These Keto Ginger Molasses Cookies are a dream come true for cookie lovers. Thick, chewy, and with the perfect balance of sweet and spice, they always hit the spot. And they have only 2.3g net carbs per serving!
If you love gingery sweets, then these Keto Ginger Cookies are going to blow your mind. They blew my mind when I created them, and clearly others felt the same way. They continue to be a fan favorite, year after year.
They are everything you want in a ginger cookie. Soft and chewy, with a nice gingery kick and a hint of molasses. And when I say a hint, I really mean just a hint.
I put these on my platter of Keto Christmas Cookies every year and they are often the first to disappear!
Why you will love this recipe
This recipe was the first in which I added gelatin for a chewier consistency. And I was surprised and impressed at the difference it made. I use the same trick in other recipes, like keto brownies.
Keep in mind that these are not meant to be crisp like Keto Gingerbread Cookies. Gelatin works best in recipes that have a soft texture. It helps mimic the characteristics of a classic ginger molasses cookie.
One thing I love about this cookie recipe is how easy it is to make. I can whip up a big batch that serves 20 people in less than 40 minutes. They also store really well so you can make them ahead and freeze until needed.
Reader Testimonials
“Yay!! Ginger snaps/molasses cookies are my absolute favorite and I miss them being on Keto. These are amazing and hit all the notes perfectly!!” — SandyB
“I made a batch of these today for ROAD TRIP SNACKS. I’ve gotta say these are the BEST low carb/keto cookies I have EVER made, and I’ve made many. These are the closest to REAL cookies in taste and texture and I really, really thank you!” — Andrea
“I’m surprised as heck, but these cookies work! I’m so used to almond flour producing a product that crumbles very easily and these have a real chewiness.: — Becky
Ingredients you need
- Almond flour: As always, finely ground almond flour will make the best cookies, without a grainy texture.
- Grassfed gelatin: The addition of gelatin is key to a chewy consistency, so I don’t recommend skipping it. You can use Knox gelatin, and about 2 envelopes is sufficient for this recipe. You can also try replacing the gelatin with ½ cup of collagen peptides.
- Spices: Ginger cookies always include ground ginger, ground cinnamon, and either nutmeg or cloves. You can increase the ginger as much as you like. Some people like to double it in this recipe!
- Almond butter: I use almond butter in this recipe to increase the moisture and create a good thick cookie dough. You can use other nut butters, but peanut butter has a strong flavor and may overpower the spices.
- Swerve Brown: A brown sugar replacement adds more flavor to the cookies than granular white sweetener. I recommend Swerve Brown.
- Molasses: I add 2 teaspoons of real molasses to my cookies, for added color and flavor. You can omit this if you feel strongly about it, but it only adds about 0.5g of carbs per serving.
- Pantry staples: Eggs, butter, baking soda, vanilla extract.
Step by Step Directions
1. In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, gelatin, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and cloves.
2. In a large bowl, beat the butter, almond butter and sweetener until smooth. Beat in the eggs, molasses, and vanilla extract until well combined. Add the almond flour mixture and continue to beat until the dough comes together.
3. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place a few inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
4. Bake 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and gently press down a bit (to encourage them to spread). Return to the oven and bake another 7 minutes or so, until just barely golden brown. They will still be very soft. Remove and let cool completely on the pan.
Expert tips
Don’t press the cookies down from the start, when the dough is completely raw. This tends to make the edges crack. Allow the cookies to bake for 5 minutes first, to warm up the dough. Pressing down at this point helps them spread properly without making irregular, cracked edges.
Sweetener options: For best results, I recommend erythritol-based sweeteners. BochaSweet and allulose tend to make cookies more puffy and soft, rather than chewy. Allulose also browns very quickly during baking, which may make the cookies too dark.
Gelatin substitutes: You can omit the gelatin altogether, although the cookies will be less chewy. You can also add some collagen peptides, but you will need about half a cup to get the same chewiness. I am not sure that any vegetarian substitutes, like agar agar, will have the same effect. But you’re certainly welcome to experiment!
Frequently Asked Questions
These keto ginger cookies have 4.2g of carbs and 1.9g of fiber. That comes to 2.3g net carbs per serving of 2 cookies. And yes, that includes the molasses!
Adding gelatin goes along way to making keto cookies chewier. It is hygroscopic, meaning that it attracts and holds onto moisture during baking. This characteristic helps offset the lack of gluten and sugar in keto baked goods so that they don’t dry out as much.
Store the cookies in a covered container on the counter for up to 5 days, or in the fridge for up to 10 days. You can also freeze the cookies for up to 2 months. The raw dough freezes nicely as well. Thaw completely before rolling into balls and baking as directed.
More ginger recipes you will enjoy
- Keto Gingerbread Pound Cake
- Easy Gingerbread Waffles
- Sugar Free Gingerbread Latte
- Mini Keto Gingerbread Cheesecakes
- Keto Gingerbread Biscotti
Keto Ginger Cookies Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups almond flour
- 2 tablespoon grassfed gelatin
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup almond butter
- 1 cup Swerve Brown
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoon molasses (optional)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F and line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone liners.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the almond flour, gelatin, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and cloves.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter, almond butter and sweetener until smooth. Beat in the eggs, molasses, and vanilla extract until well combined. Add the almond flour mixture and continue to beat until the dough comes together.
- Roll the dough into 1 inch balls and place a few inches apart on the prepared baking sheet. You should get about 40 cookies.
- Bake 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and gently press down a bit (to encourage them to spread). Return to the oven and bake another 7 minutes or so, until just barely golden brown. They will still be very soft.
- Remove and let cool completely on the pan.
Sara says
Can I use reg sugar in this recipe instead if the Swerve?
Carolyn says
Sorry, I don’t use sugar so I really can’t advise.
Nancy Wimberly Caudill says
Hi Carolyn, thanks so much for making all out favorites fit this WOL!!! Do you have suggestions on how to make this like a ginger snap, cripsy & crunchy lnstead of soft & chewy?
Carolyn says
This is not the recipe for crisp cookies, but I do have a gingerbread men recipe. You can use the search box.
Paula says
The flavour was great but for some reason my dough came out very thin, more like a thick muffin batter. There was no way the dough could be rolled into balls and it didn’t need any flattening part way through baking to encourage spreading. They came out as fairly thin soft cookies, not chewy at all. I think I should have just poured the ‘dough’ into muffin tins!
No idea what went wrong since I followed the recipe to the letter but, since the flavour was excellent, I think I’ll try again in hopes of better results.
Carolyn says
You did not have enough flour. I can’t identify why without being in your kitchen but it is a dough, not a batter.
Judy Ayerst says
Haven’t baked them yet, same problem for me, added a little more flour and put the dough in the fridge to see if it’ll firm up a bit…. definitely more like a muffin batter
Carolyn says
What kind of almond flour and butter are you using?
Tracey says
Hi! could you use sugar tree syrup instead of molasses? if not is there a particular brand of molasses you use. I know I switched my almond flour and now only use Bob’s red mill. So much better!! thank you so much!
Carolyn says
I think you will need to experiment.
Stephanie says
Is there a substitute for the almond butter?
Carolyn says
Please read the blog post as I already address this question. 🙂
Cheryl says
absolutely the best! I roll top of cookie in sugar too.. 😋
Mari says
This recipe was sooooo good! I was looking for a recipe that I could make while visiting family. They came out so chewy and delicious, I was amazed… didn’t have the molasses, but made it with everything else.
Andrea says
Mine did not come out at all. Had to throw it all away. They spread way out and almost covered the whole sheet pan. They were too soft. And none of liked the taste. The only thing I didn’t add was the molasses because it’s not available where I live. Also I can’t get almond butter so I made my own out of fresh almonds. Could those two items made a difference?
Carolyn says
Yup, your homemade almond butter is the issue… it was probably quite oily and thin, so you needed more flour.
Becky says
I used organic brown sugar since I’m trying to avoid grains more than sugar. I wanted a delicious Christmas cookie and that’s what I got. The texture and flavor are on point.
Brigitte says
Hi Carolyn
I’m hoping I can use this recipe as the crust for a pumpkin pie Christmas Day.
Do you think this would be possible, or will it get soggy?
My grandchildren LOVE these cookies and they love pumpkin pie sooooo…..😊
Thanks for your help and Merry Christmas!
Beth Healey says
This recipe reminds me of my Mom’s chewy ginger molasses cookies. She rolled the balls in sugar and the. baked them. Gonna do that with my Lakanto granulated sweetener. Love this. Thank you for all your great recipes. So life saving!
Nate says
Hi Carolyn,
First question – no salt? That seems surprising to me?
Second question/comment – I bought that Yacon Syrup that you originally used in this recipe. You switched back to molasses so that yacon just not give the cookies enough flavor?
Carolyn says
There is salt: baking soda, almond butter, and butter. 🙂 That should suffice. Yacon is fine… I switched back ONLY because molasses is more readily available and a LOT less expensive.
Rebecca says
Can the dough be frozen for future baking?
Carolyn says
Please read the Frequently Asked Questions section.
leanneschwab86@gmail.com says
I don’t know what happened but mine came out soupy. I double checked what I was doing as I went along. I don’t know what the issue was.😥
Carolyn says
Cookies came out soupy? I don’t know what that means…
L says
Should we packing the Swerve Brown like we do conventional brown sugar ?
Carolyn says
It kind of packs itself but don’t jam it in there.
Heidi says
Can’t wait to try these! I don’t have almond butter and I’ve never used it before. Can this be made by processing almond flour in food processor?
Nick8 says
Hi there!
I hesitate to buy a pound of grass-fed gelatin, can I use Knox?
The pantry is sure looking different these days! ????
Carolyn says
Hi back! I’ve already addressed that in the blog post, under the Ingredients You Need section. 🙂
Dharmadreamer says
Do you think this would work without the sweetener? I am needing to make changes to take out any sweetener so would love your input please! Or do you have any other baked recipes without sweetener? thank you!
Carolyn says
I don’t think it would be great but you’re welcome to try.