Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies
Soft, chewy, and no eggs needed to make these Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies! I use Chinese Five Spice in this molasses cookie recipe, which gives these holiday cookies a little something special, and they'll have you wanting more!
If you are looking for more holiday cookie recipes, try Mexican Hot Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, Eggless Pumpkin Gingerbread Cookies, Chocolate Peppermint Crunch Cookies, or Sourdough Jam Thumbprints.
A Quick Look At The Recipe
- Recipe Name: Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies
- Ready In: 1 hour 27 minutes
- Makes: 24 cookies
- Main Ingredients: salted butter, dark brown sugar, all purpose flour, Chinese five spice
- Flavor Profile: spiced just right with rich molasses, tastes like Christmas!
- Dietary Info: eggless, no seed oils
- Difficulty: Easy!
- Why You’ll Love It: cozy, nostalgic spiced cookie that’s soft and chewy
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- Chinese Five Spice: I use my secret ingredient – Chinese Five Spice in this recipe to create warm and cozy sourdough molasses cookies that just taste like Christmas in your mouth!
- Rich & Sweet: I use molasses in these cookies along with dark brown sugar (which is totally crucial, people, don’t be lazy and substitute for light brown!). You really want that rich flavor in this recipe. This combination creates a dark, rich, and sweet cookie.
- Eggless Cookies: I take this recipe for sourdough holiday cookies one step further and they don’t require eggs! Eggs are incredibly expensive right now and many places are out of stock, which can be stressful when you are trying to bake holiday cookies! But do not worry, this recipe for Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies will fill that need to bake – no eggs needed! And make sure to check out my new book, Effortless Eggless Baking as well as Easy Egg Replacers for Baking.
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I am sharing another recipe that I created with my friend Hannah at Make It Dough. If you checked out Lemon Rosemary Sourdough Bread post, then you know she recently gave me some starter and I have been baking bread and all kinds of things!
Hannah and I have been obsessed with this recipe, to say the least. Both of us making these multiple times in a week! Soft, chewy, rich molasses flavor, and lightly spiced. These sourdough holiday cookies use my all time favorite holiday spice – Chinese Five Spice!
I love using this spice around the holidays as it's one ingredient with all the cozy vibes. My grandma used to share cookies made with Chinese Five Spice around Christmas and it will forever make me believe that this is the ultimate holiday spice! I can't wait for you to try these incredibly delicious sourdough molasses cookies!
Check out some of mine and Hannah's other collaboration recipes like Baked Chai Donuts with Sourdough Discard, Small Batch Chocolate Cake With Sourdough Discard, and Cranberry Orange Biscotti with Sourdough Discard.
Ingredients
- Butter: I use organic salted butter, but if using unsalted just add 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Check out Best Salted Butter for Baking for my top picks for butter in soft and chewy cookies.
- Dark Brown Sugar: I use my Homemade Dark Brown Sugar, but store bought also works. Using dark brown sugar really gives these cookies so much of their flavor!
- Blackstrap Molasses: I use Wholesome Organic Blackstrap Molasses. Check out my post Difference In Molasses and Blackstrap Molasses if you want to learn more about molasses.
- Sourdough Discard: You can use your sourdough discard straight from the fridge. If you don't have sourdough discard you can still make this recipe. Just use a 1:1 ratio of all purpose flour and water. So, for this recipe it would be 28 grams all purpose flour and 28 grams water. Mix it up and use that in place of sourdough discard.
- All Purpose Flour: Cairnspring Mills Organic All Purpose Flour
- Chinese Five Spice: Chinese five spice is a blend of 5 different spices. Depending on the brand, the spices can vary slightly. Frontier Co-Op Organic Chinese Five Spice is my favorite. This one is made up of organic cinnamon, fennel, cloves, star anise, and white pepper.
- Baking Soda: I use baking soda because these are cookies with an acid (brown sugar). Check out my post the Difference Between Baking Soda and Baking Powder for more info on leavening agents.
*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.
Baker's Tips for Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies
- It's always best to use a digital food scale whenever measuring as it's much more accurate.
- Make sure your butter is soft.
- You can use sourdough discard straight from the fridge.
- If you don't have Chinese Five Spice, get some! Kidding, but also not. Allspice is similar and would be delicious in this recipe too if you have that in your pantry.
- Be sure to store these in an airtight container so they stay soft and chewy.
- Vegan — Easily make these vegan by using vegan butter in place of regular butter. I recommend using Miyoko's for the best results.
- High Altitude — Bake at 375°F for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies look puffed and dry around the edges.
How to Make Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies
- Line one baking sheet with parchment paper. To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, dark brown sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract.
- Mix on low until combined, then speed mixer up to medium and continue to cream the butter mixture for 5 minutes, until it is noticeably lighter in color.
- Add the sourdough discard, flour, Chinese five spice, baking soda, and salt in that order.
- Mix on low until combined into a stiff dough.
- To make the topping: Add the cane sugar to a small bowl. Using your hands, or a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, form or scoop the dough into about 24 balls and roll them in the cane sugar. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Refrigerate the baking sheet for at least 1 hour, or you can refrigerate overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer half the cookie dough balls onto the second baking sheet, and space them all at least 1-inch apart.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies look puffed and dry around the edges. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheets. (If you're baking at high altitude, be sure to check the Notes at the bottom of the recipe for high altitude baking instructions).
Make Ahead Instructions
- Make the dough as instructed.
- Scoop the cookie dough, and roll in sugar (if planning to bake the following day). If planning to freeze, do not roll in sugar.
- You can then refrigerate the dough and bake the following day.
- Or, you can freeze the cookie dough balls on a tray until frozen. Then transfer to a zip bag. Store for up to 3 months.
- When ready to bake, remove frozen cookie dough and allow it to come to room temperature.
- Then roll the dough in the cane sugar and bake as instructed.
Recipe FAQ's
Yes, molasses makes cookies chewy which is one of the things I love about it. Molasses also provides a rich and dark flavor, and when combined with butter, sugar, and flour it makes the best chewy holiday cookies!
Absolutely not! If you are like me and hate cookie scooping, feel free to roll these into balls with your hands. This recipe uses a 1 ½ tablespoon cookie scoop, but you can just as easily use your hands and roll them into balls before rolling in the sugar. You could even use a 1 ½ tablespoon measuring spoon if you have one!
It can be difficult to tell when molasses cookies are done because they are already dark. So, using the standard visual cues like golden brown edges or bottoms, doesn’t really apply here. When checking if molasses cookies are done, you want to look at the center of the cookie and see if it looks set – that means dry, and not gooey. Second, you want to look at the outer edges, they should also look somewhat dry as well.
You can still make these Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies, even if you don’t have a sourdough starter. Hannah taught me that starter is just equal parts water and flour. So, if you don’t have starter, and would like to make these cookies, then add 1/4 cup and 57 grams organic all purpose flour to a bowl and mix it together. Use this as the starter that this recipe calls for!
These sourdough holiday cookies are soft and chewy, so they need to be stored in an airtight container. This can be a Tupperware, zip bag, or cookie jar that is airtight. You can also freeze them for up to 1 month.
Baking With Sourdough Discard
Adding sourdough discard to your baked goods is a wonderful way to use up something that would have been waste. The addition of sourdough discard in cookies can create a tangy and flavorful cookie. It also makes a great egg replacer!
Check out some more dessert recipes that use up sourdough discard like Sourdough Apple Pie, Sourdough Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes With Cream Cheese Frosting, Sourdough Chocolate Chip Brownies or Sourdough Chocolate Shortbread Cookies. And, check out sourdough molasses bread Sourdough Irish Brown Bread With Guinness for another recipes that combines sourdough bread with molasses.
More Holiday Cookie Recipes
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Eggless Sourdough Molasses Cookies
Equipment
- Digital Food Scale
- Stand Mixer
- Half Sheet Pan
- Parchment Paper Sheets
Ingredients
Dough
- 113 grams salted butter (softened)
- 113 grams cane sugar
- 113 grams dark brown sugar (packed)
- 85 grams blackstrap molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 57 grams sourdough discard
- 255 grams all purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon Chinese five spice
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
Topping
- 57 grams cane sugar
Instructions
- Line one baking sheet with parchment paper.
- To make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter, cane sugar, dark brown sugar, molasses, and vanilla extract. Mix on low until combined, then speed mixer up to medium and continue to cream the butter mixture for 5 minutes, until it is noticeably lighter in color.
- Add the sourdough discard, flour, Chinese five spice, baking soda, and salt in that order. Mix on low until combined into a stiff dough.
- To make the topping: Add the cane sugar to a small bowl.
- Using your hands, or a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop, form or scoop the dough into 24 balls and roll them in the cane sugar. Place on the prepared baking sheet.
- Refrigerate the baking sheet for at least 1 hour, or you can refrigerate overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Transfer half the cookie dough balls onto the second baking sheet, and space them all at least 1-inch apart.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies look puffed and dry around the edges. Allow to cool completely on the baking sheets.
- Store in an airtight container for up to 7 days.
Video
Notes
- It's always best to use a digital food scale whenever measuring as it's much more accurate.
- Make sure your butter is soft.
- You can use sourdough discard straight from the fridge.
- If you don't have Chinese Five Spice, get some! Kidding, but also not. Allspice is similar and would be delicious in this recipe too if you have that in your pantry.
- Be sure to store these in an airtight container so they stay soft and chewy.
- Vegan — Easily make these vegan by using vegan butter in place of regular butter. I recommend using Miyoko's for the best results.
- High Altitude — Bake at 375°F for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies look puffed and dry around the edges.
Nutrition
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These cookies are so cozy and perfectly spiced!