These Iced Gingerbread Cookies are so much fun to make and decorate. They are delicious with just a bit of spice from the ginger and most importantly they scream "Christmas."
I love gifting cookies over the Holidays. To me, a homemade gift is just really special to give to neighbors and friends. It shows that you took the extra effort to show them how much they mean to you. Plus, baking is so fun over the holidays.
The frosting on these cookies is a classic buttercream, which is so delicious. Personally, I love royal icing, but some people don't like the taste and it does contain raw egg whites in it, so I went with this tasty buttercream option.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe:
- These little gingerbread are so festive!
- They are way too fun to decorate, and my kids had a blast too. Give the kiddos some piping bags and sprinkles. Then zone off into your own thoughts for an hour...total WIN!
- These gingerbread men make an awesome addition to your Christmas cookie line up!
If you are looking for more Christmas recipes, be sure to check out my bacon cream cheese rolls, brioche french toast casserole, and 4 ingredient peanut butter fudge. They are the best overindulgent recipes for the Holidays!
Ingredients for Iced Gingerbread Cookies & Buttercream Cookie Frosting:
Salted Butter- Adds richness and structure in the cookie.
Sugar- Brown and granulated sugar mix together for a great texture and taste.
Molasses-Adds a chewy texture to the dough.
Egg-Help to bind the ingredients.
Baking Soda- To help with rising and to create a softer cookie.
Flour- The base of the cookie and helps with rising.
Cinnamon, Ginger, Nutmeg, Cloves, and Salt- Essential spices to create a classic gingerbread cookie.
Powdered Sugar, Milk, Butter and Vanilla -Whips up into a classic buttercream for frosting the gingerbread men.
Note: You will also need a gingerbread men cookie cutter. I got mine at Target for $1.
Optional: Red and Green food coloring and sprinkles
Frequently Asked Questions About the Recipe:
Yum, that's how I like them! You want to cut a thicker cookie shape out, about ½ inch thick. If you like them crunchy, cut out thinner at ¼ inch thick.
You need to chill the dough at least 2 to 3 hours. If it is a hard as a rock when you pull it out of the fridge, let it sit on the counter for 30 minutes before rolling it out. My first experiment with this recipe ended almost as delicious, but my little gingerbread spread out and cracked because I was impatient and pulled them out of the fridge after an hour.
My favorite way to roll out the dough is to first place a sheet of parchment paper under the dough and over it. The dough will be hard, so I like to start working the rolling pin over the top of the parchment paper to soften it. Once I get it into a flat sheet, I will remove the top parchment paper, and sprinkle a little flour on the dough and rub flour on my rolling pin. Then, roll the dough out into a ½ inch (for chewy cookies) or ¼ inch (crunchier cookies) sheet adding flour when needed.
I think this is the trick to getting the best cookies. Once the dough gets over manipulated, it is very hard to work with. After I cookie cut my first batch, I will stick the dough in the fridge again if I need to before starting my second batch. The dough needs to stay cold to avoid getting sticky and driving you crazy.
How to Make Iced Gingerbread Cookies
- Start by mixing together the dry ingredients of flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and cloves in a large bowl. Whisk and set aside.
2. In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat together the 1 stick of butter with white and brown sugars.
3. Add in the egg and molasses and mix until incorporated. Pour the flour mixture into the wet mixture and mix just until the dough is mixed together.
4. Place the cookie dough on a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap it up well and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
5. Roll out the dough using a little bit of flour to avoid sticking. I like to use parchment paper under the dough as well. *If you want chewy cookies, leave the dough thicker at ½ inch. For crunchy cookies, ¼ inch* Cut out the cute little cookies. If the dough starts to get warmer or sticky, place it back in the fridge and allow it to cool off again. When you ball up the dough for the second batch of cut outs, it may need to go back in the fridge for 20 minutes or so.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 and bake them for 8 to 10 minutes ~ 9 minutes worked great for me!
7. Allow the cookies to cool while you prep the frosting.
8. For the frosting, into a stand mixer or using a hand mixer and large bowl, add the butter and beat. Then slowly beat in the powdered sugar. It will just be a powdery mess, so keep it on low. Add in the vanilla and slowly add the milk into the batch until you reach the perfect consistency.
Time to Decorate
Place the frosting into bowls and add food coloring before adding them each into a piping bag.
The kids had an absolute blast with these! Super fun Christmas cookie/crafting!
More Christmas Recipes You Will Love:
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Recipe
Iced Gingerbread Cookies
- Total Time: 3 hours, 40 minutes
- Yield: 20 gingerbread men cut outs 1x
Description
These iced gingerbread cookies are so much fun to make and decorate. They are delicious with just a bit of spice from the ginger and most importantly they scream "Christmas."
Ingredients
For the cookies-
- 1 stick salted butter, softened to room temperature (½ cup)
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup white sugar
- ⅓ cup molasses, unsulphured
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon cloves
For the Frosting:
- 4 cups powdered sugar
- ½ cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, softened to room temperature
Instructions
1. Start by mixing together the dry ingredients of flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg and cloves in a large bowl. Whisk and set aside
2. In a large bowl or stand mixer, beat together the 1 stick of butter with white and brown sugars.
3. Add in the egg and molasses and mix until incorporated. Add the flour mixture into the wet mixture and mix just until the dough is mixed together.
4. Place the cookie dough on a sheet of plastic wrap. Wrap it up well and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
5. Roll out the dough using a little bit of flour to avoid sticking. I like to use parchment paper under the dough as well. *If you want chewy cookies, leave them dough thicker at ½ inch. For crunchy cookies, ¼ inch* Cut out the cookies. If the dough starts to get warm, place it back in the fridge and allow it to cool off again. When you ball up the dough for the second batch of cut outs, it may need to go back in the fridge for 20 minutes or so.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 and bake them for 8 to 10 minutes ~ 9 minutes worked great for me!
7. Allow them to cool while you prep the frosting.
8. For the frosting, into a stand mixer or using a hand mixer and large bowl, add the butter and beat. Then slowly beat in the powdered sugar. It will just be a powdery mess, so keep it on low. Add in the vanilla and slowly add the milk to the batch until you reach the perfect consistency.
Time to Decorate
Add the frosting into separate bowls and color each with different food coloring before adding each into a piping bag.
Decorate and enjoy!
Notes
Make sure to allow the dough to refrigerate for the full 2 to 3 hours. This will allow it to roll out much better without sticky dough.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Fridge Time: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 9 minutes
- Category: cookies
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: dessert
Keywords: christmas cookies, gingerbread men, cookie recipes for christmas, cookie baking
Payton
These are so good and the perfect texture!
★★★★★