Gingerbread Cookies

This is my go-to gingerbread cookie recipe. These easy to make, homemade cookies are intensely spiced which add a nice variety to my holiday cookie boxes, breaking up the sweetness of the other treats. They are super chewy and hold their shape really well!

I love gingerbread cookies

It is certainly not the holidays without this classic recipe.

I especially love MY gingerbread cookies. They're probably slightly different than most recipes. I find that others are drier, crisp and have a hard bite to them. What I like about this recipe is that these cookies have a wonderful balance of spice and sweetness and they are super chewy, like a sugar cookie, but gingerbread.

This has been my go-to gingerbread cookie recipe for years. It really is the best I've had!

The perfect holiday cookie

This dough is really easy to bring together, using lots of molasses, and spices; ginger, clove, allspice, nutmeg & cinnamon. The aroma instantly puts you in the holiday spirit!

Once the dough is made, it needs to chill for a little bit; it will still be on the soft side and it rolls out really nice and does not crack or break.

I normally make these cookies with miniature cookie cutters, which make for adorable, tiny gingerbread people. Using tiny cookie cutters will produce A LOT of cookies. Like, over a hundred.

But this year, I decided to take out the larger cookie cutter. They're going to look great in my holiday treat boxes.
What I also like about these cookies, is that they do not spread much at all. I’ve always experienced consistency with every type of cookie cutter I’ve used, even ones with a lot of detail like this GIANT snowflake!

Upon baking them, don't be alarmed if you see them puff up in the oven! They will deflate back down once they cool.

These gingerbread cookies freeze well

I'm all about make ahead cookies! ESPECIALLY for the holidays! These cookies hold up really well in the freezer. If you're looking for a stress-free holiday baking season, add this recipe to your list to make ahead. Once you're ready to share them, simply defrost on the counter for an hour or so.

If you're interested in learning more about how I prep for holiday baking, check out my Holiday Baking Book which teaches you ALL about how to bake for the holidays with ease. Plus, I've got 5 exclusive recipes in there that are NOT available on my blog.

Gingerbread Cookies

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This is my go-to gingerbread cookie recipe. These easy to make, homemade cookies are intensely spiced which add a nice variety to my holiday cookie boxes, breaking up the sweetness of the other treats. They are super chewy and hold their shape really well!

• Yield: 0 makes about 40 large gingerbread men/women 1x

Ingredients

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• 4 c all purpose flour
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp ginger
• ½ tsp nutmeg
• ½ tsp allspice
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• ¼ tsp cloves
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• ½ c molasses
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1 ½ sticks unsalted butter
• 1 ⅔ c granulated sugar

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare cookies sheets with parchment paper. 
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt.
3. In a small bowl or measuring cup with a spout, combine the eggs, molasses & lemon juice.
4. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine sugar and butter until fluffy.
5. Gradually add some of the dry mixture to the butter, alternating with the egg/molasses mixture, ending with the flour.
6. Mix until the dough just comes together.
7. Roll into a large ball and cover in plastic wrap.
8. Chill dough in the refrigerator for 15-30min. Use about ⅙th of the dough at a time and keep the remainder in the fridge until ready to use.
9. Roll out dough on a floured surface until desired thickness (¼’’ will give you a cookie that has crisp edges and chewy in the middle; anything less will result in a more crisp cookie). Cut with desired cookie cutters.
10. Place on the tray with about 1 ½ inches of space in between, and bake for 10-15 minutes, depending on thickness. Once cookies puff up in the oven, they only need a couple more minutes to bake. Cookies are done when they are slightly golden brown on the edges. 
11. Allow to cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, then move to a wire rack to fully cool.

Notes

Recipe by Owlbbaking.com

These cookies can be frozen for up to 3 months.