The Best Gingerbread Man Cookies Recipes

GINGERBREAD MEN COOKIES

Steps:

• Mix flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg and salt in large bowl. Set aside. Beat butter and brown sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add molasses, egg and vanilla;mix well. Gradually beat in flour mixture on low speed until well mixed. Press dough into a thick flat disk. Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness on lightly floured work surface. Cut into gingerbread men shapes with 5-inch cookie cutter. Place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheets.
• Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until edges of cookies are set and just begin to brown. Cool on baking sheets 1 to 2 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Decorate cooled cookies as desired. Store cookies in airtight container up to5 days.

THE MOST WONDERFUL GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves until well blended.
• In a large bowl (KitchenAid's great for this) beat butter, brown sugar, and egg on medium speed until well blended.
• Add molasses, vanilla, and lemon zest and continue to mix until well blended.
• Gradually stir in dry ingredients until blended and smooth.
• Divide dough in half and wrap each half in plastic and let stand at room temperature for at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours.
• Preheat oven to 375 deg. Prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment paper.
• (Dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, but in this case it should be refrigerated. Return to room temp before using.) Preheat oven to 375°.
• Grease or line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Place 1 portion of the dough on a lightly floured surface.
• Sprinkle flour over dough and rolling pin.
• Roll dough to a scant 1/4-inch thick.
• Use additional flour to avoid sticking.
• Cut out cookies with desired cutter-- the ginger bread man is our favorite of course.
• Space cookies 1 1/2-inches apart.
• Bake 1 sheet at a time for 7-10 minutes (the lower time will give you softer cookies-- very good!).
• Remove cookie sheet from oven and allow the cookies to stand until the cookies are firm enough to move to a wire rack.
• After cookies are cool you may decorate them any way you like.
• I usually brush them with a powdered sugar glaze when I am in a hurry, but they look wonderful decorated with Royal icing.

THE BEST GINGERBREAD MAN COOKIES

Steps:

• Place butter and brown sugar into stand mixer. Beat until light and fluffy. Add molasses, then eggs and water, beating until combined. Slowly add flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger until dough forms. Divide dough in half and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight until ready to roll. I also will flash freeze my dough for 15 minutes if ready to use immediately.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Roll dough into 1/4 inch thick round, cut gingerbread man shapes and transfer to a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes until edges are firm and golden. Let cool on cookie sheet or cooling rack if desired. When cooled, decorate as desired.
• To prepare icing place powdered sugar into a medium mixing bowl. Stir in milk until smooth then add corn syrup beating until smooth. Divide icing into bowls and add food coloring as desired. Dip or paint cookies with a brush. Let dry completely before packaging.This recipe makes enough for one color. Double or triple as needed for your sugar cookies.

GINGERBREAD MEN COOKIES

Steps:

• Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in molasses, egg and water. In another bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients minus frosting; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Divide dough in half. Shape each into a disk; cover. Refrigerate until easy to handle, about 30 minutes., Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 4-in. gingerbread man cookie cutter. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets., Bake until edges are firm, 8-10 minutes. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. Frost as desired.

GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• Combine butter, sugar, and molasses and use an electric mixer or stand mixer with paddle attachment to beat until ingredients are creamy and well-combined.
• Stir in egg and vanilla extract until well-combined. The mixture may look piecey/like it's separating, this is fine and it will come together when you add the dry ingredients.
• In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and spices (ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg).
• With mixer on low speed, gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture until the dough is smooth, cohesive, and completely combined.
• Divide the dough into two parts (it will be quite sticky, use a spatula) and wrap each tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
• Once dough has chilled, preheat oven to 375F (190C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (alternatively bake cookies directly on ungreased baking sheet)
• Generously flour a clean surface and lightly flour the dough as well (see note).
• Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to be approximately ¼" (.6cm) thick, and use a cookie cutter (my cookie cutter for these was about 3.5" long) to cut out shapes.
• Use a spatula to place cookies on prepared baking sheet, spacing at least 2" apart and then transfer to 375F (190C) oven, and bake for 8-10 minutes.
• Allow cookies to cool completely on baking sheet before decorating.
• Combine sugar, 2 Tablespoons of milk, corn syrup, and vanilla extract in a medium-sized bowl and stir until combined. Look for a consistency where the icing that drizzles off the spoon and back into the bowl holds its shape for several seconds before dissolving back into the rest of the icing. If frosting is too thick, add more milk, about a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is thick but pipeable. If too thin, add additional powdered sugar until desired texture is reached.
• Transfer to a piping bag with a piping tip (I used Wilton #5), or place in a Ziploc bag and snip a small piece of the corner off. Pipe frosting on cookies and decorate with decorative candies, if desired.
• Allow frosting to harden before enjoying (this took only about 30 minutes for me, but may take longer if your frosting is wetter)
• Keep uneaten cookies sealed in an airtight container at room temperature.

GINGERBREAD MAN COOKIES

Steps:

• Add flour, brown sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves and salt to a mixing bowl and mix.
• Add the butter pieces and use a pastry blender to cut the butter in until the mixture resembles fine meal.
• With a mixer running on low speed gradually add the molasses and milk and mix until combined, about 30 seconds.
• Divide the dough in half, forming each into a ball. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight, or place in the freezer for about 20 minutes, until firm, if you're in a hurry.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Remove one dough sheet from the fridge/freezer and place on the counter. Roll out the dough (use a little flour on your rolling pin if needed), until it's about ½ inch thick. Cut gingerbread men and place them on prepared baking sheets.
• Refrigerate the gingerbread men for 5 minutes (meanwhile you can roll out the other dough ball).
• Bake the cookies until set in the centers and the dough barely retains and imprint when touched very gently with fingertip, 8 to 11 minutes (depending on the size of your cookie cutter). Do not overbake!!
• Remove the cookies to a wire rack. Allow to cool to room temperature before frosting.
• Store gingerbread cookies in an airtight container with parchment paper between the layers. Freeze for up to 3 months.

GINGERBREAD MAN COOKIES

Steps:

• Add sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, baking soda and salt to the large bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on low speed with the paddle attachment until well combined.
• Add softened butter, evaporated milk, and molasses. Mix again until completely combined, starting on the lowest speed so that the liquid doesn't splash out of the bowl. Gradually increase the speed until the butter and sugar are creamed together.
• Put the mixer back on low speed and add 5 cups of flour (one cup at a time), stirring constantly until the flour is completely incorporated.
• The dough should be quite thick and slightly sticky. If it's still too soft and sticky, add additional flour (½ cup at a time), just until a fairly stiff dough comes together. I typically use at least 5 ½ cups of flour total for this recipe -- sometimes up to 6 cups if the air is particularly humid.
• Plop about half of the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap it up, then flatten it into a disc. Repeat with the second half of the dough. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
• Working with one disc of dough at a time (leave the other disc in the fridge to stay cool), roll out the dough to a thickness between ¼-inch and ½-inch on a very well-floured surface. Use a floured cookie cutter to cut the dough into desired shapes. Don't be afraid to continually add more flour as you work, since the dough will become sticky. Re-roll the dough scraps until all of the dough is used.
• Use a metal spatula to place shapes onto prepared baking sheets. Chill in the freezer (if there's room) or in the refrigerator again for about 10 minutes (this second round of chilling will just ensure that the cookies don't spread in the oven).
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until slightly golden brown but still soft. Make sure that you don't bake them for too long or they will become hard and crispy. To maintain the soft, chewy texture, pull them out of the often while they're still soft and let them firm up slightly while they cool.
• Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Once the cookies are cool, decorate with desired icing, frosting, candies and decocrations. If you'd like to prepare the icing here, mix together confectioners' sugar, milk, corn syrup and vanilla until smooth. If the icing is too thick, add more milk, about a teaspoon at a time, until the frosting is spreadable. If the icing is too thin, add powdered sugar until desired texture is reached. Transfer icing to a piping bag and decorate cookies as desired. The icing will set in about 30 minutes.

THE BEST GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• For the cookies: Whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, allspice and cloves in a large bowl.
• Mix the butter, shortening, brown sugar and molasses in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat in the egg. Beat the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two additions. Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic and pat to 1/2-inch thick. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out one piece of dough to 1/4-inch thick, dusting with flour if needed. Cut into 3- to 5-inch cookies with a gingerbread man cutter or desired shape. Brush off the excess flour and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Repeat with the second piece of dough.
• Bake the cookies in batches until they are golden around the edges, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
• For the royal icing: Whisk the confectioners' sugar with the meringue powder in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Beat in 6 tablespoons of water until well combined and you have stiff glossy peaks, adding 1 tablespoon more water at a time to reach a smooth pipeable consistency. Mix in food coloring as desired. Fill pastry bags fitted with tips. Decorate the gingerbread cookies with the icing.