A gingersnap is a crispy, spicy cookie flavored with ginger and other warm spices like cinnamon and cloves. The “snap” in the name describes the sound these cookies make when you break them: a satisfying crack that tells you they're properly crisp.

Gingersnaps get their distinctive taste from ground ginger root, which gives them a slightly hot, peppery flavor that tingles on your tongue. Bakers also add molasses or brown sugar, making the cookies dark brown and giving them a rich, almost caramel-like sweetness that balances the spice. Some recipes make them so hard and crunchy they're perfect for dunking in milk, while others bake them just soft enough to have a slight chew in the middle.

These cookies have been popular for hundreds of years, especially during winter holidays. Many families have treasured recipes passed down through generations. You might find gingersnaps shaped like regular round cookies, or cut into shapes like gingerbread people. The spices that make gingersnaps taste so good were once rare and expensive, brought by sailing ships from distant places, which made these cookies feel special and festive.