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Soft, chewy and perfectly spiced, this Gingerbread Cookie Recipe is the one I’ve been making for almost 30 years. The dough chills until it’s easy to handle, rolls out beautifully for classic Christmas cut-outs, and bakes into tender cookies that are sturdy enough for decorating. My secret ingredient is a splash of balsamic vinegar, which helps give these Gingerbread Cookies their tender texture and deep, complex flavor.
Table of Contents
- Kellie’s Note Gingerbread Man of My Dreams
- Why You’ll Love This Gingerbread Cookie Recipe
- Ingredients for Gingerbread Cookies
- What Kind of Molasses Is Best for Gingerbread Cookies?
- Why Is There Vinegar in Gingerbread Cookies?
- How to Make Gingerbread Cookies
- Kellie’s Tips for Perfect Gingerbread Cookies
- How to Decorate Gingerbread Cookies
- Gingerbread Cookie Decorating Ideas
- Serving Ideas
- How to Store Gingerbread Cookies
- Gingersnaps vs. Gingerbread
- More Christmas Cookie Recipes
- Gingerbread Cookies Recipe
- Gingerbread Cookies FAQ
Kellie’s Note
Gingerbread Man of My Dreams
This is one of the first cookie recipes I shared on The Suburban Soapbox, but I’ve actually been making it for almost 30 years. There’s a reason I keep coming back to it. The cookies are soft and chewy, the chilled dough is easy to work with, and the cut-outs bake up sturdy enough for all your holiday decorating.
I’ve used this same gingerbread dough for everything from classic gingerbread people to Gingerbread Houses and other holiday treats. It’s one of those recipes I don’t mess with because it simply works.
We have morphed this recipe into the Gingerbread Mummies, or a Gingerbread Man or the Gingerbread Houses. It’s that good.
Why You’ll Love This Gingerbread Cookie Recipe
- A tried-and-true favorite: I’ve been making this recipe for almost 30 years.
- Soft and chewy: The cookies stay tender instead of turning hard and crunchy.
- Great for cut-outs: The chilled dough rolls and cuts easily into your favorite holiday shapes.
- Perfect for decorating: The finished cookies are sturdy enough for icing and decorations.
- Make-ahead friendly: The dough can be refrigerated or frozen so you can prep before a busy holiday baking day.
Ingredients for Gingerbread Cookies
- Butter – Use unsalted butter softened to room temperature so it creams smoothly with the sugar.
- Granulated Sugar – Sweetens the cookies without overpowering the molasses and warm spices.
- Molasses – Gives Gingerbread Cookies their signature deep, rich flavor.
- Egg – Helps bind the dough and keeps the finished cookies soft.
- Balsamic Vinegar – My secret ingredient for tender cookies with extra depth of flavor. White vinegar can be substituted if needed.
- All-Purpose Flour – Gives the cookies structure. Keep a little extra nearby for rolling because the dough can be sticky.
- Baking Powder + Baking Soda – Help create the texture and structure of the finished cookies.
- Spices – Ginger, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg create that classic warm gingerbread flavor.
- Salt – Balances the sweetness and spices.
See the recipe card below for exact measurements.
What Kind of Molasses Is Best for Gingerbread Cookies?
I use an unsulphured dark molasses for this Gingerbread Cookie Recipe, personally I love the Grandma’s Molasses brand. It gives the cookies their deep molasses flavor without overwhelming the warm gingerbread spices.
Why Is There Vinegar in Gingerbread Cookies?
Balsamic vinegar may sound like an unusual cookie ingredient, but it’s one of the little secrets to this recipe. Just one tablespoon helps create the tender texture I love while adding subtle complexity to the gingerbread flavor.
And don’t worry, your cookies won’t taste like vinegar. If you don’t have balsamic vinegar, you can substitute white vinegar.
How to Make Gingerbread Cookies
- Cream the butter and sugar. Beat the butter until light and creamy, then add the sugar and beat until fluffy.
- Add the wet ingredients. Slowly mix in the molasses, egg and balsamic vinegar.
- Add the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt. Slowly mix the dry ingredients into the butter mixture.
- Chill the dough. Cover and refrigerate for about 2 hours, or until the dough is easy to handle.
- Roll and cut. Divide the dough in half and roll each portion on a lightly floured surface to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut into your favorite holiday shapes.
- Bake. Arrange the cookies about 1 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 400°F for 5–6 minutes.
- Cool and decorate. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to a wire rack. Cool completely before decorating.
Kellie’s Tips for Perfect Gingerbread Cookies
- Don’t skip the chill. The freshly mixed dough is sticky. Chilling it for about 2 hours makes it much easier to roll and cut.
- Roll the dough 1/4 inch thick. Keeping the dough an even thickness helps the cookies bake evenly and gives them that soft, sturdy texture.
- Use flour as needed. Lightly flour your counter, rolling pin and dough to keep the cut-outs from sticking.
- Bake similar sizes together. Small and large cookie cutters may require slightly different baking times, so try to group similarly sized cookies on the same baking sheet.
- Don’t overbake. Gingerbread Cookies can go from soft to crisp quickly. Bake for 5–6 minutes, or until the cookies are firm around the edges and puffed up in the center. The cookies will continue to set as they cool.
- Cool completely before decorating. Warm cookies can cause icing to soften or run.
- Let the icing set before stacking. Allow decorated cookies to dry completely before storing them in an airtight container.
How to Decorate Gingerbread Cookies
Make sure the Gingerbread Cookies are completely cool before decorating. I like to use a simple icing that dries firm enough to stack the cookies once it has fully set.
Fill a pastry bag or zip-top bag with my royal icing, snip off a small corner and pipe on faces, buttons, snowflakes, zigzags or any design you like. Add sprinkles or candy decorations while the icing is still wet.
Allow the icing to dry completely before stacking or storing the cookies.
- Simply fill the pastry bag with frosting.
- Snip off the end.
- Pipe the icing in a zig zag pattern and glue on the eyes with the frosting.
- Allow the icing to harden, approximately 1-3 hours depending on the humidity.
Gingerbread Cookie Decorating Ideas
Keep your cookies classic with simple white icing or make them extra festive with colorful icing, sprinkles and candy decorations.
This dough works beautifully for:
- Gingerbread people
- Snowflakes
- Stars
- Mittens
- Stockings
- Christmas trees
- Ornaments
- Other favorite holiday cookie cutters
These cookies are especially fun for a holiday decorating party with kids because the finished cookies are sturdy enough to handle plenty of icing and decorations.
Serving Ideas
These Gingerbread Cookies are perfect for Christmas cookie trays, holiday parties, cookie exchanges and homemade gifts. They’re also a fun cookie to leave out for Santa.
Once the icing has completely hardened, the cookies are sturdy enough to stack in cookie tins or package in treat bags for gifting.
How to Store Gingerbread Cookies
- Make ahead: Prepare the dough, shape it into a disk and wrap it tightly. Refrigerate for up to 3 days before rolling and baking.
- Freeze the dough: Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap, place it in a freezer-safe bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw before rolling and baking as directed.
- Store baked cookies: Keep completely cooled Gingerbread Cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Store decorated cookies: Let the icing dry completely before stacking the cookies in an airtight container.
There’s no need to reheat these cookies. They’re best served at room temperature.
Gingersnaps vs. Gingerbread
The main differences between gingerbread and gingersnap cookies are that ginger snaps bake for a longer period of time to get their crispiness–and gingerbread cookies are soft and chewy (and almost always rolled out into different shapes like gingerbread men and other holiday figures).
More Christmas Cookie Recipes
If you’re planning a holiday baking day, add a few more of my favorite Christmas cookies to your list. These recipes are perfect for cookie trays, parties and homemade holiday gifts.
Gingerbread Cookies Recipe
Equipment
- 1 cookie sheet
- 1 silicone baking mat or parchment paper
- 1 cooling rack
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup molasses
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
For the Frosting
- 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- Candy Eyes, optional
Instructions
Make the Cookies
- In a bowl of an electric mixer, beat the softened butter until light and fluffy.
- Add the sugar to the butter and beat until light and fluffy. Turn the mixer to low and mix in the molasses, egg and balsamic vinegar.
- In a separate small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, ground ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and salt.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients to the bowl and continue mixing until thoroughly combined.
- Cover and chill about 2 hours or until the dough is easy to handle.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Divide the dough in half and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll each half of the dough to 1/4″ thickness adding flour as needed, the dough is very sticky so use flour liberally to prevent your cutouts from sticking to the surface.
- Using cookie cutters, cut dough into shapes and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment approximately 1″ apart.
- Bake for 5–6 minutes in a 400˚F oven, or until the edges are firm and the center is puffed. Cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. If your oven has hot spots, rotate the pan once halfway through baking.
To make the frosting
- In a small bowl, combine the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk. Whisk to combine.
- Spoon mixture into a pastry bag or zip top bag and snip off the tip. Add two small dots of icing where the eyes should be and then press one eye on each dot. Decorate the cookies and allow to dry for 2-4 hours or overnight.
- Store in an airtight container.
Video
Notes
- Gingerbread Cookie Dough can be made in advance and refrigerated for up to 3 days.
- Freeze tightly wrapped dough for up to 3 months. Thaw before rolling and baking.
- White vinegar can be substituted for balsamic vinegar.
- The dough will be sticky before chilling. Chill for about 2 hours and use additional flour as needed when rolling.
- Roll the dough to approximately 1/4-inch thickness.
- Group similarly sized cut-outs on the same baking sheet when possible so they bake evenly.
- Store baked Gingerbread Cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
- Allow decorated cookies to dry completely before stacking or storing.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gingerbread Cookies FAQ
Why does gingerbread cookie dough need to chill?
This dough is sticky when it’s freshly mixed, so chilling it for about 2 hours makes it much easier to roll and cut into clean shapes. Don’t skip this step if you want an easy-to-handle dough.
Can I substitute white vinegar for balsamic vinegar?
Yes. White vinegar can be substituted for the balsamic vinegar. The vinegar is used more for the cookie’s texture than for adding a noticeable vinegar flavor.
Can I make gingerbread cookie dough ahead of time?
Yes. Make the dough, wrap it tightly and refrigerate it for up to 3 days before rolling and baking.
Can you freeze gingerbread cookie dough?
Yes. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer-safe bag. Freeze for up to 3 months, then thaw before rolling and baking as directed.
Why is my gingerbread cookie dough sticky?
Some stickiness is normal with this dough. Make sure it chills for the full 2 hours, then lightly flour your work surface, rolling pin and dough as needed while rolling.
How thick should I roll gingerbread cookies?
Roll the dough to approximately 1/4 inch thick. Keeping all the cookies close to the same thickness also helps them bake evenly.
Can I make Gingerbread Cookies without an egg?
You can, but the texture will change. I’ve made the dough without the egg and it needs a little extra kneading to come together. The finished cookies are also crisper, which is why I prefer making the recipe with the egg.
Can I use brown sugar instead of granulated sugar?
I haven’t tested this recipe with brown sugar. Because there’s already a generous amount of molasses in the dough, brown sugar may make the molasses flavor much stronger. If you experiment with the swap, you may want to reduce the molasses slightly.
What’s the difference between gingerbread cookies and gingersnaps?
Gingersnaps are generally baked longer so they develop their signature crisp texture. Gingerbread Cookies are softer and chewier and are often rolled and cut into holiday shapes like gingerbread people.
I do not like balsamic vinegar. Would it be possible to white vinegar instead?
Yes, you can definitely do that, it’s for texture more than flavor.
These is hands down the best gingerbread recipe I’ve ever worked with in terms of texture, flavor, how easy the dough is to work with, and how it bakes up! No sticking or spreading and the dough bakes up sturdy but soft. My go to from now on. Thank you!
Thank you so much, Kelley! We tested this one so many times and still make it after almost 30 years. I’m so happy you liked it!
Wondering if I can use brown sugar instead of white?
I haven’t tested it with brown sugar and since there’s a lot of molasses in the recipe you may end up with very strong cookies. So, if you do swap it you may want to add a little less molasses.
Turned out fantastic!
Great! Thank you so much!