Description
These classic Gingerbread Cookies are a festive holiday favorite, featuring perfectly spiced, buttery, and chewy textures. They’re easy to make, with a soft dough that’s rolled out and cut into charming cookie shapes. Perfect for decorating with homemade or store-bought icing, these cookies are sure to delight family and friends during the holiday season.
Ingredients
Scale
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
Wet Ingredients
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1/2 cup unsulphured molasses (or dark molasses)
- 1 large egg (room temperature)
Instructions
- Sift Dry Ingredients: Sift together the flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, cloves, and sea salt into a medium bowl to ensure an even blend of spices and leavening agents.
- Mix Butter, Sugar, and Molasses: In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer to beat the unsalted butter, light brown sugar, and molasses on medium/high speed for 2-3 minutes until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.
- Add Egg: Add the large egg to the butter mixture and continue beating on medium speed for 1 minute until well incorporated to create a smooth dough base.
- Combine Dough: Gradually add the sifted flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Beat on medium/low speed until just combined; the resulting dough should be soft and moist.
- Chill Dough: Transfer the dough to a well-floured surface. If sticky, dust with flour to help handle it. Divide the dough into three equal pieces, flatten each into a disk, wrap individually in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until firm — about 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
- Preheat Oven & Prepare Baking Sheet: Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C) and position a rack in the center. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner for easy cleanup and even baking.
- Roll and Cut Cookies: On a floured surface, roll out one dough disk to 1/4-inch thickness, turning to prevent sticking. Use a 4 to 5-inch cookie cutter to cut out gingerbread people shapes. Gather scraps and chill again before re-rolling.
- Bake: Arrange cookies on the prepared baking sheet at least 1 inch apart. Bake for 9-10 minutes until edges barely start to brown. Avoid over-baking to keep cookies soft and chewy.
- Cool and Store: Transfer baked cookies to cooling racks. Store completely cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week. Decorate as desired once cooled.
Notes
- These Gingerbread Cookies make a delightful holiday tradition perfect for decorating with your favorite icing.
- You can use store-bought icing or easily make your own royal icing which pipes beautifully and hardens well for easy storage.
- Be cautious not to over-bake if you want a softer, chewier cookie texture.
- Dough can be refrigerated up to 24 hours to allow flavors to meld and make rolling easier.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 106
- Sugar: 12 g
- Sodium: 33 mg
- Fat: 4 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 1.2 g
- Trans Fat: 0.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 18 g
- Fiber: 0.3 g
- Protein: 1 g
- Cholesterol: 13 mg
