Gingerbread Men Cookies

5 from 1 vote

Gingerbread Men Cookies

Gingerbread cookies are the perfect shareable cookie for your holiday parties. Use any cookie cutter shape that you prefer and make the easy Royal Icing with meringue powder to decorate them.

Prep Time15

Cook Time8

Chilling Time1

Total Time1 23

Course: cookie

Cuisine: Canadian

Servings: cookies

Calories: 137kcal

Author: Jacqueline Piper

Equipment

Ingredients

Gingerbread Men Cookies

½ cup butter at room temperature
½ cup brown sugar packed
½ cup unsulphured molasses
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground allspice

Small Batch Royal Icing

2 tablespoons meringue powder
¼ cup water
½ pound powdered sugar
drizzle white corn syrup

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Gingerbread Men Cookies

Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 5 minutes.
Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla. Mix again. Scrape down the bottom of the bowl to reincorporate the ingredients evenly.
In a medium bowl, mix together dry ingredients and then add them to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for an hour or two.
When ready to make cookies, preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C).
Lightly flour your counter, then roll out the dough to about a quarter inch thick, then cut out shapes with a lightly floured cookie cutter.
Lightly brush off any extra flour with a pastry brush.
(I use a three-inch cookie cutter and ended up with 30 cookies.)
Place cookies an inch apart on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper (I use a silicone mat).
Bake for about 8-12 minutes or until cooked. (Ovens vary)
Let cookies cool then decorate as you prefer. Enjoy!

Small Batch Royal Icing

Combine all ingredients together in stand mixer bowl.
Beat on medium-low for about 5-10 minutes, or until stiff peaks form.
Cover immediately with plastic wrap until you are ready to use it. Keep it covered with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel - it dries out and hardens very easily.
The icing can be separated and colored with food gel coloring. Keep the icing thicker to pipe outlines and faces, and thin it out a little to flood larger areas of the cookie.

Notes

I used a three-inch cookie cutter and ended up with 30 cookies.

*It's important to chill the cookie dough before baking to keep the height and shape of the cookies. Without chilling, the dough will spread and the cookies will be thinner and lose their shape.

Nutrition