Save time this holiday season by making these cookies before the holiday season starts. Our Soft Gingerbread Cookie recipe is freezer-friendly. Make them up to three months before Christmas, when you are less busy, and they will taste as fresh as the day you make them.
It costs approximately $5.22 to make these cookies. The recipe makes sixteen cookies for around $0.32 per cookie.
If you are a gingerbread cookie fan but don’t love how difficult it can be to get those perfect gingerbread cookies, this easy recipe is for you! Everyone who tries them gives this recipe a 5-star rating, and you will too!
Twenty minutes is all you will need to make these delicious cookies.
These soft gingerbread cookies are easy to make and stay fresh for up to five days, making them perfect for adding to your Christmas cookie tray or cookie exchanges.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Love About This Soft Gingerbread Cookie Recipe:
Easy Recipe: No rolling pin required! Other recipes for gingerbread cookies require rolling out the dough and working with it to get the correct consistency and using cookie cutters to cut the dough into shapes. Our recipe skips those steps to simplify the recipe.
Perfect Gingerbread Flavor: Our recipe blends warm spices to create a chewy gingerbread cookie everyone loves.
Make-Ahead Recipe: Make the cookies to freeze and thaw later when you want them.
Ingredients & Estimated Cost:
- ½ cup & 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter – $0.98
- ½ cup granulated sugar – $0.15
- ½ cup light brown sugar – $0.28
- 1 large egg – $0.23
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract – $0.69
- ¼ cup molasses – $0.83
- 2 cups all-purpose flour – $0.24
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon – $0.06
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger – $0.18
- ½ teaspoon baking soda – $0.01
- ½ teaspoon baking powder – $0.02
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves – $0.04
- ¼ teaspoon salt – $0.01
- 4 ounces cream cheese – $1.10
- 1 cup powdered sugar – $0.40
The recipe cost is calculated by the amounts needed for the recipe. To find out more about how we price our recipes, check out Budget Recipes Explained. The pricing for this recipe was updated in November 2023.
How To Make Soft Gingerbread Cookies:
***For complete recipe instructions, see the recipe card below.
- First, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and spray a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
- Use a hand mixer to cream butter, ¼ cup of granulated sugar, and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl.
- Mix in the egg, vanilla, and molasses.
- Then, mix the flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, baking powder, cloves, and salt in a separate bowl.
- Fold the flour mixture into the wet mixture until combined, and avoid overmixing.
- Next, roll two tablespoons of dough into a ball and coat them with the remaining ¼ cup of sugar.
- Place six cookies on the prepared sheet and flatten them to about ¼ inch thickness.
- Bake cookies one tray at a time for nine to ten minutes, and then allow the cookies to cool on the sheet for three to four minutes before setting them on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
- Then, beat the cream cheese and butter together and sift in the powdered sugar before continuing to beat.
- Add in the vanilla and beat until the icing is fluffy.
- Finally, use a piping bag to pipe the icing in a circular pattern on top of the baked cookies once they have cooled completely before serving.
Recipe Variations and Substitutions
- For some additional fun, add festive sprinkles on the frosting.
- You can leave off the frosting, and these soft gingerbread cookies would still be delicious!
Soft Gingerbread Cookies Storage Tips
STORE: Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
FREEZE: Flash freeze the cookies by putting them on a baking sheet and freezing until solid, about 2 hours. Place pieces of parchment paper between the layers. Then, transfer them to a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Freeze for 3 months.
THAW: Thaw the cookies overnight in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours at room temperature.
Frosted Gingerbread Cookies Recipe FAQs:
Too much molasses and overcooking can lead to hard gingerbread cookies. We tested our recipe until we achieved the best gingerbread cookies with the perfect ratio of molasses, brown sugar, and other ingredients.
The longer a cookie bakes, the crispier it becomes. We recommend no more than ten minutes of baking time to achieve the best results. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack to help the cookies stay soft.
Both cookies are similar in that they are full of delicious spices. The main difference is that gingersnaps are crisper, and gingerbread cookies have a softer texture.
Get Kids Involved
Ages 2-3: Your child can practice counting skills as they help you roll the dough into balls. Have them count the dough balls with you as you make them.
Ages 4-5: Let your child roll the dough balls in the sugar coating. This is a fun, hands-on way to be involved in the recipe.
Ages 6-8: Teach your child what it means to “fold” the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Teaching kitchen vocabulary at a young age will help them successfully read recipes and master techniques as their kitchen skills grow and develop.
Ages 9-11: Supervise them while they prepare the entire recipe. Remember to have them read it twice before beginning the recipe.
Ages 12+: Let them prepare the entire recipe unsupervised while you do the happy dance in the corner!
Budget Tips
We recommend purchasing dry baking ingredients such as flour and sugar in bulk to have on hand for holiday baking. We also buy butter in bulk and freeze it so we have plenty on hand when we need it for recipes like this one.
More Easy Christmas Recipes:
Soft Gingerbread Cookies
Equipment
- handheld mixer
- mixing bowls
- whisk
- Measuring cups and spoons
- baking sheets
- wire rack
Ingredients
FOR THE COOKIES:
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ½ cup granulated sugar divided
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup molasses
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon salt
FOR THE FROSTING:
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 3 Tablespoons butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- Sprinkles optional
Instructions
PREPARE THE OVEN AND PAN:
- Adjust the oven rack to the middle position.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Grease a cookie sheet with nonstick cooking spray.
MAKE THE COOKIE DOUGH:
- In a large bowl, beat the butter, ¼ cup of granulated sugar, and brown sugar.
- Mix in the egg, vanilla, and molasses.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, baking powder, cloves, and salt.
- Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until combined. Avoid overmixing.
- Roll 2 tablespoons of dough into a ball, then coat it with the remaining ¼ cup of sugar.
- Place 6 cookies on the prepared sheet and flatten them to about ¼ inch thickness.
BAKE AND COOL THE COOKIES:
- Bake one tray at a time for 9-10 minutes.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the sheet for 3-4 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool completely for about 1 hour.
- Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
PREPARE THE ICING:
- Beat the cream cheese and butter together until fluffy.
- Sift in the powdered sugar and continue to beat.
- Add vanilla and beat until the icing is fluffy, which takes about 1 minute.
TO COMPLETE:
- Once the cookies are entirely cooled, pipe the icing in a circular pattern on top of the cookies or use a knife to spread the frosting.
- Optionally, add festive sprinkles on the frosting.
- Serve and enjoy!
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