Ornament Gingerbread Cookies (Print version)
Tender gingerbread cookies with warm spices, ideal for festive decorating and hanging.
# What you'll need:
→ Dry Ingredients
01 - 3 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
03 - 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
04 - 1 tablespoon ground ginger
05 - 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
06 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
07 - 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
08 - 1/2 teaspoon salt
→ Wet Ingredients
09 - 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
10 - 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
11 - 1 large egg
12 - 2/3 cup unsulphured molasses
13 - 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
→ For Decorating
14 - Royal icing
15 - Assorted sprinkles, edible glitter, or small candies
16 - Ribbon or string for hanging
# How to make it:
01 - Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl.
02 - Beat unsalted butter and dark brown sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy, approximately 2 minutes.
03 - Incorporate egg, molasses, and vanilla extract into the butter mixture, mixing just until combined.
04 - Gradually add dry ingredients to the wet mixture, stirring until a soft dough forms.
05 - Divide dough in half, shape into disks, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
06 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
07 - On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut shapes using ornament or festive cookie cutters.
08 - Use a straw or skewer to poke a small hole near the top of each cookie for hanging purposes.
09 - Place cookies 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets.
10 - Bake cookies for 8 to 10 minutes until edges are set and centers appear dry. Allow to cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks.
11 - Once fully cooled, decorate cookies with royal icing and sprinkles as desired. Allow icing to set before threading ribbon through holes for hanging.
# Expert suggestions:
01 -
- They stay crispy on the edges while staying tender inside, which means they're almost impossible to overbake.
- The spice blend hits that perfect sweet spot between warm and bold without tasting medicinal.
- Once decorated, these look fancy enough to impress but taste homemade in the best way.
02 -
- The hole for hanging must be poked before baking, not after; trying to drill through a baked cookie either cracks it or leaves crumbs everywhere.
- Your molasses should be unsulphured; sulphured molasses tastes slightly bitter and changes the whole flavor profile in ways that feel wrong.
- If your dough cracks when rolling, it's too cold; let it sit at room temperature for five minutes and it becomes cooperative again.
03 -
- Use a ruler to measure your dough thickness; consistency means every cookie bakes at exactly the same rate.
- If you have extra dough scraps, chill them and re-roll them once more; they bake just as well as the first cut and there's no reason to waste good dough.