Here is my favorite gingerbread cookies recipe and one of the most popular Christmas cookie recipes on this website. Soft in the centers, crisp on the edges, perfectly spiced, molasses and brown sugar-sweetened holiday goodness.
Whenever I think of Christmas cookies, gingerbread cookies come to mind first. Well, after Christmas sugar cookies of course! Their spice, their molasses flavor, their SMILES, and their charm are obviously irresistible. Gingerbread cookies, you have my heart.
Key Ingredients in Gingerbread Cookies
The full written recipe is below, but let’s review a few key ingredients here first. Gingerbread cookie recipes all start the same and mine comes from my mom. To her recipe, I add a little more molasses and increase the amount of spice flavors (cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and allspice). Because of the added sticky sweetener (molasses), I add a little more flour to help soak it all up. Just like when we are making pinwheel cookies, a bit of extra flour helps the cookies can keep their shape.
- Molasses + spices for flavor
- Egg so the gingerbread cookies have structure and richness
- Brown sugar instead of white granulated sugar. I always use brown sugar when its flavor fits.
How to Make Gingerbread Cookies
Let’s walk through the gingerbread cookie recipe so you feel confident when you begin baking.
Chill the dough: The dough is sticky once it’s all beaten together in your mixing bowl and therefore, it absolutely MUST be chilled for at least 3 hours. Give yourself enough time in the kitchen or make the cookie dough and chill it overnight. You want your cookie dough firm so the cookies hold their shape and you want your cookie dough manageable so you can work with it. You won’t have either unless you have chilled cookie dough!
Wrap up the dough: It’s easiest to wrap the dough in plastic wrap before chilling. Scoop out 1/2 of the prepared cookie dough, plop it onto a long sheet of plastic wrap, wrap it up, and flatten it out into a disc. Repeat with the other 1/2 of dough. Then chill. See that photo above? That’s what you’re doing, but you’ll have 2 discs. Why are you doing this? It’s easier to roll out the chilled cookie dough when it is in a disc shape. Also, the cookie dough chills faster when there is less volume. And it’s just easier to work with smaller portions when rolling/shaping!
Roll it out: After chilling, roll out the chilled cookie dough discs until about 1/4-inch thick. Don’t be afraid to flour your hands, rolling pin, work surface, and everything in the world. By that, I mean: the cookie dough can become sticky as you work. So, don’t be scared to add more flour to the work surface. The flour spots on top of your shaped cookie dough will bake off.
Place the cut-out cookies onto a lined baking sheet about 1 inch apart. The cookies won’t really spread, but you want to make sure they have enough room to breathe. They are gingerbread people, after all. 😉
How to Decorate Gingerbread Cookies
After they’ve baked and cooled, it’s time to decorate the cookies. We’re talking smiles, eyes, bow-ties, buttons, squiggles, whatever your gingerbread cookie loving heart desires. This is when it’s really fun to have a friend or little baker in the kitchen with you. You can use the easy cookie icing or my traditional royal icing recipe, whichever you prefer. For something even easier, you can decorate the gingerbread cookies with cookie decorating buttercream, and feel free to add a little cinnamon to it for extra spice flavor.
Tint the icing with a couple drops of food coloring to spice things up, too.
Many of the tools I include in my list of favorite cookie decorating supplies will be helpful for decorating these cookies. For more inspiration, here is my full tutorial on how to decorate sugar cookies (video included!).
It’s difficult not to love this recipe which is why they’re my favorite gingerbread cookies!
- The dough comes together easily
- The flavor is spot on—lots of molasses, ginger, cinnamon, all-spice, and cloves
- The edges are slightly crisp
- The centers are soft and chewy
- They’re so easy to decorate.
Don’t forget the other Christmas classics: Peanut Butter Blossoms and Snowball Cookies. And if you can’t get enough gingerbread flavor, try these gingerbread blossoms, chocolate ginger cookies, gingerbread latte cookies, iced gingerbread oatmeal cookies, gingerbread cookie bars (no dough chilling!), gingerbread cake, gingerbread cinnamon rolls, and gingerbread waffles next!
Gingerbread Cookies
- Prep Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 24 four-inch cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: German
Description
This is my favorite gingerbread cookies recipe and it’s also loved by millions. Soft in the centers, crisp on the edges, and perfectly spiced. I played around with the spices a lot and really loved the flavor of these cookies when using a full Tablespoon each of ground ginger and ground cinnamon. Make sure you chill the cookie dough discs for a minimum of 3 hours.
Ingredients
- 3 and 1/2 cups (440g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 Tablespoon ground ginger (yes, 1 full Tablespoon!)
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 10 Tablespoons (142g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2/3 cup (160ml; about 200g) unsulphured or dark molasses (do not use blackstrap; I prefer Grandma’s brand)
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional: easy cookie icing, royal icing, or cookie buttercream
Instructions
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium speed until completely smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar and molasses and beat on medium high speed until combined and creamy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Next, beat in egg and vanilla on high speed for 2 full minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. The butter may separate; that’s ok.
- Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and beat on low speed until combined. The cookie dough will be quite thick and slightly sticky. Divide dough in half and place each onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap each up tightly and pat down to create a disc shape. Chill discs for at least 3 hours and up to 3 days. Chilling is mandatory for this cookie dough. I always chill mine overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. (Always recommended for cookies.) Set aside.
- Remove 1 disc of chilled cookie dough from the refrigerator. Generously flour a work surface, as well as your hands and the rolling pin. Roll out disc until 1/4-inch thick. Tips for rolling—the dough may crack and be crumbly as you roll. What’s helpful is picking it up and rotating it as you go. Additionally, you can use your fingers to help meld the cracking edges back together. The first few rolls are always the hardest since the dough is so stiff, but re-rolling the scraps is much easier. Cut into shapes. Place shapes 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Re-roll dough scraps until all the dough is shaped. Repeat with remaining disc of dough.
- Bake cookies for about 9-10 minutes. If your cookie cutters are smaller than 4 inches, bake for about 8 minutes. If your cookie cutters are larger than 4 inches, bake for about 11 minutes. My oven has hot spots and yours may too—so be sure to rotate the pan once during bake time. Keep in mind that the longer the cookies bake, the harder and crunchier they’ll be. For soft gingerbread cookies, follow my suggested bake times.
- Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet. Transfer to cooling rack to cool completely. Once completely cool, decorate as desired.
- Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Baked and decorated (or not decorated) cookies freeze well – up to three months. Unbaked cookie dough discs (just the dough prepared through step 3) freeze well up to three months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator then continue with step 4.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Rolling Pin or Adjustable Rolling Pin | Gingerbread Cookie Cutter | Cooling Rack
- Gingerbread House: This cookie dough is not sturdy enough for gingerbread houses. Here is my gingerbread house recipe.
WHAT HAVE I DONE?
Reader Comments and Reviews
Came out perfect. So easy & so delicious. Thanks for sharing
Is this recipe missing something? I ALWAYS use your recipes because I consider them reliable and the results are fab. This time, after following the recipe precisely, I was very disappointed. The cookies are bitter, and I want to throw out what I baked and the dough remaining. I question the amount of spice; please bake using this recipe and perhaps you will understand my disappointment. I have company coming tomorrow, and now I have to make a different dessert.
Hi Linds, We’re sorry this recipe is giving you trouble. Is it possible that you used blackstrap molasses?
Love this recipe!
How can I generate a carb count for diabetic friends?
Hi Caryn, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
just wondering what would make the dough crumbly?
Hi Doris, the dough is going to be crumbly when you pull it out of the refrigerator and begin rolling it. Keep working at it, and the butter in the dough will begin to soften and you’ll be able to roll it out nicely.
I’ve been baking these for about four years, and I get requests for them every year! I use royal icing and just do a solid topping, almost like on top of a Little Debbie gingerbread but piped.
Over the years, I’ve realized I was measuring flour wrong (not doing the spoon and level!) and started measuring flour by weight, BUT I actually think the slight overdo of flour that’d I’d been doing over the years works for me!
Hi! Can whole wheat pastry flour be substituted for all purpose in this recipe?
Thanks!
Hi Sarah, We haven’t tested the recipe with whole wheat pastry flour. The dough may be a little dry if you try whole wheat flour, though. We would add 1 Tablespoon of water when you add the molasses or increase the butter by 2 Tbsp.
I got a little scared of the mess when I added molasses to the mixing bowl but after a few hours in the fridge, the dough was really easy to deal with. They taste great ! Thank you for the recipe. 🙂
Sally’s done it again! As I always say at work, when something is not working for someone, “operator error”.
I’ve found, on Sally’s website, if a recipe is posted. It’s fantastic, tried and true. If something goes wrong. I know it’s me. After chilling my dog overnight, it was beautiful to work with. Baked up amazing. Best gingerbread I’ve eaten, I love the amount of spices! Thank you Sally!!
Urgh, that should say dough, not dog.
Hi Sally! I sometimes use coconut oil in place of butter in my baking recipes…do you think that would work in this recipe? Thanks
Hi Amy, I haven’t tested that swap in this cookie recipe so let me know if you do!
I substituted coconut oil, and they turned out great! I was a bit worried because the dough wasn’t nearly as sticky as I thought it would be, but they turned out really yummy and a great texture.
getting ready to make this recipe and discovered i don’t have any allspice- could i use nutmeg in place – and if so what amount
OMG people go nuts every time I make these ! CN the recipe be doubled ?
Hi Jill, I find it’s best with this dough to make 2 separate batches instead of doubling.
I love this recipe and have used it for a few years now. I was hoping to roll these cookies out/cut them into shapes (after chilling) and THEN freeze them so that I can do a fresh bake before a party. Do I need to let them thaw first or can I bake cut out shapes directly from the freezer?
Hi Kelly! You should be able to bake them from frozen, bake time will be a little longer.
It has become a holiday tradition to bake these cookies with my kids. We’ve made them every year since my daughter was two. She is nearly five now, and this year, she told me we have to make these cookies because it’s our tradition. Thanks for the wonderful recipe and special memories that we’ve made while using it!
These taste amazing! the one thing I had a problem was I had 3 inch cookies and cooked them for 8 min on 350 and they were a little too crunchy.
Hi- are these a bit spicey? If not can I add a little pepper or Cayenne?
Hi Leslee, we don’t, but you absolutely could add it here!
This recipe is a family favorite. My 5 year asks for it all year long! My sister requested it for her birthday.
This holiday season my grocery store has Grandma’s Molasses but it’s the green lid “robust” flavor. I’m curious as to whether you’ve used it before. I can’t decided whether to pull the trigger on it or go search out the original version.
Hi Cindy, we haven’t tried that!
I’ve used this recipe for five years straight and love it.
Notes:
– I bake for jusy 7 minutes to get them nice and soft
– For gingerbread nuggets, cut into 1×1″ squares and bake for 5 minutes
Soooooo dry.
As always, Sally’s recipes are great, and this one is no exception. The 4-star rating is because the dough was very sticky and a bit hard to work with, even though I chilled overnight and rolled between parchment. I also did a recipe taste test. I have a gingerbread recipe I have used for years, but because Sally has put a spell on me where all types of baking is concerned, I had to try hers, haha! The main difference between the two is the fact that the original recipe I have made does not use eggs. ANYWAY….You won’t be sorry if you try it, however! They are very good!
Hello Sally,
I’ve made many of your recipes, and I’ve lived them all.
Why do you say not to use blackstrap molasses?
Hi Nancy, blackstrap is very bitter/potent and often not preferred in baked goods. If you know that you like it, you can certainly use it.
440g of flour is a scant 3 cups, not 3.5 cups. Which measurement should I use? I did it by weight and I’m hoping that’s right… the dough is in the freezer. Also, if you’re freezing, do you need to chill and then freeze, or can you put straight into the freezer?
Hi Stefanie! Measuring by weight is the most accurate. If freezing, the dough can go straight into the freezer without chilling first. Hope you enjoy these cookies!
This recipe is absolutely delicious!!!! Yum! Everyone loved it and they held their shape! Only thing that happened was my cookies cracked. What did I do wrong?
Hi Robin! Like they broke after they were baked? They could have been slightly under-baked, which would make them too soft and fragile.
I love this recipe! I just noticed that my first batch was a bit cracked and then the second and third batches were not. I think it’s because my first batch was a bit cold going into the oven and I didn’t realize it wasn’t fully preheated. Whereas my second and third batches had sat out on the counter and were going onto a warm sheet pan and the oven was at the right temp..
Hi Sally, I don’t have any allspice is there something I can use in it’s place?
Hi Lori, you can simply leave it out, or add a little extra of each of the other spices to make up for it.
I love this recipe so much but this year we have a guest coming who is allergic to egg! What can I substitute with please?
Hi Mim, we haven’t tested this recipe with any egg substitutes, so were unsure what might work best here. If you’re interested, here are all of our naturally egg-free recipes.
I’m planning to make them with flax eggs- 1 tablespoon flaxseed meal with 3 tablespoon water mixed together = 1 egg!
This is the 2nd time making these and they turned out perfect. I let my grand daughters decorate them. The recipe is easy to follow. Thanks Sally I will continue to use your recipe.
I’m in the uk. Can I use treacle as a substitute for molasses?
Hi Beth, Molasses is key to that signature gingerbread taste, but some readers have swapped treacle or golden syrup in its place. The flavor profile will be a bit different. Let us know if you try it!
I made these last week and they were delicious! I’m planning on making them for the weekend and wondering how long can you refrigerate the dough before baking? Is 3 days too long?
Thank you!!
Hi Ingrid, You can refrigerate the dough for up to three days.
Great recipe. Don’t have a mixer at all, mixed this all by hand. Recipe turned out wonderfully. I use a 1.5 inch diameter circle cookie cutter and adjusted the cook time to 6 minutes. They are great to dip the bottoms in melted butterscotch chips and sandwich them together.
Will try this recipe substituting 1 cup of flour for 1 cup of oat flour.
Could you tell me why blackstrap molasses cannot be used for this recipie? Blackstrap molasses is what I have on hand.
Hi Menardi, blackstrap is very bitter/potent and often not preferred in baked goods. If you know that you like it, you can certainly use it.
This recipe worked out perfectly and was a huge hit with the whole family! I don’t have a stand mixer or a paddle attachment, but I used my hand mixer and watched that I didn’t over mix it (wasn’t sure if the regular hand mixer attachments would make a difference, but it turned out fine!). With the first disc of dough I baked them after 4 hours of chilling in the fridge, second disc I refrigerated overnight before baking. I didn’t notice too much of a difference. I also used the cookie icing for these and it was the best finishing touch! Making these again next week to hand out to friends and family. 🙂