How to Make Gingerbread Cookies

Co-authored by Ross Canter

Last Updated: August 9, 2022 References

At the holidays, gingerbread cookies are a dessert staple. These crispy cookies are full of delicious spices that give them a distinctive flavor. While there is quite a bit of prep work involved in making the dough, the cookies are easy to make -- and a lot of fun to decorate.

Ingredients

Cookies

3 cups (360 g) flour
1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda
2 teaspoons (10 g) ground ginger
1 teaspoon (5 g) ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon (1.25 g) ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon (1.25 g) salt
¾ cup or 1 ½ sticks (170 g) butter, softened
¾ cup (150 g) firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup (170 g) molasses
1 egg
1 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla extract

Royal Icing

2 pounds (approximately 970 g) powdered sugar, sifted
⅓ cup (80 mL) whole milk, plus additional for thinning if necessary
2 large egg whites
food coloring (optional)
Candies, sprinkles, colored sugar, and other decorations

Part 1

Part 1 of 5:

Preparing the Dough

1
Stir the flour, baking soda, and spices together in a bowl. In a large mixing bowl, stir together 3 cups (360 g) of flour, 1 teaspoon (5 g) baking soda, 2 teaspoons (10 g) ground ginger, 1 teaspoon (5 g) ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon (1.25 g) ground nutmeg, and ¼ teaspoon (1.25 g) salt. Set the bowl aside.^{[1]
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- For the best results, sift the ingredients through a wire sieve into the bowl before mixing.
- Some recipes omit the ground nutmeg, and replace it with ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) ground allspice and ½ teaspoon (2.5 g) ground cloves. You can also choose to include all three, depending on how spicy you want your gingerbread cookies to be.^{[2]
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2
Combine the butter and brown sugar in another bowl. In a second large bowl, mix together ¾ cup (170 g), or 1 ½ sticks, of softened butter with ¾ cup (150 g) firmly packed brown sugar. Use an electric mixer to beat the two together until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.^{[3]
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- Softened butter should be cool when you touch it, but light pressure from your finger should leave an indentation. The best way to soften butter is to leave it out at room temperature for approximately 30 minutes. Cut it into chunks to help it soften more quickly.^{[4]
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3
Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla. When the butter and brown sugar are thoroughly combined, stir ½ cup (170 g) of molasses, 1 egg, and 1 teaspoon (5 mL) vanilla extract into the bowl. Make sure to mix thoroughly, scraping down the sides of the bowl several times to ensure that the ingredients are completely combined.^{[5]
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- Because molasses is so thick, it’s best to drizzle it into the bowl, rather than dump it all in at once.
4
Mix in the flour mixture. To make the dough, combine the flour mixture with the butter mixture. Use a wooden spoon to slowly stir the dry ingredients in so you can ensure that they are fully incorporated. It will form a stiff dough when they’re fully mixed.^{[6]
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- You’ll have an easier time mixing the dry ingredients into the butter mixture if you do it in batches and stir after each addition.
5
Press the dough into a disc to refrigerate. Once the dough is formed, press it in a flat disc. Cover the disc with plastic wrap, and place it in the refrigerator. Allow it chill for at least four hours, though you may get better results if you refrigerate it overnight.^{[7]
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- You can make the dough up to two days in advance of when you plan to bake the cookies.

Part 2

Part 2 of 5:

Cutting Cookies

1
Preheat the oven. When you’re ready to cut and bake the cookies, start by getting your oven to the proper temperature. Allow it to preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (approximately 175 degrees Celsius).^{[8]
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- Make sure to pay attention to your oven. It should beep or an indicator light should illuminate when it reaches the correct temperature.
2
Remove the dough from the refrigerator to warm. If you try to roll out the dough right after removing it from the fridge, it will be too stiff to work with. Instead, take it out of the refrigerator and allow it to sit at room temperature for 5 to 10 minutes until it’s warm enough to roll without tearing or cracking.^{[9]
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- You may find it easier to divide the dough into two sections and work with one at a time so the dough doesn’t get too soft outside the refrigerator.
3
Roll out the dough on a floured surface. While the dough is warming, prepare your work surface by sprinkling it lightly with flour to keep the dough from sticking to it. Set the dough on the surface, and sprinkle the top of it with a pinch of flour before rolling out it with a rolling pin to a ¼-inch (6.35 mm) thickness.^{[10]
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- Roll your dough to ⅛-inch (3.17 mm) thickness to end up with crispier cookies.
4
Use cookie cutters to cut out the cookies. Once the dough is rolled out, use floured cookie cutters to cut the cookies. A traditional gingerbread man shape is most popular for this type of cookie, but you can use any shape that you like. You’ll make approximately 24 cookies, depending on the size of your cookie cutters. ^{[11]
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- If you don’t have cookie cutters, you can use a glass to cut out round cookies or print out shapes on your computer to create templates that you can place on the dough and cut around with a knife.
5
Place the cookies on a baking sheet. After cutting out the cookies, transfer them to an ungreased baking sheet. For the best results, use a non-stick cookie sheet. Make sure to place the cookies so they are 1-inch apart to prevent them spreading into one another during baking.^{[12]
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- If you don’t have a non-stick baking sheet, line yours with a baking mat or parchment paper to make it easier to get the cookies off once they’ve baked.

Part 3

Part 3 of 5:

Baking the Cookies

1
Bake the cookies for 10 to 15 minutes. Place the cookie sheet in the oven and allow them to bake until the edges are set and crisp. That usually takes between 10 and 15 minutes, depending on the thickness that you rolled the dough to and the size of cookie cutters that you used.^{[13]
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- The cookies should be firm but still soft when they’re baked through.
2
Remove from the oven and cool on sheets. Once the cookies are done, remove the baking sheet from the oven. Allow the cookies to cool on the sheets for 1 to 2 minutes to ensure that they’re fully set before you move them.^{[14]
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3
Cool completely on wire racks. After cooling the cookies for a couple of minutes on the baking sheet, use a spatula to transfer them to wire racks. Allow the cookies to cool completely, which should take approximately 20 to 30 minutes.^{[15]
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- If you plan on decorating your cookies, it’s especially important to allow them to cool fully. Otherwise, the royal icing may melt when you apply it to the cookies.

Part 4

Part 4 of 5:

Making the Royal Icing

1
Combine the powdered sugar, milk, and egg whites. In a large bowl, mix 2 pounds (970 g) of sifted powdered sugar, ⅓ cup (80 mL) of whole milk, and 2 large egg whites. Use an electric mixer on low to beat them together until they form a thick icing that’s you’re still able to pipe with a pastry bag.^{[16]
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- You may need to add a little extra milk to the icing to make it thin enough for piping. Add a couple of drops at a time and stir, so you don’t accidentally make it too thin.
- You can refrigerate the icing for up to two days if you store it in an airtight container. You may want to make it ahead of time, so it’s ready when it’s time to decorate the cookies.
- If you’re short on time, you can substitute canned vanilla frosting from the grocery store for the royal icing.
2
Add food coloring if desired. Royal icing is naturally white, but depending on how you plan to decorate your cookies, you may want to color it. Use food coloring drops or paste to color the icing before putting it in a piping bag.^{[17]
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- When you add the food coloring, start gradually so you don’t make the icing too dark.
- You may want to divide the icing, and color it in multiple shades to fit the occasion.
3
Put the icing into a piping/pastry bag. Once the icing is the right consistency, place it in a piping or pastry bag. Make sure that the bag has a fine tip attached to make decorating easier.^{[18]
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- If you don’t have a piping or pastry bag, you can use a squirt bottle to dispense the icing on the cookies.

Part 5

Part 5 of 5:

Decorating the Cookies

1
Pipe some lines on cookies with icing. Once your pastry bag is ready, you can pipe the icing on as an accent for the cookies. You can use it simply to outline the shape of the cookie, or to add fine details, such as a face for a gingerbread man cookie.^{[19]
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- You can also use the icing to pipe patterns on the cookies, such as an all-over polka dot or stripe design.
2
Use icing to serve as glue for candies. Royal icing works extremely well as a glue to hold decorative candies and other embellishments on the cookies. Just add a dot of the frosting onto the cookie where you want to place the decoration and press the candy into place. When the icing dries, it won’t move.^{[20]
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- You can use candies specifically meant for cookies decorating, such as sugar pearls or dragees, or you can use regular candies, such as M&M’s.
- Allow the icing to dry completely before you place the decorated cookies in storage containers.
3
Spread icing across the entire surface. If you want an easy way to decorate the cookies, use a knife to spread the icing over the entire cookie. While the icing is still wet, sprinkle colored sugar over it for a colorful, sparkling look.
- You can use a single colored sugar for the entire cookie, or use a piece of paper towel or a paper plate to block off sections of the cookie as you sprinkle to use multiple colors for a striped effect.

Expert Q&A

Question

What is the main ingredient for gingerbread?

Ross Canter
Professional Baker
Ross Canter is a Professional Baker and the Co-Founder of Cookie Good in Santa Monica, California. Originally a screenwriter, Ross decided to pursue his passion for baking and opened Cookie Good in 2007 with his wife, Melanie. Ross and Melanie opened their brick and mortar bakery in 2014. With over 15 years of experience, Ross specializes in creating high quality cookies with unique flavor options and helping people feel “cookie good” one cookie at a time.

Ross Canter

Professional Baker

Expert Answer

The key ingredients for gingerbread are molasses and a great mix of spices. Grandma's Old-Fashioned molasses is a great pick—it's got a nice balance of sweet and smoky flavors without the bitterness of blackstrap molasses. As for spices, be sure to use a lot of ground ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg. You can even add a touch of cloves!
Question

How do I make cookie cutters?

Community Answer

Check out the helpful tips in this article about how to make your own cookie cuttters on wikiHow.
Question

Can I make gluten free gingerbread?

Community Answer

Yes! You can find gluten free alternatives to flour at your local grocery store. I would suggest finding another recipe online. If you can't find one, try substituting any ingredients on the list with the alternatives, just be aware that it can alter the consistency and flavor of the finished product, and may alter the baking times a bit.