Have you hit that holiday wall yet? If you have *any* energy left, these Soft Gingerbread Cookies are worth it. Promise!
These Soft Gingerbread Cookies are so flavorful, soft, and chewy! I never really liked gingerbread before trying this recipe! These have a *deep* spiced flavor--even including black pepper! Don't you dare leave it out--I am a spice WIMP and don't put pepper on anything, and it's so, so delicious in these! (Okay, now I feel bad for telling you what to do. Try the pepper, please?)
Here is where I tell you the bad news. If you're like me, you won't read the recipe all the way through and I don't want you to miss this. The dough is supposed to be refrigerated overnight before you bake it. I know!! You wanted the cookies today, and now I'm telling you to wait! Waiting overnight will give you the best flavor, because you've allowed the dough time for the flavors of aaaaall those spices to marry.
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There are many ways that you could choose to prepare your gingerbread cookies. You can roll the dough out and cut out shapes, use a cookie stamp, or you could portion the dough into a cookie pan, like I did. I used a cookie pan that I love, but unfortunately they don't make it anymore. This pan here is similar, and I think the cookies would be super cute!
My cookies used about 3 tablespoons of dough, weighing about 1.5 ounces each. Your bake time will greatly depend on the size and thickness of your cookies. Check out the recipe notes for the deets on my cookie size and bake time.
The glaze couldn't be any easier, and it gives the *perfect* amount of sweetness to the cookies! Let the cookies to cool about 10 minutes before brushing the glaze on.
Alternatively, you can store the *unglazed* cookies in the freezer until you're ready to serve them. They can be glazed after you thaw them (this is what I always do)! I don't suggest glazing the cookies prior to freezing.
Click here to see my gift ideas for the baker in your life (even if that baker is you)! From stocking stuffers to kitchenware to novelty items, there's something for everyone!
We're in the home stretch! Five days until Christmas! I MIGHT (maybe!) get one more recipe up on the blog between now and then. It might even be as spicy as this one. 😀
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Recipe adapted slightly from Tartine (link here).
Soft Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
Gingerbread Cookies:
- 3¾ cups flour
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (2 sticks)
- ¾ cup sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ cup dark molasses
- 2 tablespoon agave syrup (or light corn syrup)
Glaze:
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
For Cookies:
- In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, spices, baking soda, and salt). Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine butter and sugar. Cream until mixture is light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add egg and mix well, scraping down the sides of the bowl again, if necessary.
- Add molasses and agave syrup (or corn syrup). Mix until combined. Add dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated.
- Turn dough out onto your counter and knead slightly to form a disc. Wrap tightly and refrigerate overnight (see note).
- Once the dough has chilled, preheat your oven to 350° F. Grease a cookie pan (see note) and set aside.
- Portion the dough into 1.5-ounce pieces. Press dough into prepared pan. *This was the weight of the dough that would fit in my largest cookie scoop. When scooping the chilled dough proved too difficult, I decided to cut the dough into pieces and weigh it to ensure my cookies were the same size (see note on portioning dough).*
- Bake cookies until puffed and edges are slightly golden, about 8-10 minutes. The bake time will depend heavily on the size of your cookies (see note).
- Let cookies cool 10 minutes before glazing (see note).
For Glaze:
- Combine sifted powdered sugar and water in a small bowl. Mix until combined and smooth. Using a pastry brush, brush the top of each cookie with glaze. Allow the glaze to set before serving.Enjoy!
Chelsea
Converted me from a non-gingerbread consumer to a gingerbread lover. These are so good! The black pepper really adds to the recipe and these accompanied my morning coffee for a whole week. 10/10 for me. I'll be coming back to this recipe every year.
Amee
Thanks so much for the wonderful review, Chelsea! I'm so happy that you enjoyed these--and I can relate, since I didn't consider myself a fan of gingerbread before making these! Happy holidays to you and yours! <3