Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2-3 cups all purpose flour (2 cups = 265g)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground clove
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
Wet Ingredients
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature (regular or vegan)
- 1/2 cup (100g) light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp milk (regular or plant-based)
- 1/2 cup (140g) molasses
Icing Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 4-5 tsp water
- 1 tsp corn syrup
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Gel food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- Prepare dry ingredients: In a mixing bowl, whisk together 2 cups of all purpose flour, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg until well combined. Set aside.
- Cream butter and sugars: Using a hand or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the unsalted butter, packed light brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium-high speed for 1-2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add wet ingredients: Pour in vanilla extract, milk, and molasses to the butter mixture. Mix until fully incorporated, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Incorporate flour mixture: Gradually add the dry flour mixture on medium-low speed and mix. Check dough texture; it should be soft, tacky, and slightly sticky.
- Adjust dough texture: Slowly add up to 1 more cup of flour, mixing continuously, until the dough feels clumpy but not crumbly and soft but no longer sticky, similar to play-doh.
- Prepare dough for rolling: Place a sheet of parchment on a flat, movable surface and dust it with flour. Form dough into a ball, pat it onto the parchment, then flip and flour the underside to coat both sides.
- Roll out dough: Roll the dough to about 1/4 inch thickness on the floured parchment paper. Chill the rolled dough with the board in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven and prepare baking sheet: Set oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut out cookies: Remove dough from fridge, cut into shapes with cookie cutters, and transfer to baking sheet spacing cookies 1/2 inch apart.
- Bake: Bake cookies for 8-10 minutes until evenly colored, lightly puffed, and centers appear dull and set but not wet.
- Cool cookies: Transfer baked cookies to a cooling rack and let cool completely before icing.
- Prepare icing: In a bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, starting with 4 tsp water, corn syrup, and vanilla extract until slightly thicker than glue. Adjust consistency by adding powdered sugar or water as needed.
- Color icing: Divide icing and add gel food coloring one drop at a time, if desired, to decorate cookies.
Notes
- Use plant-based butter and milk for a vegan version.
- Do not over-flour the dough; add flour gradually to avoid dry, crumbly texture.
- Chilling the dough is essential to make it easier to roll and cut shapes cleanly.
- Cookies don’t spread much, so they can be placed close together on the baking sheet.
- Let cookies cool completely before decorating to prevent icing from melting.
- Store baked and iced cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to one week.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian