Gingerbread Cookies: The Perfect Holiday Treat

If there is one recipe that’s synonymous with Christmas, it has to be gingerbread cookies. They come in different cutouts – Christmas trees, houses, snowman, sticks, and stars being the most common. These cookies are made with perfectly delicious and warming spices, like cinnamon and ginger. However, the best part of baking these cookies is the aroma, which spreads throughout the home instantly giving you major holiday feels!

How to make Gingerbread Cookies?

When it comes to winter baking flavors, ginger is the best spice you can think of.  No wonder then that gingerbread cookies are considered to be a Christmas classic. You can tinker around with different spices and add-ins for the recipe. Ginger pairs extremely well with various fruits, for instance, peaches or oranges. Once the cookies are made, you need to ice them, and a simple homemade frosting is a great option for that. You can make this frosting from scratch. So if you are planning to bake a fresh batch of gingerbread cookies this holiday season, we have the perfect recipe for you. Let’s get started!

Buttery Gingerbread Cookie Recipe

The perfectly decorated, delicious gingerbread cookies to make your holiday season special!

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Course: Dessert, Snack, Holiday Recipe

Cuisine: American

Keyword: gingerbread man, gingerbread, gingerbread cookies

Appliance: oven

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Servings: 45 cookies

Author: Ishani Bose

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Ingredients

• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 3 and 1/4 cups all-purpose flour ^[3]
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 3/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
• 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract ^[4]
• 1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
• 2 tsp orange zest ^[5] (optional)
• icing, sprinkles, toppings (as per your choice)

An easy-to-make icing recipe

• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract ^[6]
• 2 cups powdered sugar ^[7]
• 2-3 tbsp milk ^[8]

Instructions

• To make gingerbread cookies, first, combine powdered ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, all-purpose flour, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl and whisk vigorously till they are consistently and properly mixed. 
• Beat the unsalted butter and sugar together for two minutes in an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat the mixture on medium speed until it becomes fluffy and light. Once it's done, gradually reduce the speed of the mixer and add the flour mixture to it. Continue mixing it on low speed till it's properly combined. 
• Once the dough is prepared, divide it into two parts and form them each into balls. Thereafter gently flatten the balls using your hands into a 1-inch thick disk. Use plastic to wrap the disks and refrigerate it overnight. You can even refrigerate it for 2 hours if you prefer to keep it for a shorter duration. 
• Once the dough is properly chilled, set up the oven for baking. Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Now, take the dough out of the plastic and place it on a large, lightly-floured hard surface. Roll the dough evenly using a floured rolling pin. Continue to roll the dough until it is nearly 1/8-inch thick. Use your cookie cutter to carve out your desired shapes. You can re-roll the dough as and when you need to cut out more. Once done, transfer the cutouts to the baking sheets covered with parchment sheets. 
• Allow the cookies to bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or till they become crisp around the edges and on top. Remove the cookie-batch from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes, before transferring them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
• Once the cookies have cooled, decorate them with the desired icing or toppings. To make the icing, combine milk, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar in a large mixing bowl. Whisk the ingredients until the mixture becomes smooth. If you feel the icing is too thin, you can add more powdered sugar. On the contrary, if you find it too thick, add milk to it to get the consistency as per your choice. You can use a plastic squeeze bottle or a piping bag to apply the icing on the cookies. 
• Once done, you can store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 4-5 days. You can serve them with fresh sliced peaches.  You can also serve them with hot coffee or cinnamon tea.  

Notes

If you want the cookies to be crispy, roll the dough thin and bake them for a little longer than required. Of course, ensure that they don't end up getting burnt. 

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