Swedish Ginger Cookies

By Cathy Horyn

Updated Nov. 15, 2024

Swedish Ginger Cookies
Erwan Frotin for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Liza Jernow.
Total Time
About 30 minutes, after several hours' refrigeration
Rating
4(551)
Comments
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There is little good in any Christmas cookie except the thought behind it. This may be doubly true for Swedish ginger cookies, a recipe that I have cherished for years, but I often feel it should come with a special warning. The principal ingredient in a batch of Swedish ginger cookies — the one that really does the trick — is ¾ of a cup of bacon fat. You can never be too certain these days about what people will allow themselves to enjoy. Their ideas about what is good for them may be circumscribed by their upbringing, their religion or their proximity to a pig. However, I suspect that the Swedish cook who came up with this recipe was simply hemmed in by her larder. She had a pan of drippings and some extra sugar and spices, and she made a thin, brown cookie that tasted sweetly of smoke.

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Ingredients

  • ¾cup bacon fat, cooled (from 1½ to 2 pounds Oscar Mayer bacon)
  • 1cup sugar, plus ¼ cup for dusting the cookies
  • 4tablespoons dark molasses
  • 1large egg
  • 2cups all-purpose flour
  • 1½teaspoons kosher salt
  • 2teaspoons baking soda
  • 1teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1teaspoon ground cinnamon
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)

301 calories; 18 grams fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 7 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 31 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 296 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

  2. Step 2

    In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine all ingredients. Spin until dough forms.

  3. Step 3

    Chill the dough in the refrigerator for a few hours. Drop the dough in 1-tablespoon lumps on a cookie sheet, form into balls, roll in sugar, space 2 inches apart and press flat with fingers. Bake in the oven for about 10-12 minutes until dark brown. Let cool on baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a baking rack to finish cooling.

Ratings

4 out of 5
551 user ratings
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Comments

Sheila Beck

This recope is virtually identical to one I got from my aunt and have given it to many friends. She used butter, no bacon fat. They're wonderful!

April

Why wouldn't you want to cook two pounds of bacon? Could be the best part of this recipe!

Sarah Jane Watson

Question: Could lard be substituted for bacon fat? then you wouldn't have to cook 2 lbs. of bacon.

kate

I used rendered bacon fat I had laying around, not fresh/liquid bacon fat, and I believe that made it more of a challenge for my food processor. Recommend possibly heating the bacon fat to a liquid state if using previously rendered fat. Ended up mixing by hand, and turned out good!

Annya

I agree with 1 commenter that it’s too salty if you use salted butter. But I’m confused about this because I used half salted and half unsalted and adjusted the salt down and they still came out too salty. Also the recipe actually calls for bacon fat and oat bacon fat famously salty?? Also they spread much more than expected and I should have used twice as many baking trays but the end cookies were probably the right thickness so again I’m confused. But good cookies!

sassy

Wonderful cookie! Made the dough with roughly half bacon fat, half butter. Chilled in fridge overnight (ran out of time to bake). Baked them in 3 different ways over a few days; flattened balls (came out thin and crisp), thick lumps/spoonfuls (came out thick and a bit chewy), and last-added chocolate chips to the lumps (favorite way- came out delicious!!!) I love how versatile the dough is- so try it and get creative!

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