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.
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.
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 chocolate ginger cookies, iced gingerbread oatmeal cookies, gingerbread cookie bars (no dough chilling!), gingerbread cake, and gingerbread waffles next!
PrintGingerbread 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 (2/3 cup; 145g) 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 or royal icing
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.
Keywords: gingerbread cookies, gingerbread men
WHAT HAVE I DONE?
So easy to follow. Hard to mess up. Got so many compliments at the potluck I brought them to. I’m always happy to sing the praises of this site because the recipes have been so reliable. My dough wasn’t sticky and wet like I thought I had read it would be in the recipe, but they rolled out perfectly, and they’re so easy to tell when they’re peak perfection in the oven. Times were very accurate. Genuine soft, excellently spiced gingerbread cookies.
★★★★★
These cookies are so good! I have been making since 2020 and get compliments everywhere I take them!
Question – how long does the wrapped disc stay good in the fridge? I fell ill the day after making the dough and now it has been in the fridge for 7 days. Do you think the cookies will be ok if I bake tomorrow? Or just scrap and start over?
Hi Shannon! We recommend chilling the dough up to three days. We would start over in this instance. Hope you’re feeling better!
hi shelly I follow your wonderful recipes ❤️ I want to make the gingerbread cookies but I can’t find the “allspice” in our country. What can I replace the 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice with?
You can leave it out or add additional cinnamon!
I see the recipe calls for ground ginger. Could I grate some fresh instead and if so how much? I realize the recipe will alter a bit, was just curious if you’ve tried it. Thanks!
Hi Annie! We haven’t tested it but you should be able to use fresh grated ginger. We are unsure of the exact amount but just remember that fresh ginger isn’t as strong as ground dried ginger so you will need to use more, and you should grate it as finely as possible.
Hi Sally and team – is this recipe doubled easily, or should I do it in two batches?
I absolutely love this recipe and use it year round!
★★★★★
Hi Julie! We recommend making two separate batches. It’s easier to work with less volume of dough at a time.
I’m trying your ginger cookies recipe for the first time. I’ve never baked these cookies before Wish me luck
Best of luck, Cari! We would love to hear how they go.
This is the best recipe I’ve found. Thank you so much!!!
My family and friends loves these.
I LOVE this recipe! I started making it in 2020 when I was trying to figure out at-home Christmas gift boxes, and it’s been a staple in my house ever since. Even my mom that doesn’t particularly care for gingerbread is always so excited to have a couple. I tend to roll the dough a tiny bit thicker than the recipe calls for so I can get the chewy insides that my family is such a big fan of.
★★★★★
This is my go to EVERY YEAR! So good, and my family loves them too! I find to dough is sometimes a bit to crumbly i just add a small splash of milk and its PERFECT! Thanks so much sally!
★★★★★
I loved this recipe so much!
My batter smells like molasses, is that normal?
Our go to gingerbread men recipe every year. Its taste is perfection!! We also use it to make our homemade gingerbread houses!
★★★★★
Same thing like a couple of people in the comments happened to me “dry and crumbly”. I think next time if I use this recipe I am going to weigh out the flour and not use cups
★★★
these gingerbreads are very good
I can’t find ground cloves. Is it okay to omit them?
Hi Amanda, you’ll lose a bit of flavor, but you can omit the cloves if needed. Feel free to use more of the other spices instead.
i’ve been making these cookies every year since 2017! my family absolutely loves them and they request that i make them every winter. I use sally’s recipes for absolutely everything I make! Sally never fails to amaze me
★★★★★
Wonderful recipe, doesn’t spread a lot and is easy to work with and the instructions were so good. Thank you very much!
★★★★★
Sally! I made 8 batches (18 lbs, 225 cookies) of your gingerbread cookie
dough for wedding favors your son’s
wedding. Guest were opening the boxes at the wedding and were raving about how good they were. I also used your royal icing recipe. Thank you for another great recipe. Wish I could add a picture in the comments.
★★★★★
So dry and crumbly
★
Hi Sally, I used this recipe to make gingerbread cookies, they turned out great, everyone loved it the texture of them. Can you please let me know if I can use the same recipe to make gingerbread round cookies and roll them in sugar? Love your recipes!
Hi Maria! This cookie dough wouldn’t be the best for drop style cookies, but here’s our favorite soft molasses cookies recipe!
Hi I follwed the recipe but it looks crumbly. Is it supposed to be that way or did I miss a step?
Hi Letty! This should be a soft dough. How did you measure the flour? Make sure to spoon and level (instead of scooping) to avoid packing in too much flour into your measuring cups – or use a kitchen scale. You can read more about properly measuring baking ingredients in this post.
Does this recipe require fresh ground ginger? Or is ginger powder ok?
Hi Syeda! We use ground ginger (powder) here.
Great recipe! They roll out really easily and were great to work with. Made a batch that was larger than 4” and also a batch of smaller cookies and the technique for baking them worked great. The flavours are wonderful and it’s perfectly spiced. Wonderful chew on it (I also sneakily ate a warm one and my goodness that was a delight). Can’t wait to decorate these bad boys.
Why do you recommend not using Blackstrap Molasses?
Hi Kathy, blackstrap molasses can have a very strong, bitter taste so I don’t typically recommend using it in cookies.
Skip the egg. add a bit more flour and roll between 2 pieces of parchment paper,cut, and after you’ve rolled and cut all the dough, put in the fridge to bake. It’s way too hard to role refrigerated dough
I am 75 years old and over the years I’ve always hesitated making gingerbread..this is the 1st recipe that is PERFECT I followed directions and was so pleased. Thank you
★★★★★
Hello. I decided to add these Gingerbread cookies to my Christmas Goodies list and was doing a test run on the recipe. It was a brain scattered day and as I was making the recipe I ended up using a 1/3 measuring cup to add the brown sugar and I put in three of the 1/3cup and add I was putting in the spices I accidentally added 1/2 tsp of Nutmeg. So the dough was a little crumbly but after some kneading and overnight chilling, I rolled and cut the cookies. I baked 8-10 min and they aren’t as moist, obviously, but the taste is amazing and the consistency is slightly crumbly but still moist enough to devour them. I also made a maple glaze to drizzle on the top. So I’m happy to say this is a great recipe even when you have multiple mishaps.
Hi Sally!
I’m struggling to find molasses in the UK, what else can I use?
Hi Victoria, molasses is key to that signature gingerbread taste, but some readers have swapped treacle in its place. The flavor profile will be a bit different. Let us know if you try it!
Getting ready to make these with my grand babies (ok…they’re 8, so technically not babies…but they’ll always be babies to me!)..I digress..what type of salt do you use in these cookies?
Hi Paula! We use table salt unless noted otherwise.
We tried this recipe and it was great…we used the Chelsey royal icing recipe with the cookies and it worked great…great for kids to do as well.
Hi Sally! Can I double this recipe and have it still work out?
Hi Theresa! We recommend making two separate batches. It’s easier to work with less volume of dough at a time.
What if you were to, say, quadruple this recipe? lol. All separate batches?
Hi Jessica, yes, we’d recommend separate batches since that would be quite a lot of dough for a mixer to handle. Hope you enjoy the cookies!