Best Best Soft Gingerbread Cookies Recipes

BEST SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES (PLUS GB HOUSE TIPS)

Steps:

• 1. Place cloves in hot water; set aside. Cream shortening and sugar. Add egg and beat. Add molasses, beat. Remove cloves from water, discard cloves. Add clove water, beat. *Dough will look "curdled". Add rest of ingredients, except the last 4 cups flour, and beat. Gradually beat in last 4 cups flour. Chill dough. Roll out to 1/2" thick or slightly less. (1/4" if you like your cookies crispy.) Cut into shapes. Decorate with raisins if desired. Place carefully onto ungreased cookies sheet. Bake at 375° for 8-10 minutes. Do not over bake. *GB House directions: Make dough the same as above, but roll dough out thin, 1/4" at most. Bake in 325 oven for about 20 minutes. Remove to racks to cool, and let harden/dry out a bit overnight for sturdiness if making large pieces. *Doors and windows need to be cut out PRIOR to baking. Fill any with crushed hard candy before baking, too. And pieces filled with hard candy baked the best on foil. Non candy-filled pieces were baked on parchment paper. These directions are for houses that are not meant to be eaten. If making one to be eaten, just roll the dough the same as per the cookie directions. (My house above was a "look at" house! LOL!) We donated it to the children's wing at our local public library for the kids to play with and enjoy! They LOVED it! :D Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

BEST SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• 1. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Stir in the molasses and water.
• 2. In a medium bowl whisk together the remaining ingredients. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, stirring constantly.
• 3. Divide the dough in half and flatten to a round disk and wrap each disk in a plastic wrap and chill overnight. (You can freeze half or all of it if desired for later use.)
• 4. NEXT DAY:
• 5. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheets. On a lightly floured surface roll out one of the disk of dough, leaving the other chilled. Rolled to 1/4 inch thickness, adding more flour if needed. Cut the cookies into desired shapes and place about an inch apart on the cookie sheets. Bake for 6 to 10 minutes depending on the size of the cookies. The cookies should be firm but not browned. Re-roll the scraps and continue to cut and bake until the dough is gone.
• 6. Cool the cookies on the cookie sheet for a few minutes, then remove them to a wire rack to finish cooling.
• 7. ROYAL ICING:
• 8. In a large bowl, beat the powdered sugar, egg white, cream of tartar and orange extract on medium high speed for 5 minutes. Check to see if you can form peaks with a teaspoon. If you cannot, beat at a higher speed for a minute more and check again. Beat and check at thirty second intervals until the peaks form. Tint icing with food coloring as desired.