Spread some holiday cheer by making some easy gingerbread cookies. These homemade cookies are soft, simple to make, and perfect for gifting!
If you love gingerbread as much as I do, you’ll definitely want to try these Gingerbread Waffles, Gingerbread Hot Chocolate and Chocolate Gingerbread Cake recipes.
A Classic Christmas Cookie
I love pretty much everything about this time of year, but one of the things I love most is cold afternoons spent baking with my girls. It has become our tradition to have a Cookie Decorating party the weekend before Christmas. We have so much fun, my girls look forward to this day each year!
One of our favorite recipes to make is one that has been in my family for generations. We have made these easy gingerbread cookies so many times that we have perfected the recipe. I just love the flavor combination of ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves. Not only is is simple to make, this gingerbread cookie recipe really is the best you’ll ever eat!
How to Make Gingerbread Cookies
Dough – You’ll make the dough by mixing just a few simple ingredients. My girls are old enough now to do all of this on their own! You’ll start by creaming together the butter, brown sugar, molasses, vanilla and the egg. Once it’s nice and creamy, you’ll add in the rest of the dough ingredients and mix everything until it has all combined together.
Check It & Wrap It – The gingerbread dough should be nice and firm but not sticky. If it’s still sticky, you can add in another quarter cup of flour. Split the dough in half and form them into discs. Wrap each disc with plastic wrap and then place them in the freezer for 30 minutes.
Oven Prep – Before you take your dough out of the freezer, you’ll want to preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. You’ll also want to line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Roll It Out – Once your dough is mixed and chilled, roll it out into an even layer. My kids always love that part! We had to re-roll the dough a few times to make sure everyone got enough turns. 🙂
Cut Them Out – Using your favorite cookie cutters, cut out your cookies. Here are a few Christmas cookie cutters we think are perfect for these gingerbread cookies.
We also used Pampered Chef’s Christmas cookie cutter set to make some imprinted cookies. They turned out so cute, and I love all the fun designs!
Bake – Place the gingerbread cookies in the oven and bake for about 9-12 minutes. The cookies should be a light brown on the bottom.
Our cookies baked up golden brown in the oven, and smelled heavenly as they baked. I love that they are all perfectly shaped and so adorable!
Make The Icing – While the stuff from the store is fine, I just love a homemade icing. To make it, simply whisk together the butter and powdered sugar and then add in the milk until it’s thin enough to pipe. If you don’t have piping tools, you can always just pour it in a plastic bag and then cut off one of the edges.
Decorate – Once the cookies cool all the way, it’s time to decorate! Grab some sprinkles, small candies, frosting and/or icing and get creative! My kids had fun and got really creative with their piping skills!
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
If holiday cookies are your love language, be sure to try some of these delicious recipes:
- Shortbread Christmas Cookies
- Christmas Blossom Cookies
- Melted Snowmen Cookies
- Shortbread Christmas Tree Cookies
- Chocolate Christmas Sugar Cookies
Are you ready to make your own Gingerbread Cookies? Here is the simple recipe for you to try. Leave us a comment below and let us know how you liked them. You can also tag us on social media so we can see all of the fun decorations you used when making them!
Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
for the cookies:
- 1/2 cup 4 ounces butter, softened
- 1/3 cup molasses
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
for decorating:
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons milk
- assorted candies and sprinkles
Instructions
- In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter, molasses, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, and mix until combined. The dough should be firm and not sticky; add an additional 1/4 flour if needed. Shape the dough into two discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and freeze thirty minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment or spray with cooking spray. On a lightly floured surface, roll each disc of the dough out to desired thickness (mine were about 1/4 inch thick). Cut with desired cookie cutters and carefully move to baking sheet. Bake 9-12 minutes, or until lightly browned on the bottom and cooked through. Allow to cool before decorating.
- To make the icing, whisk together the butter and powdered sugar. Add milk until the mixture reaches a good consistency for piping. Decorate as desired.
Nutrition
Other Notes
Made these with my kiddos and we had so much fun cutting our shapes and decorating them! The recipe turned out great!
I’m happy to hear you guys had so much fun!
That rolling cookie cutter is ingenious! This is my new go-to gingerbread dough. Very easy to work with!
Thanks Tara. Yea, that cookie cutter is fantastic!
My kids and I had the best time making these! Ours definitely weren’t as cute as yours but still tasted amazing!
You’re too sweet! I’m so glad you guys enjoyed them!
This is a great recipe for gingerbread cookies. It’s easy to follow and tastes great. We had fun making them as a family.
Thanks, I’m so glad you liked them!