Classic Gingerbread Cookies to roll and cut out with your favorite cookie cutters!
The dough is flavored with the classic spices: ginger, cinnamon and clove. A little touch of orange zest makes them extra special!
I roll mine a little thicker and bake them a little less for a sturdy, yet easy-to-bite texture. Decorate with simple royal icing and let the cookie party begin!
Classic Gingerbread Cookies to roll and cut out with your favorite cookie cutters! The dough is flavored with the classic spices: ginger, cinnamon and clove. A little touch of orange zest makes them extra special! Decorate with simple royal icing and let the cookie party begin!
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| Prep Time | 30 minutes |
| Cook Time | 9 minutes per sheet |
| Passive Time | 3 hours for chilling |
| Servings |
3 - 3 1/2 dozen cookies
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Ingredients
- 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus additional for rolling
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter (salted) room temperature
- 3/4 cup dark brown sugar packed
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh orange zest optional
Royal Icing:
- 4 1/2 teaspoons meringue powder
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons - 1/4 cup warm water
Ingredients
Royal Icing:
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Instructions
- In bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger. cinnamon and cloves.
- Using electric mixer (I used my stand mixer fitted with flex edge beater.) Cream together butter and sugar for several minutes or until lightened in color and fluffy.
- Mix in molasses, then egg, vanilla and orange zest. (batter will look separated)
- Gradually mix in dry ingredients.
- Divide dough in half. Form each half into a disc and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment or grease.
- Sprinkle a little flour on flat surface. Use floured rolling pin to roll disc of dough to 1/8 - 1/4-inch thickness (thicker cookies will stay softer when baked.) If dough cracks a lot, allow to warm-up for a few minutes.
- Use cookie cutters to cut the cookies, gently lift (a thin spatula is helpful here) and place on prepared baking sheet 2" apart.
- Return to refrigerator to chill again for 15-20 minutes. (This helps keep the cookie's shape while baking, if you don't have time, it isn't essential.)
- Bake for 8-10 minutes or until edges are set and center is puffy. Let cool on baking sheet for a couple minutes then remove to cooling rack. (Bake a shorter time for softer cookies.)
- Store cookies in air-tight container in single layers separated by waxed paper. (You can freeze at this point. For 1-2 months.) To decorate, make royal icing and see tips below.
Royal Icing:
- Using electric mixer with whisk accessory, mix meringue powder, powdered sugar and half the warm water on low speed. Add more water to reach desired consistency. (I like mine a little thinner than ketchup.) Whip at medium/high speed until smooth. To color, use gel food coloring. (helps colors not run)
Recipe Notes
EVEN BAKING TIPS:
- Chill cut cookies before baking. (will help them keep their cut-out shape)
- Bake 1 sheet at a time on the lower-middle oven rack.
- If using dark colored baking sheets, reduce heat by 25 degrees.
- Make sure baking sheet is cool before adding next batch of cookies.
MAKE AHEAD:
- You can make these a month or so in advance.
- When completely cool, arrange in air-tight container in single layers separated by waxed paper, then freeze.
- Decorate with icing after thawing.
DECORATING COOKIES:
- Meringue powder is used instead of raw egg whites. It is available in the baking aisle of most grocery stores. Also available at craft store and online.
- I used a plastic disposable piping bag fit with a #2 round tip or a #14 star tip.
- If I'm only going to use one tip, I place it in the bag and cut a hole for the tip to poke part-way through.
- You'll need a coupler if you want to switch tips.
- It's helpful to place the empty piping bag in a tall jar or glass to fill with your icing.
- Securing the wide open end of your piping bag with a twist-tie helps keep the icing from squirting out the top of your piping bag.
- Piping is a 2-handed job. The hand by the tip "steers" and the hand on the top squeezes the icing.
Printed the recipe. Looks so good. Question: My KitchenAid mixer is the tilt model – no arms! So this recipe has to cut in half??? Do you have the same recipe for the tilt models?
You don’t need to cut in half. I doubled it to use in the large Pro600 bowl lift mixer. Enjoy!!
Thank you! Looking forward to making it. Love gingerbread!