Gingerbread cookies are such classic cookies with spices like ground ginger and many other. They are soft and traditionally shaped as small characters.
Jump to Recipe
These cookies will always make me think of shrek, of the cookie that appears there called “Jengi”. I will always inevitably think of Jengi whenever I am making these cookies. It is such a fun character in the movie.
Christmas is the best time of all, and there is nothing that cuter. And while talking about christmas desserts or treats, gingerbread cookies are it. There is no debate when it comes to the most traditional christmasy dessert or treat I think. There are recipes you can make, of course, that are typical, but these cookies are always amazing for that time of the year, and in some other months not so much.
Their flavor is full of spices, because of the ginger and the other spices used to make them (ground clove, ground cinnamon, and ground nutmeg) that make them so aromatic. This is why they go great with a cup of coffee or tea. They are sweet yet fresh, because of the orange we add in.
These are the prettiest, they smell great and are do good, plus they are perfect to make with children and are also great to gift people, because they must be decorated in order to be proper gingerbread cookies.
As for decoration we are pretty simple. But you can use whatever you want, from glaze like ours but painted with colorants to chocolate or candy shaped in different fun ways to make these cookies so much fun or pretty, specially if you have kids at home.
If you like this recipe, then you have to go see our panettone recipe. It is an italian christmas bread that is fluffy, tastes like orange, has nuts and dried fruits in it and some liquor, you will for sure like it.
Gingerbread cookies
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 3 oz (85gr) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1/3 C brown sugar
- 1/4 C molases or maple honey
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 orange the zest of it
- 1 3/4 C all purpouse flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tbsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp ground clove
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
For the glaze:
- 1 C confectioners sugar
- 1 tbsp milk
Instructions
For the cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (180°C).
- In a big bowl, beat the butter and sugar for 3 minutes.
- Add in the molases, egg, vanilla and the orange zest and keep on beating until fully integrated.
- Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and all of the spices. Add this to the butter mixture. Mix using a rubber spatula until you get an even dough.
- Wrap the dough in plastic kitchen wrap and let it chill for 2 hours in the fridge.
- Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it out on a clean surface with some flour until it is about 0.3" (0.8cm).
- Cut out the shape you want using a cookie cutter. You will have to put together the remaining dough, make it a ball and roll it out again to cut more cookies, and so on, until the dough is over.
- Once you have cut all of your cookies, place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or some butter spread on it.
- Bake the cookies for 10 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden brown.
To decorate:
- In a small bowl mix the sugar and milk, you can add more sugar or milk to get the consistency you want. Use a pipping bag to decorate the cookies however you want.
