Easy Gingerbread Man Cookies

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These Easy Gingerbread Man Cookies are the ginger molasses cookies you’ve been looking for! The perfect blend of spices for the holiday season! 

One Easy Gingerbread Man Cookie on a white table next to peppermint candies and a pile of other undecorated cookies

Classic Gingerbread Man Cookies

If you bake cookies during the holiday season, these Easy Gingerbread Man Cookies are a fun and traditional way to celebrate! This is a great recipe that anyone can make with the right cookie cutters. 

We see a lot of sugar cookies and crinkle cookies during winter baking, but you don’t have to stop your gingerbread recipe-making at a gingerbread house. These little gingerbread boys and girls are an easy recipe to make and you can decorate them as you choose. 

Decorating these soft gingerbread cookies is a fun activity for the family as well. Allow the kids to draw different shapes and add a little bit of flair as they go. It’s a great way to encourage some holiday cheer.

While we all enjoy unique cookies, there is also something to be said for a classic recipe during cookie season!

Recipe Notes:

  • You may need two baking sheets depending on the size of your sheets and the size of your cookie cutters. 
  • While rolling out your gingerbread cookie dough, make sure that you are doing so on a lightly floured surface, whether you use parchment paper or not. The gingerbread dough is sticky and this will help. 
  • Once you have cut out your cookies, reroll the leftover dough and continue to make cookie cutouts until you don’t have enough dough to cut any more. 

An Easy Gingerbread Man on a white table surrounded by peppermint candies next to a stack of more cookies

How To Make Gingerbread Man Cookies Recipe

Gingerbread Man Cookies Ingredients:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
Pinch table salt
Betty Crocker white icing (with a small plastic circle tip)
Small candy eyes

Supplies Needed:

Large cookie sheets
Parchment paper or wax paper
Large mixing bowl
Rubber spatula
Hand mixer or stand mixer
Gingerbread man cookie cutter

A single Gingerbread Man on a white table next to a candy cane placemat and peppermint candy on a white table

Directions:

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or wax paper. 

A clear mixing bowl with vanilla, molasses, brown sugar, and an egg next to another bowl of flour and spices on a white tableStep 2: In a large bowl, mix together your softened butter and brown sugar. It will probably be easiest to do this with an electric mixer or a stand mixer on low speed with a paddle attachment or beaters. 

Step 3: Add your molasses, vanilla, and egg to the bowl and mix well. 

A clear mixing bowl with gingerbread man batter on a placemat with candy cane decorationStep 4: Mix flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves into the wet ingredients until your cookie dough is evenly combined and the dry ingredients are no longer visible. 

Step 5: Lay a piece of parchment paper onto the counter or a flat work surface and flour it. Roll out your dough with a rolling pin. It is a sticky dough, so do not skip the flouring part. 

Rolled out gingerbread dough with a gingerbread man cookie cutter on a white tableStep 6: Using a gingerbread man cutter, cut approximately eight gingerbread men cookies out of your dough. This will vary based on the size of your cookie cutter.

You will have to recombine the dough scraps and roll it out again to get all of your little men cut. Discard any excess dough when you’ve gotten as many gingerbread people as you can. 

Two baked gingerbread man cookies on a white table next to two more stacks of cookiesStep 7: Place your cutout cookies on the prepared cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes. 

Step 8: Allow the baked cookies to cool to room temperature on a wire rack or the cookie tray. 

A single Easy Gingerbread Man Cookie on a white table surrounded by peppermint candiesStep 9: Once cool, use your white icing to draw on your gingerbread man design. You can use my picture as an example or have fun with your own ideas. 

Step 10: Dip the back of your candy eyes in the white icing and place each one onto the head of the gingerbread men.

Serve these super easy gingerbread cookies with a cold glass of milk and enjoy!

How To Store Leftover Gingerbread Cookies

Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to a week for best results.

You may want to keep them in the refrigerator so that the icing doesn’t transfer onto the others, but you can leave them in a single layer on the counter on a plate under a sheet of plastic wrap as well. 

A gingerbread man cookie on a white table next to a stack of three more cookies and peppermint candies

How Thin Should I Roll The Piece Of Dough In This Gingerbread Cookies Recipe?

This depends on how you want your Christmas cookies to turn out. If you roll the dough thin, you will end up with crispier cookies.

If you have thicker cookies (as in the photos here), you will end up with softer cookies. If you like chewy gingerbread cookies, I would err on the side of thicker dough. 

I Can’t Find The Icing You Described. What Do I Do?

If you can’t find the Betty Crocker icing I used, don’t worry. Buy a tub of white frosting and put half of it into a pastry bag, freezer bag, or Ziploc bag.

Cut the tip off of the end and push the frosting out a little bit at a time to finish your delicious cookies. Remember to twist the end of the piping bag to create enough pressure for the frosting to come out easily. 

Are You Looking For More Great Winter Recipes? Here Are Some Of My Favorites:

Rachael Ray Nonstick Bakeware Set with Grips, Nonstick Cookie Sheets / Baking Sheets - 3 Piece, Gray with Sea Salt Gray GripsRachael Ray Nonstick Bakeware Set with Grips, Nonstick Cookie Sheets / Baking Sheets – 3 Piece, Gray with Sea Salt Gray GripsRachael Ray Nonstick Bakeware Set with Grips, Nonstick Cookie Sheets / Baking Sheets - 3 Piece, Gray with Sea Salt Gray GripsOrapink Christmas Gingerbread Man Cookie Cutters Set 5 Piece Stainless Steel Cookie Cutter ShapesOrapink Christmas Gingerbread Man Cookie Cutters Set 5 Piece Stainless Steel Cookie Cutter ShapesOrapink Christmas Gingerbread Man Cookie Cutters Set 5 Piece Stainless Steel Cookie Cutter ShapesFASAKA 3pcs Stainless Steel Cookie Cutters Set Gingerbread Boy Shape Mould with Red Environmental PVCFASAKA 3pcs Stainless Steel Cookie Cutters Set Gingerbread Boy Shape Mould with Red Environmental PVCFASAKA 3pcs Stainless Steel Cookie Cutters Set Gingerbread Boy Shape Mould with Red Environmental PVCBetty Crocker Decorating Icing, White, 4.25 ozBetty Crocker Decorating Icing, White, 4.25 ozBetty Crocker Decorating Icing, White, 4.25 ozOXO Good Grips Silicone Cookie Spatula (2 Pack)OXO Good Grips Silicone Cookie Spatula (2 Pack)OXO Good Grips Silicone Cookie Spatula (2 Pack)KitchenAid KHM512AQ Ultra Power 5 Speed Hand Mixer, Aqua SkyKitchenAid KHM512AQ Ultra Power 5 Speed Hand Mixer, Aqua SkyKitchenAid KHM512AQ Ultra Power 5 Speed Hand Mixer, Aqua Sky

Yield: Approximately 8 Gingerbread Men

Easy Gingerbread Man Cookies

An Easy Gingerbread Man on a white table surrounded by peppermint candies next to a stack of more cookies

These Easy Gingerbread Man Cookies are the ginger molasses cookies you've been looking for! The perfect blend of spices for the holiday season! 

Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Additional Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

  • 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup molasses
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 1/4 tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 tablespoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • Pinch salt
  • Betty Crocker white icing (with a small plastic circle tip)
  • Small candy eyes

Instructions

  1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
  2. In a large bowl, mix together your softened butter and brown sugar.
  3. Add your molasses, vanilla, and egg and mix well. 
  4. Mix in your flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves and mix until your cookie dough is evenly combined. 
  5. Lay a piece of parchment paper onto the counter and flour it. Roll out your dough with a rolling pin.
  6. Using a gingerbread man cookie cutter, cut approximately eight gingerbread men out of your dough. This will vary based on the size of your cookie cutter. You will have to recombine the dough and roll it out again to get all of your little men cut.
  7. Place your gingerbread men on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. 
  8. Allow them to cool completely on a wire rack. 
  9. Once cool, use your white icing to draw on your gingerbread man design. You can use my picture as an example or have fun with your own ideas. 
  10. Dip the back of your candy eyes in the white icing and place each one onto the head of the gingerbread men. Serve with a cold glass of milk and enjoy!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

8

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 416Total Fat: 11gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 46mgSodium: 51mgCarbohydrates: 74gFiber: 3gSugar: 36gProtein: 6g

This calculation is intended for informational purposes only. I am not a doctor or dietitian. This calculator is a guide, but makes no guarantee of being exact or fully accurate.

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