Gingerbread Cookies (Gingerbread Men)
Posted Nov 29, 2021, Updated Dec 12, 2024
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This gingerbread cookie recipe makes soft & chewy, perfectly spiced, molasses-sweetened holiday cookies that are everyone’s favorite. This gingerbread man recipe rolls well into shapes and the glaze hardens with a beautiful shine so they can be packaged and given as gifts.
I can’t think of a cookie that encompasses all that is wonderful about the holidays more than gingerbread cookies. The warm spices and rich molasses flavor of these festive cookies makes them irresistible.
I adapted my favorite soft gingerbread cookie recipe (that irresistible, by the way), to create this perfect gingerbread man recipe.
These gingerbread men are soft in the center and crispy on the outside. They roll beautifully into any shape, and are fun to decorate with an easy glaze that hardens with a beautiful shine. Also, try my classic gingerbread recipe (more like a gingerbread cake)!
Gingerbread Cookies: Ingredients & Substitutions
Let’s discuss the ingredients in this gingerbread cookie recipe, as well as possible substitutions.
- Salted Butter. Unsalted butter and vegan butter work well in this recipe.
- Light brown sugar. dark brown sugar will add to the molasses flavor.
- Molasses. use unsulphured or light molasses– not blackstrap molasses.
- Vanilla extract. Please only use pure vanilla extract (not imitation) for the best taste!
- All-purpose flour. I bake with unbleached, purpose flour. You can use an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend to make these cookies gluten-free.
- Spices (ginger, cinnamon & cloves). The quality and freshness of the spices you use will matter in the final outcome of these soft gingerbread cookies. I believe I have worked out the perfect ratio of sweet and spicy, but you can adjust them to your liking if necessary.
- Sea Salt. If you are using iodized salt I recommend decreasing the amount of salt by half.
- Whole milk. For the glaze you can use 2% milk, half and half or heavy cream instead of whole milk.
How to Make Gingerbread Men Cookies
Follow along with me as I discuss how to make gingerbread cookies step-by-step, and don’t forget to watch the video!
Begin this recipe by making the gingerbread cookie dough. First, combine the dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl, and set them aside to use later.
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar for 1 minute, until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Next, add the molasses, egg and vanilla and beat for 60-90 seconds or until the mixture is smooth and light-brown.
Then, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat on low speed until combined.
Chill the Dough
The dough will be soft, but should not be too sticky. It has to be chilled in order to be rolled into shapes. It will firm up as it chills.
To do this, lay out a rectangle of plastic wrap, put the dough on top and form it into a thick, flat disc. Wrap it tightly with the plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours, or overnight. I usually make the dough the day before I’d like to bake and decorate the gingerbread cookies so it has plenty of time to chill.
Roll Dough & Cut Out Shapes
After the dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper, then set them aside.
On a floured work surface, roll out dough until it’s ½ inch thick (you want them to be thick so they stay soft).
Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter and cut into men shape (or whatever shape you’d prefer: stars, stockings, etc.).
Re-form the dough scraps into a ball, roll it out and repeat.
Bake & Cool
Place the cut-out gingerbread cookies on the prepared cookie sheets 1” apart.
Bake for 7-8 minutes in preheated oven until tops look just set (I bake for 7 minutes – be very careful not to over bake or they will be crispy and not soft).
Let the gingerbread cookies sit on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze & Decorate
To make the glaze, whisk the ingredients together in a small bowl. Then transfer it to a piping bag and decorate the cooled gingerbread cookies however you’d like.
Let the glaze harden at room temperature for about 1 hour. You can put the gingerbread man cookies in the fridge or outside on a cold day to make the glaze harden faster.
Store/Freeze Gingerbread Cookies
Store these gingerbread cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 2 months. I recommend putting a sheet of wax paper between the layers of cookies.
How to Freeze Gingerbread Cookie Dough
You can make the dough for these gingerbread cookies and freeze it to bake later, here’s how:
- Line a baking sheet with waxed paper.
- Roll out the dough and cut it into your desired shapes.
- Place the unbaked shapes onto the prepared baking sheet and freeze.
- Once frozen, transfer the gingerbread cookie dough to an airtight container (glass Tupperware or ziplock bag) until you’d like to bake it.
- To bake: remove frozen cookie dough balls and set them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let thaw at room temperature, and bake according to the recipe instructions once the cookie dough is no longer frozen.
Gingerbread Man Recipe FAQs
These gingerbread cookies are soft and chewy. If you’d prefer harder cookies (to use as ornaments or decorations) bake for 10 minutes instead of 7.
Use unsulphured or light molasses– not blackstrap molasses.
These gingerbread man cookies last for 5 days at room temperature, 1 week in the refrigerator, and up to 2 months in the freezer (baked), if stored properly in an airtight container or plastic bag.
Yes, you can easily double this recipe to make more cookies.
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Gingerbread Cookies (Gingerbread Man Recipe)
Equipment
Ingredients
Gingerbread Cookies:
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ cup salted butter softened
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup molasses
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Powdered sugar glaze:
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder cinnamon, ginger, cloves nutmeg and sea salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, cream together the butter and brown sugar for 1 minute, until the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Add molasses, egg and vanilla and beat for 60-90 seconds or until the mixture is smooth and light-brown.
- Add dry ingredients and beat on low speed until combined.
- Lay out a rectangle of plastic wrap, put the dough on top and form it into a thick, flat disc. Wrap it tightly with the plastic wrap. Chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight.
- After the dough has chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside.
- On a floured work surface, roll out dough until it’s ½ inch thick (you want them to be thick so they stay soft). Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter and cut the dough into men shapes (or whatever shape you’d prefer: stars, stockings, etc.)
- Place them on the prepared cookie sheet 1” apart.
- Re-form the dough scraps into a ball, roll it out and repeat.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes in preheated oven until tops look just set (I bake for 7 minutes – be very careful not to overbake).
- Let the gingerbread cookies sit on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Make the Glaze
- In small bowl, combine glaze ingredients. Stir until smooth.
- Transfer to a piping bag.
- Decorate the cooled cookies as desired.
- Let sit at room temperature until glaze is hardened.
Video
Notes
- Salted Butter. Unsalted butter and vegan butter work well in this recipe too.
- Egg. Make sure the egg is room temperature! I have not made this recipe with an egg substitute, so if you do let me know in the comments below.
- Light brown sugar. If you want to add to the molasses taste then you can use dark brown sugar.
- Molasses. Use unsulphured or light molasses– not blackstrap molasses.
- Vanilla extract. Please only use pure vanilla extract (not imitation) for the best taste!
- All-purpose flour. I bake with unbleached, purpose flour. You can use an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend to make these cookies gluten-free.
- Spices (ginger, cinnamon & cloves). The quality and freshness of the spices you use will matter in the final outcome of these soft gingerbread cookies. I believe I have worked out the perfect ratio of sweet and spicy, but you can adjust them to your liking if necessary.
- Sea Salt. I only ever bake with pure, fine sea salt. If you are using iodized salt I recommend decreasing the amount of salt by half.
- Whole milk. For the glaze you can use 2% milk, half and half or heavy cream instead of whole milk.
- Line a baking sheet with waxed paper.
- Roll out the dough and cut it into your desired shapes.
- Place the unbaked shapes onto the prepared baking sheet and freeze.
- Once frozen, transfer the gingerbread cookie dough to an airtight container (glass Tupperware or ziplock bag) until you’d like to bake it.
- To bake: remove frozen cookie dough balls and set them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Let thaw at room temperature, and bake according to the recipe instructions once the cookie dough is no longer frozen.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi, is 1/2 cup of molasses correct? Thank you
Fantastic gingerbread recipe! I substituted treacle for molasses and added a tiny bit more ginger at hubby’s request. Set the dough in the fridge for around 6 hours before rolling out.
Definitely a winner!
Hi Laura, the taste is great but mine have small cracks on them and even after chilling the mixture all night- they were still very soft and it was difficult to cut the shapes without bits getting stuck despite liberal use of flour.
It’s summer here so I’m thinking that might be the issue?.. Any advice most appreciated:)
These gingerbread cookies are the best cookies! Easy to follow instructions as well. Thanks for sharing 😋
Thank you Brenda! I’m so glad you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!
Hi Laura, thank you for such a lovely recipe😋
Herma
THE best gingerbread man cookies! ALL of my kids like these… soft, chewey and not overpowering flavor, the perfect recipe!