I adore these gingerbread cookies! In search of the perfect gingerbread cookie recipe, I tested this recipe for months to find the right balance of sturdy but soft cookies that are both sweet and well-spiced. I played with the ratio of butter to sugar, the amount of molasses (unsulphured, never blackstrap!), and even the amount of egg to create a cookie that is delicious to eat while also being sturdy enough to decorate. This cookie dough rolls out and cuts beautifully, doesn’t spread too much during baking, and has an addictive soft and chewy texture.
One reader says: “Perfect. Soft and delicious. I tried this recipe 3 times, perfect every time. The kids and I tried this recipe for gingerbread houses, and they turned out beautiful. Thank you.” ★★★★★
Table of Contents
The Science Behind Soft Gingerbread Cookies
The science teacher in me is going to come out for a second! There’s a reason my gingerbread cookies turn out soft and chewy— I chose a careful blend of ingredients, tried and tested until I found the perfect ratios.
- Add a whole egg: The proteins in the egg help set the cookie dough. During baking, the proteins coagulate, giving the cookies structure and also making them chewier once baked. Using the whole egg instead of just the egg yolk yields slightly puffier cookies, but I preferred that since it kept the cookies softer and from turning out dense or too crispy when baked.
- Use unsulphured molasses: Not only is this ingredient vital for gingerbread’s signature flavor, but molasses is also an invert sugar and is hygroscopic. This means that it pulls moisture into its molecules and holds onto it, leading to a soft cookie with a moist crumb that also stays fresh longer.
- The right balance of sugar to butter: I am using a 2:1 ratio of sugar to butter (by weight, including the molasses) in this gingerbread people recipe. The butter makes for a tender cookie, while the increased ratio of sugar to butter makes for a chewier cookie. The result is a perfectly soft, chewy cookie that gets slightly crisp on the edges, so it is strong enough to hold its own when flooded with royal icing.
Key Ingredients in Gingerbread Cookies
These are the main ingredients you need to make these easy gingerbread cookies. You can find the full list of ingredients and measurements in the recipe card below.
Spices — dried and ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg infuse the gingerbread cookies with lots of warm, cozy flavor. If you can, grate the nutmeg yourself on a microplane or nutmeg grater, as it has a far better flavor than the pre-ground kind. If you want a little extra heat, add 1/4 teaspoon of finely ground black pepper to the spice mix.
Butter — use unsalted butter; the salt content across different brands of salted butter can vary quite widely. Using unsalted butter and adding salt gives you complete control over the salt content of the cookies.
Brown sugar — light brown sugar complements the flavor of the molasses, adds moisture, and also gives the cookies a chewy texture. If you don’t have brown sugar, try my easy homemade brown sugar recipe.
Molasses — be sure to use unsulphured dark molasses, not blackstrap molasses. Dark molasses has a nice bittersweet flavor, while blackstrap molasses (made by further concentrating dark molasses) is very bitter and can even taste quite salty. You cannot swap regular molasses for blackstrap molasses— the cookies will taste horrible! Typically, the dark molasses you see in stores is unsulphured molasses, but double-check the label. I also recommend using dark molasses over light molasses (which is derived from the first boiling of sugar cane). Dark molasses brings a rich, full-bodied, complex flavor to gingerbread cookies.
Can I use maple syrup instead of molasses?
No, I don’t recommend this swap. Maple syrup is significantly runnier than molasses. This will change the consistency of the dough, making it hard to roll and cut. It also doesn’t have much invert sugar, so the texture of the cookies will change as well. Maple syrup is also much sweeter than molasses.
If you do want to replace the molasses, you could use pomegranate molasses for a tarter flavor, or barley malt syrup, sorghum syrup, can syrup, or dark corn syrup. Save the maple syrup for a batch of gingerbread pancakes or gingerbread waffles instead!
What Size Cookie Cutters Should I Use?
I use 2.5-inch to 4-inch cookie cutters. Opt for shapes with simpler edges, for example, gingerbread men, simple trees, and candy canes. Very intricate shapes can stick to the cutter or lose definition during baking, since the dough does puff slightly during baking.
Pro Tips For Making Chewy Gingerbread Cookies
Measure ingredients using a kitchen scale. Adding too much flour will lead to the cookies being dense and dry. The best and easiest way to measure the flour is to weigh it. If you don’t have a scale, fluff your flour with a spoon to aerate it, sprinkle it into your measuring cup, and use a knife to level it. This method prevents you from inadvertently over-packing the measuring cup with flour.
Use room temperature ingredients. Set any refrigerated ingredients out about an hour before you start baking. Room temperature eggs and butter are easier to blend into a dough. If you forget to set them out, don’t worry! Place the whole egg in a bowl of warm water for 5 to 10 minutes, and follow my easy hacks for how to soften butter quickly.
Chilling is mandatory to roll and cut the dough easily. Because this is a soft, sticky dough, chilling is a must to make it easier to handle. Chilling the gingerbread cookie dough also prevents too much spreading, so the cookies hold their shapes better.
Pre-roll the dough. Immediately after mixing the cookie dough, you can roll out each portion of dough between two sheets of parchment paper before chilling it, leaving both pieces on to cover the dough. Stack the rolled sheets on a tray and chill for up to 24 hours. This way, you can easily remove the top sheet of parchment and cut out the cookies; it’s great prep for a cookie decorating party!
Don’t overbake them. These gingerbread cookies should be chewy, softer cookies than hard or crisp. Overbaking will cause them to lose more moisture, turning them too hard and tough. A quick 10-minute bake time is all they need.
Let the cookies cool completely before decorating. If the cookies are still warm, the icing will melt and slide off. Plus, the cookies are softer when they are still warm, which can cause them to break with the added weight.
How To Make Gingerbread Cookies
Below, I’ve highlighted portions of the recipe in step-by-step process images along with instructions for making the best gingerbread cookies. You can find the full set of instructions in the recipe card below.
1. Whisk together the flour, salt, and spices in a large bowl.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and molasses on medium speed.
3. Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix to combine.
4. Reduce the mixer to low speed and gradually add the dry ingredients to form a dough.
5. Divide the dough into two, shape it into discs, cover with plastic wrap, and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. When it’s time to bake the gingerbread cookies, preheat the oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll out one disc of dough at a time with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface to about ¼-inch thickness.
6. Dip the cookie-cutter shapes of your choice in flour to prevent the dough from sticking, and cut out as many cookies as you can. Transfer the cutouts to the prepared baking sheets and leave about 1 inch of space between each one. You can reroll the dough scraps once and cut out more shapes. Bake one sheet of cookies at a time for 10 minutes and let cool in the cookie sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
7. Make your icing of choice (I chose royal icing this time, which is made of egg whites, powdered sugar, and vanilla). Place the prepared icing in a piping bag fitted with a small round tip or with the tip snipped off.
8. Once the cookies have cooled to room temperature, pipe decorations with the icing and then let them sit for an hour or two until the icing dries.
Gingerbread Cookie Recipe
Video
Equipment
- mixing bowl
- Electric mixer
- Baking Sheets
- Wire cooling rack
- Piping bag and tip
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (360g)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ cup unsalted butter room temperature (170g)
- ¾ cup firmly packed light brown sugar (165g)
- ½ cup unsulphured molasses (120mL)
- 1 large egg room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (5mL)
- Royal icing or easy sugar cookie icing, for decorating
Instructions
For the Cookies:
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter, brown sugar, and molasses on medium speed until fluffy, about 3 to 5 minutes Add in the egg and vanilla, and mix until combined. Scrape the bowl down and mix once more.
- With the mixer running on low speed, gradually add in the flour mixture gradually until a nice dough forms.
- Divide the dough in half and shape into disks. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 4 hours or overnight. (This step is important because the dough gets soft quickly and is very sticky when soft, so it really needs to be thoroughly chilled.)
- When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disc of chilled dough at a time to about ¼-inch in thickness. (If it starts to crack when you roll it, cover it and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes to soften slightly.)
- Dip the cookie cutter shapes of your choice in flour and cut out as many as you can. (I typically use shapes that are 2½ inches to 4 inches in size.) Carefully transfer each cutout to a baking sheet, leaving an inch between them. Reroll the scraps once.
- Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 10 minutes. Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
For the Decoration:
- Place your icing of choice in a piping bag fitted with a small round tip or with the tip snipped off.
- Pipe decorations onto the cooled cookies with the icing.
- Attach sprinkles and or candies for added visual interest while the icing is still wet. Let the cookies sit until the icing is dry, 1 to 2 hours.
Notes
- The number of cookies you get will depend on the size of your cookie cutters. Larger cutters (3-4”) will yield 12 to 14 cookies. Smaller cutters (2-2½“) will yield 18 to 20 cookies.
- Try a different frosting for decorating the cookies. Whip up a small batch of buttercream and decorate with that instead. The frosting won’t set as firmly as royal icing, but your gingerbread men will be delicious and look great, and you don’t have to do any intricate piping. Simply leave them plain or add festive sprinkles before the frosting dries.
Nutrition
Decorating and Finishing Gingerbread Cutout Cookies
This is the fun part, so have fun with the designs! You can pipe simple lines along the edges of the shaped cookies to enhance their shape or fully coat and flood them with royal icing or my easy sugar cookie icing. I like to use festive sprinkles and colorful sanding sugars to accent the piping, like the eyes, buttons, or attire on gingerbread men. Add shiny gold and silver sprinkles like ornaments on Christmas trees, or use a bit of extra icing to stick candies or mini candy canes onto the cookies.
You can also color the icing with gel food coloring and use different colors to create different designs or patterns on the cookies. For the best gingerbread cookies, let your creativity flow, and don’t worry about how perfect they look. They’ll be delicious no matter what!
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
Make-ahead dough: Wrap the cookie dough discs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days before baking. For longer storage, place the wrapped discs in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling, cutting, and baking.
Storing baked cookies: Leftover gingerbread men cookies will keep in an airtight container for up to 5 days at room temperature, or three weeks in the refrigerator. Over time, they will lose moisture and become drier.
Freezing: You can freeze baked gingerbread cookies, whether decorated or undecorated, for up to 3 months. Flash freeze them on a baking sheet and store in a freezer-safe container with sheets of parchment paper between layers of cookies to prevent sticking. Thaw for a few hours at room temperature before enjoying.
Can I freeze the cutout cookies before baking?
Yes. Flash-freeze the unbaked gingerbread people or other shapes of cookies on a baking sheet, then store in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Place parchment or wax paper between layers of the unbaked cookies to prevent sticking. Handle them carefully to prevent breakage.
When you are ready to bake, arrange the frozen cutouts on the baking sheets and bake as directed, adding 2 to 3 minutes to the bake time if needed.
More Cookie Recipes To Try
Try one of these festive Christmas cookies next!
Crisp, chewy gingersnap cookies taste like Christmas! I always include them on my holiday cookie platters, and they disappear in a flash.
Rugelach are buttery, flaky pastries filled with a sweet walnut and raisin filling. Top them with festive sprinkles for the holidays.
Melt-in-your-mouth, warmly spiced molasses cookies epitomise holiday flavor. They come together easily, making them accessible for novice and experienced bakers alike!
Linzer cookies are a Christmas classic. Raspberry jam is sandwiched between crisp almond shortbread — an irresistible pairing!
A batch of cheerfully decorated sugar cookies is always a hit! They have crisp edges, tender middles, and are sturdy enough to withstand detailed decorating with royal icing or sugar cookie icing.
If you’ve tried this gingerbread cookie recipe, then don’t forget to rate it and let me know how you got on in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
Adriana says
Delicious. I didn’t want to wait 4 hours for them in the fridge, so just flatten them between parchment paper and left them to cool for only 20 minutes – absolutely perfect.
Martha yimchunger says
It taste so good!
Sophia says
The best gingerbread cookies ! We make them every year now as a tradition and decorate them with the kids !