Soft and Chewy Gingerbread Cookies
Description
Our favorite gingerbread cookie recipe for the holidays! Loaded with spice and perfectly chewy, we can't get enough of these!
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Ingredients
Cookies
- 3 cup (350g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup (92g) vegetable shortening
- ¼ cup (58g) unsalted butter, softened
- ¾ cup (170g) packed dark brown sugar
- ½ cup (180g) (125mL) unsulfured molasses
- 1 large egg (50g)
- 1 tablespoon (4g) ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon (5g) ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon (2g) ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon (1g) ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon Morton kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Cookie Icing
- 3 cups (280g) confectioners’ sugar
- 2 teaspoons light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure orange extract
- pinch kosher salt
Decorating
- Clear sparky sprinkles or pearl sugar
- Red hot candies
Instructions
Cookies
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and baking soda.
- In a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat shortening and butter on medium–high speed until smooth, about 30 seconds. Add sugar, molasses, egg, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and salt. Beat on medium until combined, scraping bowl as needed, about 1 minute. Beat in vinegar. With mixer on medium, add flour in three increments and beat until combined.
- Divide dough in half and transfer to large sheets of plastic. Form each portion into a flat rectangle and wrap tightly in plastic; chill in freezer for at least 1 hour or up to 1 month.
- Heat oven to 350ºF (176ºC) with rack set in middle position. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Working with 1 rectangle of dough at a time, cut dough in half, rewrap other half in plastic and place back in freezer.
- Lightly dust counter and dough with flour. Roll dough to ¼-inch thickness (flipping dough and adding flour as needed to keep it from sticking to counter). Cut out cookies using a 3- to 4-inch cookie cutter. Peel away scraps and space 6 cookies, about 1 inch apart, on one prepared baking sheet.
- Bake until edges of cookies are set and centers are slightly puffed, 8–10 minutes, rotating halfway through.
- Cool cookies on sheets 5 minutes; transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
- Repeat rolling, cutting and baking with remaining dough and dough scraps. Keeping dough chilled between batches and allowing sheets to cool completely before placing dough cut outs on sheets.
Cookie Icing
- In a medium bowl combine confectioners’ sugar, corn syrup, extract and 3 tablespoons water using a fork. Switch to a whisk and mix, adding additional water by teaspoon as needed, until icing is smooth and ribbon-like. Icing should hold a ribbon shape for a few seconds. Season with salt to taste.
- Transfer to a piping bag and use as desired.
Decorating
- Once cookies have cooled completely, decorate as desired with Cookie Icing, sprinkles and red hots, if using.
- Let sit at room temperature to allow icing to set before storing in airtight containers for up to 1 week.
Notes
It’s important to use two baking sheets for this recipe—while one sheet is baking, the other is cooling. Do not roll out, cut out or place cookie dough on baking sheet until the oven is free for another round of cookies. The moment they are arranged on the sheet they should be transferred to the oven.
Storage:
- Baked, unfrosted gingerbread cookies will last up to 2 weeks stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
- Baked and frosted gingerbread cookies will last up to 1 ½ weeks stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
- Baked gingerbread cookies (frosted or unfrosted) will last in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookieCalories: 170kcalCarbohydrates: 30gProtein: 1.5gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 37mgSugar: 20g
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