Gingerbread Cookies

I try to make my classic gingerbread cookies every year during the holidays. I really enjoy decorating these cookies and I like to use white icing without any food coloring just because I prefer the way it looks. Feel free to use your imagination in decorating them and just have fun with it. Believe me, even if they don’t turn out to be the prettiest cookie, they’ll still taste delicious.

I’ve tweaked the original recipe over the years a bit, using butter instead of shortening and added little more cinnamon and ginger. These cookies have an amazing flavor and I’m sure you and your family and friends will love them.

This cookie dough is very soft so chilling it is super important in order to be able to roll it out and cut out the shapes. I start rolling out the dough after the it’s been chilled for at least 2 hours. You can also chill the dough overnight.

For Decorating: If you are using a piping bag, try outlining the cookies with the icing first. The cookies puff up and sometimes lose their shape so outlining them will give them back their original shape. The easiest way to decorate is to just do swirly lines on the cookies (if they aren’t the gingerbread people). This is the easiest and if you have a lot of cookies to decorate, you’ll want to use this method.

That’s it for now because I’m getting my cookies ready to hand out to my friends and loved ones. Merry Christmas and happy Hanukkah! However you celebrate, I wish you the happiest of holidays.

Yield: 24

Author: Karen - Oventry.com

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Classic Gingerbread Cookies

These classic gingerbread cookies are sure to delight!

Prep time: 9 MinCook time: 8 MinInactive time: 2 HourTotal time: 2 H & 17 M

Ingredients

Gingerbread Cookies

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2/3 cup butter - softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup molasses
• 2 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves (optional)
• 1 large egg

Royal Icing

• 4 cups confectioner's or powdered sugar
• 3 Tbsp meringue powder
• 6 - 7 Tbsp warm water

Instructions

1. In a medium sized bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar until well combined. Add in the molasses, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and egg. Beat until fully blended - about 2 minutes. Use a spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure all ingredients are fully incorporated.
3. Slowly add in the flour mixture and mix until just combined.
4. Divide the dough in two and wrap each in plastic wrap. Chill for about 2 - 3 hours or overnight.
5. Prepare a cookie sheet with parchment paper. (See Note below)
6. Once cookie dough is chilled, preheat oven to 375° F.
7. On a lightly floured surface, start rolling out dough to about 1/2" thick and use cookie cutters dipped in flour to cut out cookies. Alternatively, use powdered sugar instead of flour to roll your dough. The powdered sugar will disintegrate during the baking process but actually works better for rolling out the dough than flour.
8. Place cookies on prepared cookie sheet and bake for 8 - 12 minutes or until lightly golden and set.
9. Let cool on wire rack.
10. Decorate with Royal Icing.

Royal Icing

1. Use a hand or stand mixer and beat the powdered sugar, meringue powder, and water together until stiff peaks form.
2. Separate icing into small bowls and add food coloring of your choice for decorating.
3. For flooding: Separate out some of the icing and add one tsp of water at a time and stir to get the right consistency. Don't use too much water. Make sure the icing will still have some firmness.

Notes

Always use the center rack and bake one pan at a time to assure an even bake.