Gingerbread Cookies Recipe

This easy Gingerbread Cookies Recipe is a must-make for the holidays. Decorated with colorful sprinkles and sweet icing, they’re like edible art you can share with family and friends, and they’re sure to spark a little nostalgia with every bite.

Easy Gingerbread Cookies Recipe

There’s nothing more classic at the holidays than a batch of gingerbread cookies or sugar cookies. I grew up baking Christmas cookies as a girl, and it’s a tradition I’ve loved passing down to my own family. Even though my kids are grown now, I can still see how much they cherish this simple, lifelong tradition and that means everything to me.

This scratch-made gingerbread cookie dough is incredibly versatile. Cut it into gingerbread men or gingerbread people, or use your favorite cutters to make stars, trees, bells, holly leaves, candy canes or any festive shape you love.

Checkout this quick list of key ingredients you’ll need to make soft Gingerbread Cookies Recipe: (Scroll down for full printable recipe card.)

• Flour – All purpose flour forms the base of the cookie dough.
• Spices – Ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, clove or allspice for a warm and cozy flavor profile.
• Leavening – Baking soda and salt give lift the dough.
• Whole Egg – One large egg stabilizes the cookie dough.
• Molasses – This gives the gingerbread cookies their signature flavor. (Not blackstrap molasses).
• Butter – Softened butter for richness.
• Sugar – Brown sugar for sweetness.
• Flavorings – Vanilla extract and orange zest enhance the flavor.
• Royal Icing – Powdered sugar, meringue powder, clear vanilla extract.
• Decorating – Sprinkles, sanding sugar in various colors for decorating the gingerbread men, trees, stars, angels etc.

How to Make Easy Gingerbread Cookies Recipe

• Creamed Ingredients – Use a mixer to cream together butter, brown sugar, and molasses in a large mixing bowl.
• Egg – Add egg, vanilla extract and zest. Mix well.
• Dry Ingredients – Use a whisk to sift together flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, clove, salt and nutmeg.
• Combine – On low speed gradually add flour mixture to the wet ingredients just until the dough comes together. (Don’t overmix)
• Chill The Gingerbread Cookie Dough – Divide dough in half and create two flattened discs. Wrap each in plastic wrap and chill until firm.
• Heat Oven Prepare Sheet Pans – Preheat oven to 350° and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Roll Cookie Dough – Use a rolling pin to roll dough on a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle. Cut into shapes using various shaped cookie cutters.
• Oven – Transfer to baking sheets. Bake per the recipe then cool on a wire rack and decorate.

Kitchen Equipment to Make Gingerbread Cookies

• A stand mixer or a hand mixer.
• Large mixing bowl, medium bowl and small bowls to make the icing.
• Rolling pin.
• Balloon whisk to sift the dry ingredients.
• Measuring cups and spoons.
• Cookie cutters in your favorite shapes.
• Baking sheet and cookie spatula.
• Wire rack.

Recipe Variations, Tips and Substitutions

• Allow Ample Time for Chilling the Dough – Do I have to chill the dough? Don’t skip the chill time. Even if the dough seems rollable after combining, the fats need time to firm so the gingerbread cookies will keep their shape while baking.
• Texture – In the instance of these gingerbread cookies, softened butter is better to use instead of melted butter. Creaming the butter together with sugar lends a soft and slightly, chewy fluffy texture to the gingerbread cookies. Melted butter will result in a more dense crunchy cookie.
• Start with Room Temperature Butter – Why soften the butter? If you forget to set the butter out to soften, you can utilize the soften feature on your microwave. Likewise, you could cube the butter to maximize the surface area to speed up the process on the counter. I would caution you from using the cook feature on the microwave, or it could melt unevenly resulting in partially softened and partially melted butter.
• Best Molasses For Making Gingerbread – The type of molasses you use for the cookie dough can make a difference. Grandma’s brand unsulphured molasses is what’s used in this recipe. Please note, different brands of molasses can vary in color once combined with the remaining ingredients.
• Spices – What spices are in gingerbread cookies? These cookies contain ground cinnamon, ginger, clove and nutmeg. You can change the amount of spices, if that’s your preference. If you loathe the flavor of  cloves, you could omit them or replace them with the same amount of allspice.
• Alternate Decorating Option – The most traditional way to make gingerbread cookies is to decorate them with royal icing. If you prefer less fuss, they can be frosted completely with icing, instead of piping designs, and sprinkled with edible glitter or seasonal sprinkles.

Storage and Leftovers

• Make-Ahead Tip – You can make the dough up to 2 days in advance and form into a flattened disc like you would pie crust, then wrap it in plastic wrap to chill. Allow a few minutes on the counter to soften just a tad so it will be easier to roll.
• Leftovers – You can store these homemade gingerbread cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
• Freezer – You can bake the gingerbread cookies and freeze them up to 2 months in advance and thaw and decorate them just before serving.
• Storing Decorated Cookies – After decorating, place them into an airtight container in a single layer to prevent smudging the decorations. If you choose to stack, place wax paper between layers.

More Southern Christmas Cookie Recipes to Make

All Christmas cookies don’t have to be frosted and decorated. Some come ready to eat straight out of the oven. A few others you may like to add to your baking plans:

• Cutout Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies for the sugar cookie fans at your holiday table.
• Chocolate Dipped Pecan Lace Cookies are a delight.
• Cranberry Walnut Chocolate Chip Cookies are a hybrid of chocolate chip cookies perfect for Christmas.
• White Chocolate Cherry Pudding Cookies are chewy and delicious.
• Dark Chocolate Mint Brownie Cookies brings the all time combination of chocolate mint ot the cookie menu.
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles require no baking at all.
• No Bake Christmas Tree Cookies from Recipe Rebel.

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Helpful Kitchen Items:

• Mixing Bowls
• Baking Sheets
• Measuring Set
• Mixer