out by about 2 inches.
- Bake for approximately 12 to 15 minutes (shorter for smaller cookies, longer for larger cookies). Watch carefully as the cookies can burn easily. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.
Use this recipe in our Meal Planner
About the Author
Ali Segersten
Alissa Segersten holds a Bachelor's of Science in Nutrition from Bastyr University and a Master’s of Science in Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine from the University of Western States. She is a Functional Nutritionist, the mother of five children, a whole foods cooking instructor, professional recipe developer, and cookbook author. She is passionate about helping others find a diet that will truly nourish them. Alissa is the author of two very popular gluten-free, whole foods cookbooks and guidebooks: The Whole Life Nutrition Cookbook and Nourishing Meals. She is also the co-author of The Elimination Diet book. Alissa is the founder and owner of Nourishing Meals®.Nourishing Meals Newsletter
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Comments
This is a great recipe. Thanks for sharing it.
Thank you, Ali. After five years of a gluten and dairy-free diet you've opened up a whole new world in cooking and baking. I've enjoyed your cookbook, classes and the blog. Cooking and entertaining are so fun again. Happy Holidays and many blessings to you and to your family. Diane from Olympia
I have never used coconut sugar before but I do bake and cook with coconut flour and coconut oil. I would love to add coconut sugar to my coconut collection.
I made these cookies and they are amazing - soft on the inside and crisp around the edges. Perfect!
I also have a belated comment about the chocolate tart for Thanksgiving. Everyone loved it, I used about 1/2 of the nut and cranberry mixture and sprinkled some on the top for decoration/. I shared some with my neighbors and they also raved about it. Thanks!!
Deb
I really appreciate all the time you take to share your recipes and nutrition tips. For those of us who are trying to eat healthier and/or need to avoid certain ingredients, your site is invaluable. These cookies look great.
Yum! Love the blog and my wife and I will love undoubtedly devour these tasty treats!! Keep posting!!
I love molasses cookies! SOunds delicious!
This recipe looks delicious!
Love your blog :)
I just found your blog and am looking forward to trying some new recipes!
Ali,
Your recipes are just great. Can't wait to use this soft molasses cookie recipe. I can already taste them.
Thanks,
Page C.
The cookies look great , but the free sugar is even better. I promise I will check to see if I won!
I love soft and chewy cookies! It would be fun to try the recipe with coconut sugar. I've never seen it in stores.
These look yummy and are a great way to easily get extra iron into my anemic little silly. Just curious do you think it would work just as well with butter instead of shortening?
O my! Must try coconut sugar! Thank you so much for the tips.
I LOVE molasses cookies and have tried other gf recipes that just haven't done it for me like my grandma's old fashioned ones. These look AMAZING and I can't wait to try them! Like always, your creations are devine and have brought the joy of baking back into my life. Thank you so much. Please enter me in the drawing for the coconut sugar.--The Other Aly (jeffnaly@hotmail.com)
Looks delish!
Hooray for coconut sugar!
yes, more cookie recipes! i'd love to try thr coconut sugar.
I have been hungry for molasses cookies. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I love molasses cookies, I can't wait to try these! I've never tried coconut sugar, or even seen it in the store. Thanks for all the great ideas!
Ali,
these cookies are the best molasses cookies I've tasted! I love the fact that they are soft and chewy - not hard and crisp like many that come from the store.
I'll add these to my Christmas cookie tray for sure! Thanks for another great sweet treat!
These cookies look wonderful! I just made the Almond Butter Chocolate Chip cookies and they are AMAZING! I look forward to trying these also! Thanks!
Thanks for the tip about chilling the dough. I'll have to try that next time.
I am excited to try coconut sugar! My husband loves molasses/spice cookies the most so I'll be making these soon. Only question is if the palm shortening is necessary or if I could sub coconut oil. I actually don't even know what palm shortening is so I'll need to look into it. I'm assuming it's not hydrogenated but I always assume that when I see the word shortening.
Thanks for the recipe!
Wow, these cookies look amazing!! I recently found your blog and love it! Just made your wholegrain flat bread for the 4th time tonight and I never get bored with it! Please enter me in the drawing for the coconut sugar.
Katie R.
Delicious! These cookies look like the perfect treat for this week of chilly Northwest weather. Thank you!
oh my word, Soft Molasses Cookies are my favorite, thanks for this gluten-free recipe
Thanks for the recipe! I can't be with my grandmother this Christmas, but these cookies can bring her spirit to me.
Yummy more cookie recipe! i'd love to try some coconut sugar.
I would love to win a bag of coconut sugar! Thanks for the giveaway Ali!
I'm planning on baking these cookies tomorrow. Can't wait!
Lara
I just made a batch of the gingerbread cut-out cookies (from your book) today and I am having a hard time restraining myself from eating all of them. I imagine these are just as delightful!
Those almond butter cookies were amazing too. So many sweet treats! Yum!
I'm making these cookies right now (seriously, right now). Just picked up some organic palm shortening (I've never used it before) and stopped back by to copy the recipe. I have an "event" to go to tomorrow. I'm bringing the cookies. Can't wait to try them. They look perfect, especially for the holidays. Thanks!
Melissa
xo
Hi Ali,
I've been looking for coconut sugar and haven't found it yet. This would be great. Thanks for all the great recipes. I made your pumpkin "cheesecake" on Thanksgiving and it was a hit...even with my 13 year-old step-son. Thanks for all you do! Taylor
Thank you so much for sharing your recipes. I'd love to try coconut sugar in some baking this holiday. Thanks for the giveaway!
These cookies are my favorite! As a kid, these were the ones that really made Christmas for me. Thanks for the recipe.
Hi Ali,
These sound so good! The perfect accompaniment to my daily cup of chai! Maybe I'll surprise my family and bake a batch this weekend! I find that I'm more likely to bake cookies if I can freeze them into a log, cut, place on parchment-lined cookie sheets, and pop them in the oven (the less handling time the better for me). Do you think that would work for this recipe?
Thanks again for all your amazing recipes!
K Carlton
The only problem with refrigerating cookie dough is that much of it ends up in my tummy instead of the oven.
This particular recipe looks outstanding. Can't wait to try it!
I've never used coconut sugar - but soft molasses cookies are my all-time favorite! I'd love to try this recipe!
I love molasses cookies and afraid I would miss out going gluten free. But now I won't!
hmm... coconut sugar, would be interesting to try that out and the molasses cookies look just like the ones I make. have to try your recipe!
Valerie
Yummy!! These look delicious! Do you think I could substitute whole-wheat flour, kamut or spelt instead of the sorghum? What about buckwheat flour?
I need to eat more molasses so these sound like a great way to include it in some yummy treats!
Also I was wondering if you thought the palm shortening could be substituted for coconut oil or if I could diminish the oil in the recipe and replace maybe with more applesauce...?
Thanks for all your inspiring recipes and stories!
Sacha
Recipe looks yummy! Will be a nice spin on a recipe my mom always makes during the Holidays. Hope I win the sugar because I don't know where to find it :-D
A simple cookie idea with a little spice! Thanks, my kids miss cookies.
Heidi
I love all things coconut! These cookies sound so yummy I can smell the spices warming up my kitchen already. Thanks for sharing!
Can't wait to try these. I am so thankful for all your amazing recipes! Thanks for continuing to post them!
Just posted to our GFCF group on facebook too! :)
Yummmm! My favorite holiday cookie, and my first year with gluten free baking. :)
ANYTHING with ginger and molasses is a winner! Any substitutes OK for xantham gum?
These look SO yummy!!!! Thanks for the recipe!
Jen D
Yummy, I can't wait to make these. We love gingerbread, spice cookies, etc. but often the gf family members are left out!