Learn how to make perfect little gingerbread men! These cookies are full of warm ginger and molasses, and have crisp edges and soft centers. Cozy up with one or a dozen of these this winter!
Perfect Gingerbread Men
My gingerbread recipe is inspired by traveling in Eastern Europe a few years ago during the winter. I was in Prague in January 2016, popping into tiny little gingerbread shops where they made cookies of all sizes decorated to look like anything and everything. I’ll add a picture I took below of one of the big gingerbread cookies that I bought from a local shop. Isn’t it just the most impressive?
My favorite thing about these cookies was that they were not only beautiful, but also had a wonderful texture. The best gingerbread cut-out cookies are crispy along the edges and soft in the middle.
After some testing over the years (including iterations of this recipe that ended up spreading everywhere or turned out like bricks), I’m excited to share my gingerbread men recipe with you! Whip up a batch this Holiday season. And make sure to have lots of fun decorating them with scarves, buttons, and bowties.
Ingredients Needed
Here’s a list of everything you’ll need to make gingerbread men, as well as some tips on how to measure and choose your ingredients!
All-purpose flour: to measure flour correctly, scoop it into your measuring cup and level it off with a spoon. See this guide for more details!
Molasses: there are several types of molasses, and which type you use will make a difference. There are two main things to keep in mind here:
- Sulphured vs Unsulphured: Sulphuring means chemically treating the molasses to preserve it, which results in an unpleasant chemical flavor. Try to use unsulphured molasses.
- Light vs Dark: Dark molasses (also called robust molasses) yields the best results, as it gives these cookies their distinctive color and a rich flavor. You could also use light for lighter colored cookies. However, try to avoid Blackstrap Molasses, which I find to have a salty, bitter flavor.
Dark Brown Sugar: for sweetness
One egg: make sure it is at room temperature
Unsalted butter: softened and at room temperature
Spices: ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, salt, and black pepper
Royal Icing: powdered sugar, meringue powder, and room temperature water. If you’d prefer to use store-bought icing, that works as well!
How to Make Gingerbread Men
Step 1: Make the dough
Make the dough by first creaming butter and brown sugar together. Then add an egg and some vanilla extract if you’d like. Fold in the dry ingredients and mix it until everything is just combined. If the dough is having a hard time coming together, then feel free to add a teaspoon or two of milk to add some moisture.
Step 2: Chill
It is essential to chill this dough before using it. This is crucial to limit spreading when in the oven and also results in a richer flavored cookie. The rule of thumb is to chill for at least 3 hours, but overnight is best.
Step 3: Roll and bake gingerbread men
Roll the dough out to ¼″ sheets and use a cookie cutter to cut out little gingerbread men. Place the cookies about 2″ apart on the cookie sheets and bake them until they start to brown along the edges. This will take around 9-10 minutes.
Step 4: Decorate
I’ve included an easy recipe for royal icing down below that you can use to decorate the gingerbread men. As noted earlier, store bought icing works as well!
How to Store Leftovers
Store gingerbread cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Any extra dough you don’t use can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Did You Make This Recipe?
If so, I’d love to hear from you! Feel free to leave a comment, rating, or take a picture and share it with me on Instagram @toppedwithhoney. Looking forward to seeing your cute gingerbread men!
Pin & Save for Later
Not ready to bake? No problem! Click the pin icon in the image below to save it for later. 🙂
Perfect, No Spread Gingerbread Men
Ingredients
Gingerbread Cookies
- 6 tbsp butter, softened
- ⅔ cup dark brown sugar
- ½ cup molasses
- 1 egg, at room temperature
- 2¾ cups flour, plus more for rolling
- 1 tbsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- pinch of freshly ground black pepper
- 1-2 tsp milk, if needed
Royal Icing
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1½ tbsp meringue powder
- 4-5 tbsp room temperature water
Instructions
- Sift the flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, salt, and pepper together and set these aside to start.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until they are light and fluffy. Then add the molasses and egg and continue beating until the mixture is creamy. Reduce the mixer's speed to low and then add the flour mixture, folding until it is just combined. Add 1-2 tsp of milk if necessary to help bring the dough together. Try to avoid over-mixing the dough.
- Portion the dough into two round discs and wrap them tightly with plastic wrap. Place the dough into the fridge to then chill for at least 3 hours, or overnight for the best results.
- After chilling the dough, preheat your oven to 350°F and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper. Flour a flat surface such as a pastry board or counter and roll out each disc of dough into a ¼" sheet. Use a cookie cutter to cut out individual cookies and place them 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets.
- Bake them for 9-10 minutes or until the edges start to brown. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool completely before icing. To make the royal icing, simply whisk all of the ingredients together and use a piping tip or zip-loc bag with the corner cut out to decorate the cookies.
Best,
Rools
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