Gingerbread Cookies - 7 Recipes and Tutorials on How to Make Iced Gingerbread Cookies at Home

Gingerbread cookies have long been an indispensable attribute of Christmas and New Year's. Their unforgettable taste and wonderful aroma create a festive mood, immersing one in a magical, cozy atmosphere. They pair well with mulled wine, tea, coffee, and other beverages. You can bake gingerbread cookies not only before the winter holidays, but all year round. These treats make wonderful gifts for friends, colleagues, or family members.

In this article, I'll tell you how to make and paint gingerbread cookies at home, share some interesting facts, and answer the most frequently asked questions about this baked good. Choose your favorite recipe and delight your family with these delicious treats.

The history of gingerbread

Fragrant gingerbread cookies are a traditional symbol of the Christmas holiday in many countries around the world. They are baked in almost every home, sold at fairs and bakeries, given as gifts to loved ones, and shared with friends and relatives.

England is considered the birthplace of these delicacies. According to legend, ginger was brought to Britain by the Crusaders. The first person to add the fiery spice to baked goods was an English monk named Patrick. The abbot of the monastery and other monks were delighted with the spicy treat. They decided to bake more of these treats and decorate their Christmas tree with them.

Classic gingerbread cookies were first made in the early 17th century in the British town of Mackett Drayton. Just 100 years later, these fragrant treats had spread throughout Europe. They were baked in the shapes of Christmas trees, stars, snowflakes, bells, little people, and animals. And in the 19th century, after the publication of the Brothers Grimm fairy tale "Hansel and Gretel," gingerbread houses gained popularity in Germany. These creations still delight children and adults around the world. They are held together with thick icing and decorated with colorful icing, sprinkles, candies, and chocolate.

Today, gingerbread is prepared using many different recipes. Various spices (cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, zest, nutmeg) have been added. They are made with honey, burnt sugar, butter or vegetable oil, with or without eggs, and using both the custard and raw methods. Each country has its own unique variations of this Christmas delicacy. I suggest you try a few to find the best ones for yourself.

Gingerbread cookies for home painting

This is a recipe for fragrant and delicious gingerbread cookies for decorating. They hold their shape when baked and always turn out perfectly smooth, without cracks or other defects. Any glaze will do, as long as it's thick enough not to run.

Ingredients

For the test

• Flour - 300 g
• Honey (liquid) - 40 g
• Butter (soft) - 100 g
• Sugar - 100 g
• Egg C1 - 1 pc.
• Soda - 5 g
• Ginger (ground) - 5 g
• Cinnamon - 3 g
• Nutmeg - 3 g

For the glaze

• Egg (white) - 1 pc.
• Powdered sugar - 150-200 g
• Lemon juice - ½ tsp.

Cooking time: 2 hours 50 minutes

Servings: 1 (approximately 500-600 g of gingerbread)

Step-by-step recipe

Step 1

We prepare the necessary ingredients.

Step 2

Place soft butter in a mixer bowl and beat lightly.

Step 3

Without stopping whisking, add sugar and egg to the butter.

Step 4

Mix the mixture thoroughly until smooth.

Step 5

Add flour and spices in small portions.

Step 6

Gently mix everything together to form an elastic gingerbread dough. Wrap it in cling film and refrigerate for 2 hours.

Step 7

Roll out the chilled dough to a thickness of 3-5 mm and cut out gingerbread cookies from it.

Step 8

Bake the products at 180 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

Step 9

Prepare the glaze. Beat the egg whites with powdered sugar, add lemon juice, and mix well. The glaze should be moderately thick.

Step 10

Place the icing in a pastry bag and decorate the cooled gingerbread cookies with it.

Step 11

Once the icing on the gingerbread has set, you can begin tasting them.

Soft honey-gingerbread cookies

I present to you a recipe for incredibly soft honey-gingerbread cookies. Their unrivaled taste and exquisite aroma will captivate everyone without exception. These treats can be served as a dessert, given to friends and family for any holiday, or used to decorate your Christmas tree.

Ingredients

For the test

• Honey - 170 g
• Butter 82.5% - 120 g
• Sugar - 120 g
• Egg C1 - 1 pc.
• Flour - 400 g
• Soda - 1 tsp.
• Cocoa powder - 1 tbsp. l.
• Cinnamon - to taste
• Ginger - to taste

For the glaze

• Egg (white) - 1 pc.
• Powdered sugar - 180-200 g

Cooking time: 1 hour 50 minutes

Servings: 1 (approximately 800-900 g of gingerbread)

Step-by-step recipe

Step 1

Prepare the ingredients.

Step 2

Place honey in a saucepan, add sugar, ginger, cocoa and cinnamon.

Step 3

Place the saucepan over medium heat. Stir the honey-spice mixture until smooth.

Step 4

Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add baking soda to the hot mixture.

Step 5

Stir the mixture. At first, it will increase in volume significantly, but then settle slightly.

Step 6

Add butter and mix the mixture until smooth.

Step 7

Place the honey-spice mixture into a deep container, add the egg and mix well.

Step 8

Add the sifted flour in several stages and knead into a soft dough.

Step 9

Wrap the gingerbread dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour, or overnight if desired.

Step 10

Roll out the well-chilled dough to a thickness of approximately 4 mm and cut out small figures.

Step 11

Bake the products for 6-8 minutes at 180 degrees.

Step 12

While the gingerbread is cooling, prepare the glaze. Add the powdered sugar to the egg whites a little at a time and mix until smooth. The glaze should be moderately thick and glossy.

Step 13

Place the egg white and sugar glaze into a pastry bag and decorate the gingerbread cookies with it.

Step 14

Honey-gingerbread cookies can be served with tea after the glaze has completely dried.

Gingerbread cookies with icing

This is a wonderful recipe for glazed gingerbread cookies. They're super easy to make and always turn out delicious, crispy, and beautiful. The meringue glaze can easily be colored any color. Gel, liquid, or powdered food coloring are all suitable. Choose the one you're most comfortable working with.

Ingredients

For the test

• Honey - 165 g
• Sugar - 100 g
• Butter - 125 g
• Nutmeg - ½ tsp.
• Cinnamon - 1 tsp.
• Ginger - 1 tsp.
• Soda - 2 tsp.
• Egg C1 - 1 pc.
• Flour - 430 g

For the glaze

• Egg (white) - 1 pc.
• Powdered sugar - 200 g
• Lemon juice - 2 tsp.
• Food coloring - optional

Cooking time: 2 hours 10 minutes

Servings: 1 (approximately 850-900 g of gingerbread)

Step-by-step recipe

Step 1

Place honey, butter, sugar and all the spices in a thick-bottomed saucepan.

Step 2

Place the pan over medium heat. Stirring constantly, heat the mixture until smooth.

Step 3

Pour the custard base into a deep glass container.

Step 4

Add baking soda and mix the mixture well.

Step 5

Add the egg and mix the mixture again.

Step 6

Add sifted flour and knead into an elastic, soft dough.

Step 7

Place the dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour, after wrapping it in cling film.

Step 8

We roll out the dough and cut out various figures from it.

Step 9

Bake the gingerbread treats for 6-7 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Cool thoroughly when finished.

Step 10

To make the glaze, beat the egg whites with powdered sugar. Add the lemon juice and continue whisking. The glaze should be snow-white, glossy, and slightly runny, but not watery.

Step 11

If desired, color the icing with food coloring.

Step 12

We transfer the icing into pastry bags and decorate the gingerbread cookies with it.

Step 13

We leave the gingerbread to dry, and then we can serve them with tea or wrap them for a gift.

Delicious gingerbread cookies without honey

I invite you to discover an incredibly simple method for making delicious gingerbread cookies without honey. This ingredient is a great substitute for burnt sugar, imparting a delightful aroma and an incredibly beautiful caramel color to the baked goods.

Ingredients

• Sugar - 250 g
• Water (boiling water) - 100 ml
• Butter - 100 g
• Soda - 1 tsp.
• Eggs (yolk) - 2 pcs.
• Wheat flour - 300 g
• Rye flour - 100 g
• Ginger - 1 tsp.
• Cinnamon - 1-2 tsp.
• Cocoa powder - 1 tsp.
• Cardamom - ½ tsp.
• Salt - ¼ tsp.

Cooking time: 2 hours 50 minutes

Servings: 1 (approximately 900-950 g of gingerbread)

Step-by-step recipe

Step 1

We prepare the necessary ingredients.

Step 2

Melt the sugar in a deep frying pan or saucepan over medium heat.

Step 3

Remove the pan from the heat. Carefully pour boiling water into the caramel mixture and stir until smooth. Return the mixture to the heat.

Step 4

Add butter and spices one at a time, mixing thoroughly until smooth.

Step 5

Add baking soda and stir the mixture well.

Step 6

Remove the custard base from the heat and let it sit for 10-20 minutes to cool to a lukewarm temperature. Pour the mixture into a mixer bowl or deep bowl.

Step 7

Add the wheat and rye flours to the custard mixture in small portions. Mix thoroughly until smooth.

Step 8

Halfway through kneading, add egg yolks to the dough and continue mixing the mixture.

Step 9

The finished gingerbread dough should be soft and elastic. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours, or better yet, overnight.

Step 10

Roll out the dough and cut out gingerbread cookies of the desired shapes.

Step 11

Bake the products for 6-8 minutes at 180 degrees.

Step 12

Decorate the finished treats to your taste.

Vegan gingerbread cookies

Is it possible to make gingerbread cookies without eggs and dairy? Of course you can! Moreover, these treats are incredibly fragrant, tender, and crispy. They taste just like classic gingerbread. These baked goods are suitable not only for vegans and those fasting, but also for anyone watching their figure.

Ingredients

For the test

• Butter (vegan) - 56 g
• Brown sugar (or white) - 100 g
• Molasses (or maple syrup, honey) - 100 g
• Flax seeds (ground) - 1 tbsp.
• Water (hot) - 3 tbsp.
• Vanilla extract - ½ tsp.
• Flour - 250 g
• Soda - 1 tsp.
• Ginger - 2 tsp.
• Cinnamon - 2 tsp.
• Allspice - ¼ tsp.
• Cloves - ¼ tsp.

For the glaze

• Powdered sugar - 120 g
• Vanilla extract - ½ tsp.
• Soy milk (or other vegetable milk) - 1 tbsp.

Cooking time: 40-50 minutes

Servings: 1 (approximately 500 g gingerbread)

Step-by-step recipe

Step 1

In a deep bowl, beat vegan butter with powdered sugar.

Step 2

Pour hot water over the ground flax seeds. Add the resulting mixture, along with the molasses and vanilla extract, to the butter and sugar mixture. Mix thoroughly until smooth.

Step 3

Sift the flour into a separate container.

Step 4

Add baking soda and spices to the flour and mix everything well.

Step 5

Combine the dry and liquid mixtures. Knead into a soft, pliable dough.

Step 6

Roll out the dough to a thickness of 4-5 mm and cut out figures from it.

Step 7

Bake the gingerbread cookies for 10-12 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius. Let them cool when finished.

Step 8

Prepare the vegan glaze. Pour the soy milk, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix thoroughly until smooth and glossy.

Step 9

Decorate the cooled gingerbread with icing.

Step 10

Once the icing on the gingerbread cookies has set well, you can treat them to your family.

5 Questions About Gingerbread

Gingerbread cookies are magical treats whose aroma and flavor help create a festive, warm atmosphere. Despite their simplicity, many home cooks and aspiring pastry chefs have many questions about this baked good. Let's explore some of them.

Why refrigerate gingerbread dough?

The dough for classic gingerbread cookies is very soft and sticky. Therefore, it needs to rest well after cooking (at least one hour). During this time, it matures, becoming very elastic, smooth, and easy to roll out. Typically, the dough is prepared in advance, wrapped in plastic wrap, and refrigerated overnight. The next day, the cookies are baked.

How to soften gingerbread cookies with icing?

• If your gingerbread has become too dry and hard, there are several ways to soften it:
• Place the gingerbread in an airtight container, add apple slices (or another source of moisture), and leave overnight. It's important that the apples don't come into contact with the gingerbread.
• Place a bowl of hot water and the gingerbread cookies on a rack in a cold oven. This will allow the liquid to evaporate and soften the cookies.
• Place slices of white bread on a table or tray and place the gingerbread cookies on top (for approximately 2-4 hours). Then place all the gingerbread cookies in an airtight container and leave overnight.

What temperature should you bake gingerbread at?

Gingerbread cookies should be baked in a preheated oven at 180-200 degrees Celsius. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper before placing them on it.

How long does it take to bake gingerbread cookies?

The baking time for gingerbread cookies ranges from 5 to 15 minutes. This depends on the size of the cookies and the oven temperature. The smaller the cookies and the higher the oven temperature, the less time they will take to bake.

How long can finished products be stored?

Homemade gingerbread cookies with icing will keep for 2-4 weeks without losing their flavor. They should be stored in an airtight container in a cool place, but not in the refrigerator. Gingerbread cookies made with burnt sugar and without icing can be stored for several months to a year.

Video: How to Make Patterned Gingerbread Cookies

Decided to bake gingerbread cookies? Unsure how to create a beautiful and neat design? Then you definitely need to watch this video. In it, popular contemporary pastry chef Yulia Small shares her tried-and-true techniques for creating designs and patterns on gingerbread cookies.

The video's creator clearly demonstrates each option, showing how to draw a stencil and transfer the outline onto the piece. After watching this video, you'll easily create charming and neat designs or patterns on gingerbread cookies.