Gloria's Best Gingerbread Cookies
Soft, warmly spiced gingerbread cookies made with molasses, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg. Roll and cut into festive shapes for Christmas decorating with simple icing.
YIELD
3 dozenPREP
20 minCOOK
10 minREADY
9 hrsGloria’s gingerbread cookies fill the kitchen with that unmistakable warmth of molasses, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger the moment they hit the oven. These are soft, chewy cutout cookies built for decorating with kids on a chilly December afternoon.
The dough is generously spiced with four warm spices and sweetened with a full cup of dark molasses, giving each cookie a deep, almost smoky flavor. An overnight chill in the fridge makes the soft dough firm enough to roll and cut cleanly.
A quick egg yolk wash painted on while the cookies are still warm adds a subtle golden sheen before the icing goes on.
Chef Tips
- Keep the dough cold. Work with one disk at a time while the rest stays refrigerated.
- Flour your board, rolling pin, and cookie cutters generously. This dough is naturally sticky from all that molasses.
- Bake the first batch a minute or two less than later ones. Early batches puff more since they have less flour rolled into them.
- For crisp gingerbread, roll thinner (about ¼ inch) and bake an extra 2 minutes.
- Let cookies cool completely before icing or the heat will melt your designs right off.
Ingredients
Directions
Beat margarine, sugar and molasses in a large mixing bowl. Add egg and mix well.
Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon. Add to butter mixture; mix well.
Divide dough into 4 equal portions on a large piece of plastic or waxed paper. Wrap and shape into a flat disk about 1 inch thick. Refrigerate until firm, about 8 hours, or freeze for 2 hours.
(Dough can be refrigerated up to 3 days)
Heat oven to 350℉ (180℃). Working with 1 disk of the dough at a time, roll out on a well-floured board, dusting the rolling pin as you work.
Dough will be very soft and can be difficult to work with so work quickly and use plenty of flour.
Using cookie cutters dipped in flour, cut into desired shapes.
Put cookies 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.
Use currants or candy for eyes or buttons, if desired.
Bake until lightly puffed, 7 to 10 minutes. First batch may be puffier because they will have less flour rolled in them.
While still warm, paint with egg yolk wash if desired.
Cool on wire racks.
Cool completely, then decorate as desired with icing.
Icing: Mix confectioners’ sugar with a small amount of water until thick and spreading consistency.
Add food coloring if desired and put in a small plastic bag.
Cut a small hole in one corner and drizzle icing out onto the cooled cookies.
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