New England Hermit Cookie Bars

Name: New England Hermit Cookie Bars
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 17 min
Total time: 37 min
Ingredients: 4 cups all purpose flour; 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon baking powder; 1 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (If you have whole cloves you will need a mortar and pestle to grind them up); 2 cups brown sugar (packed); 1 cup butter (softened - preferably unsalted); 2/3 cup molasses; 2 large eggs; 2 cups raisins

With a delightful resemblance to gingerbread cookies, these New England Hermit Cookie Bars are delectable treats that boast a soft and chewy texture, crafted with a harmonious blend of ginger, molasses, and raisins.

Table of Contents

Ingredients

Flour: Provides the structure for the cookie bars.
Warm spices: Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves all give these cookie bars a delicious, warm, autumn-like taste.
Baking powder & baking soda: While these cookie bars don’t need to rise a whole lot, the baking powder and soda do give the necessary lift.
Salt: Balances out the sweetness, and enhances the flavors of the other ingredients.
Brown sugar: Has a deeper, richer flavor of sweet compared to white sugar.
Butter: Adds moisture to the dough.
Molasses: Aids in giving the signature flavor to many baked goods, including gingerbread, as it has a darker, more caramel like flavor.
Eggs: Eggs act as the binding agent in baking cookies.
Raisins: Adds texture and pockets of added sweetness to the hermit cookies.

Easy Substitutions

Swap the raisins. You could use other dried fruits or nuts in place of the raisins, like chopped walnuts or cranberries!
Add some chocolate. Plenty of people will throw in some chocolate chips with their hermit cookie bars.

When it comes to the perfect baked goods, I prefer them well balanced, soft, not overly sweet, with just a pinch of salt. A few of my favorites include pumpkin bars, my Ema’s Jewish apple cake, double dark chocolate cookies and my chewy healthy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. If you love gingerbread cookies, you MUST try my husband’s famous New England Hermit Cookie Bars.

A Boston Massachusetts native, when he was growing up he would find these cookies in a local bakery and purchase them by the bag for a couple of dollars. To how I understand it, these cookies date back to the Pilgrims. For long voyages these cookies travelled well in sea chests. What made them special was that they were dense and stayed moist for close to two weeks making them ideal for travel or prepping ahead.

They are cookies with a history dating back over 100 years!
Soft, chewy, and contain many fall spices!
Great to gift to friends and family or make for a party.
100% guarentee people will comment on how good they are!

A greased and floured jelly roll pan on a counter.

Step 1. Using Crisco and flour, grease your pan and set it aside.

Adding cinnamon to a mixing bowl of flour.

Step 2. Take a large mixing bowl and add the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.

Whisking flour with spices in a glass mixing bowl.

Step 3. Whisk all of the dry ingredients together, then set aside.

Adding sticks of butter to a glass bowl of a stand mixer.

Step 4. Add the brown sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer, then add the softened butter and cream together until fluffy and creamy.

Pouring Molasses into the bowl of a stand mixer.

Step 5. Pour in your molasses while mixing on low.

Adding two eggs to the bowl of a stand mixer.

Step 6. Add in your eggs, and mix until fully incorporated.

Pouring flour mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer with wet batter.

Step 7. With your mixer on low, slowly add your dry ingredients to the wet until fully mixed.

Slowly adding raisins to cookie dough in stand mixer bowl.

Step 8. Fold in your raisins, either with a wooden spoon or your mixer on the lowest setting.

Liz pressing out hermit bar dough onto a prepared baking pan.

Step 9. Take your dough and spread it evenly on your prepared baking sheet. Toss them in the oven at 350 for roughly 17 minutes.

Using a pizza cutter to cut baked hermit bars into squares.

Step 10. Let the hermit bars cool, then cut into squares with either a pizza cutter or a knife.

Picking up a New England hermit cookie bar off of a plate.

Serve and enjoy your New England Hermit Cookie Bars!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you store hermit cookies?

Hermit cookies store well. Up to a week in an airtight container at room temperature and they will still taste great!

Why are hermit cookies called hermits?

Because of it’s longevity, this cookie was often sent with sailors and other travelers as something to eat on longer journeys. So it traveled, as hermits often did.

What’s the easiest way to cut cookie bars?

Use a pizza cutter or knife and cut them into squares (or any shape you prefer).

New England hermit cookie bars cut into squares on a plate, with the rest of the tray in the background.

More Sweet Snacks

Did you try this recipe and like it? The next time you make it, snap a picture and share it to your socials! Tag @thelemonbowl and #thelemonbowl so we can admire and share your dish.

Whip up a batch of these soft and chewy hermit cookie bars for your next cookie swap, classroom party, hostess gift, or holiday open house!

No fork required.