Name: Gingerbread Cookies
Cook time: 50 minutes (not including decorating)
Total time: 2 hours 15 minutes
Yield: Makes about 4 dozen cookies
Ingredients: ⅔ cup molasses (not robust); ⅔ cup packed dark brown sugar; 1 Tbsp. ground ginger; 1½ tsp. ground cinnamon; ½ tsp. ground allspice; ½ tsp. ground cloves; 2 tsp. baking soda; 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces; 1 large egg, lightly beaten; 3¾ to 4 cups all-purpose flour; ½ tsp. kosher salt; 1 (1 lb.) box powdered sugar; 4 tsp. powdered egg whites (not reconstituted); 1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice; 1 tsp. vanilla extract; Gel food coloring (optional); Sprinkles, dragées, and sanding sugar, for decorating; Special Equipment: Rolling pin; assorted 2- to 3-inch cookie cutters (in shapes such as people, snowflakes, candy canes, etc.); a metal offset spatula; a pastry bag fitted with ⅛- to ¼-inch plain tip (optional)

A platter with gingerbread cookies in assorted shapes including gingerbread men snowmen candy canes and trees.

Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Active Time
50 minutes (not including decorating)
Total Time
2 hours 15 minutes

Is there anything more comforting at the holidays than curling up by the fire with a gingerbread cookie and a warm cup of tea? (Laughing with family and friends around a plate of decorated sugar cookies runs a close second.) Whether you want to make gingerbread people, snowflakes, candy canes, ornaments—or even skeletons for Halloween—this Gourmet classic should be your go-to.

For this old-fashioned gingerbread cookie recipe, you’ll boil the spices with molasses and brown sugar to bloom their flavor. Then you’ll make the cookie dough right in the saucepan by adding in baking soda, cold butter (to bring down the temperature of the mixture), an egg, and the dry ingredients. There’s no baking powder here, which means your gingerbread men will keep their shape. If your dough feels too soft to work with easily, you can refrigerate it for 30 minutes to an hour; alternatively, if you want to make the cookie dough ahead of time, refrigerate it up to three days ahead and let it sit out at room temperature for 20 to 30 minutes to soften before rolling.

The cook time on these cutout cookies will vary depending on the size cutters you use, so keep a close eye on them. To mitigate burning, line your cookie sheets with parchment paper.

The decorating icing in this recipe is optional, but it’s a great upgrade from plain powdered sugar glaze. It’s a variation of royal icing that incorporates lemon juice, vanilla extract, and powdered egg whites, the last of which helps to stabilize the icing and gives it a polished, matte appearance when dry.

Editor’s note: This recipe makes a soft gingerbread cookie with a slightly crispy exterior. For a cookie with more crunch, look to these gingersnaps. Or, if you love chewy gingerbread, consider making these spiced brownies. Is a gingerbread house more your style? We dare you to try your hand at this cardamom-spiced Mid-Century masterpiece.

Ingredients

Makes about 4 dozen cookies

Gingerbread cookies:

⅔ cup molasses (not robust)

⅔ cup packed dark brown sugar

1 Tbsp. ground ginger

1½ tsp. ground cinnamon

½ tsp. ground allspice

½ tsp. ground cloves

2 tsp. baking soda

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cut into 16 pieces

1 large egg, lightly beaten

3¾ to 4 cups all-purpose flour

½ tsp. kosher salt

Decorating icing and assembly:

1 (1 lb.) box powdered sugar

4 tsp. powdered egg whites (not reconstituted)

1 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Gel food coloring (optional)

Sprinkles, dragées, and sanding sugar, for decorating

Special Equipment: Rolling pin; assorted 2- to 3-inch cookie cutters (in shapes such as people, snowflakes, candy canes, etc.); a metal offset spatula; a pastry bag fitted with ⅛- to ¼-inch plain tip (optional)

Preparation

Gingerbread cookies:
Step 1
Bring molasses, brown sugar, and spices to a boil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, and remove from heat. Stir in baking soda (mixture will foam up), then stir in butter 3 to 4 pieces at a time, letting each addition melt before adding next, until all butter is melted. Add egg and stir until combined, then stir in 3¾ cups flour and salt.
Step 2
Preheat oven to 325°F.
Step 3
Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead, dusting with as much of remaining ¼ cup flour as needed to prevent sticking, until soft and easy to handle, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Divide dough in half, then wrap one half in plastic wrap and keep at room temperature.
Step 4
Roll out remaining dough into a 14-inch round (⅛-inch thick) on a lightly floured surface. Cut out as many cookies as possible with cutters and carefully transfer with offset spatula to 2 buttered large baking sheets, arranging them about 1 inch apart.
Step 5
Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are slightly darker, 10 to 12 minutes total (watch carefully toward end of baking; cookies can burn easily). Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely. Make more cookies with remaining dough and scraps (reroll once).
Decorating icing and assembly:
Step 6
Beat together the powdered sugar, powdered egg whites, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and ⅓ cup water in a large bowl with an electric mixer at moderate speed until just combined, about 1 minute. Increase speed to high and beat icing, scraping down side of bowl occasionally, until it holds stiff peaks, about 3 minutes in a standing mixer or 4 to 5 minutes with a handheld.
Note: If you plan to spread (rather than pipe) icing on cookies, stir in more water, 1 teaspoon at a time, to thin to desired consistency.
Step 7
If using food coloring, transfer ¼ cup icing to a small bowl for each color and tint to desired shade. Spoon icing into a pastry bag (if using), pressing out excess air, and snip a ⅛-inch opening in corner of bag. Twisting bag firmly just above icing, decoratively pipe icing onto cookies. Decorate with sprinkles, sanding sugar, and dragées, if using. Let icing dry completely (about 1 hour) before storing cookies.
Do ahead: Gingerbread cookies keep in an airtight container at room temperature 3 weeks.

Editor's note: This recipe was originally printed in the December 2002 issue of ‘Gourmet’ as Gingerbread Snowflakes and first appeared online in August 2004. Head this way for more of our best Christmas cookies →

Leave a Review

Reviews (256)

Delish! I think the reader who suggested doubling the powdered ginger was spot on. More bite and just where it needs to be. My 2¢ worth is to make sure your spices are stored properly and not out of date. I re-up every fall to make sure I have the freshest and most flavorful cloves, allspice, cinnamon, etc. I made 3 batches and each were awesome and easy to work with.
- Duspin
- Boston, MA
- 12/15/2021
Awesome recipe! I halved the recipe and made 16 gingerbread folks. Dough was easy to handle and rolled out beautifully. Delicious!
- Anonymous
- Marlton, NJ
- 12/2/2021
These are delicious! I dip them in my coffee in the morning!
- Anonymous
- Lake Forest, IL
- 12/17/2020
Great gingerbread cookies. I really like this recipe and so did my family. It did take more flour I expected. I started with 3 3/4 cup flour (450 g) but still ended up needing more flour as the dough was too sticky to roll out. No problem - always easier to add more flour.
- Anonymous
- Northern Virginia
- 12/26/2019
On one hand, once the cookies came together they were easy to roll out, tasted fine and the recipe is easy. OTOH, I had to add another cup of flour to make the dough even manageable and then it still couldn't be rolled out and I (gasp) refrigerated it like a normal cookie which made the dough stiff enough to roll out and cut. However since I'd added so much additional flour, the taste of the spices and molasses were pretty muted. I'm wondering if I measured my flour in a particularly fluffy way; perhaps weight measurements for the dry ingredients would have helped.
- forthewild
- Washington, DC
- 12/24/2019
Great cookie, a little soft inside, crunchy outside. The recipe made 3 dozen big and medium sized cookies. I rolled out the dough 3 times. I think next time I would try 1.5 Tblspoon ginger. If you are icing or adding sugar to the cookies before baking you'll find that the cookie dough is the perfect subtle sweetness.
- cantaloupealone
- Taipei, Taiwan
- 12/1/2019
We have made this recipe for several years and it is the absolute favorite gingerbread cookie around here. Typically I don't care for gingerbread and even I like these. We double the spices (minus the cloves), cut out thicker, and bake a little shorter time for a perfect, softer gingerbread cookie. No refrigeration, the dough is fun to put together and work with, and the dough is yummy (I know...we're not supposed to eat the dough but it is hard to resist!). This year we will try making gingerbread houses with it by rolling and cooking according to directions.
- Anonymous
- Seattle, WA
- 11/23/2019
I've been making Gingerbread Cookies since my professional cook grandmother gave me the lesson. I had to master sauce first before anything sweet, but that's another story. This is now THE recipe for all gingerbread cookie projects I make with my lovely,sweet granddaughter.
- janckee
- LA, CA
- 12/21/2018
This recipe is really easy and fun to make (although I had to use a fair amount of flour to keep the dough from sticking). I used it to make gingerbread men, and they turned out beautifully and tasted really good. I did double the spices, as several reviewers suggested, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly.
- Anonymous
- Marlborough, MA
- 1/20/2018
Awesome Gingerbread! I make these every Xmas.
- Anonymous
- Wisconsin
- 12/22/2017
Dough was hard to work. It kept cracking when rolled and seemed too buttery. Don't know about flavor yet but would not make this recipe again.
- gmrcs8451
- Glen Ridge, NJ
- 10/26/2017
Have never made gingerbread cookies before and they turned out very nicely - http://i.imgur.com/uy2vgiw.jpg
- mcarlson9
- Philadelphia, PA
- 1/31/2016
I have been searching for this type of cookie for years. It's just the right flavor and texture, plus it has a little kick to it. We will be making these cookies many times throughout the year, not just for the holidays.
- robynb1
- Pittsburgh, PA
- 1/3/2016
10th year making these. We decorate our tree with cookies and these are perfect. No, probably not the BEST cookie you'll ever eat, but they're more of a fun, decorative cookie and they're always gone at the end of the holidays. A great no-frustration recipe for a beginner, a kid or non-crafter wanting to make something presentable for the holidays. Since I've made millions of these over the years, I vary flavors slightly. I like more savory, so I up the ginger and cinnamon every time. Up the ginger and add dutch process chocolate for a change of pace. Up the cinnamon and use Hershey's "special dark" (or a better super high % dark chocolate) coco powder for a "Mexican" gingerbread. Have tried pomegranate molasses, using light brown sugar for a lighter flavor and color, Chinese 5 spice powder, super finely grated orange zest.
- editgirl
- 12/6/2015
Made recipe as is- works for me! Ease is a priority when baking with a 5 and 3 year old, and it is fun to see the baking soda foam. Some came out crisp and some soft (I'm an advanced beginning cookie maker), but we liked them all.
- Anonymous
- Davis, CA
- 12/23/2014