Best Soft Gingerbread Recipes

SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, mix together the molasses, brown sugar, water and butter until smooth. Combine the flour, baking soda, allspice, ginger, cloves and cinnamon, stir them into the wet mixture until all of the dry is absorbed. Cover the dough and chill for at least 3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut out into desired shapes. Place cookies 1 inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheets.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Remove from the cookie sheets to cool on wire racks.

SOFT-BATCH GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• For the gingerbread cookie dough: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Set aside.
• Cream the butter, granulated sugar and dark brown sugar in a large bowl with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on a medium-high speed for about 2 minutes, or until the mixture becomes lighter in color. Mix in the egg and molasses on a medium speed until combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula.
• Sift the dry ingredients (flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, cloves and salt) into the wet ingredients. Mix on low until just combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula.
• Use a cookie scoop or large spoon to shape and roll 14 cookie dough balls using about 3 tablespoons of dough per cookie. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets and bake for 11 to 12 minutes, or until the cookies seem set in the center. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 10 minutes, then place on a wire rack to finish cooling.
• For the buttercream frosting: While the cookies bake and cool, mix the butter on a medium speed in a large bowl for 30 seconds, or until smooth. Add the vanilla extract and salt. Mix on a medium speed until combined. Mix in the powdered sugar and milk on a low speed. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed with a rubber spatula. Once the powdered sugar is incorporated, mix for an additional minute on a low speed to give the frosting a super smooth consistency.
• For the cookie decorations: Spread a thin layer of frosting on top of the cooled cookies using a small offset spatula or butter knife. Top with sprinkles, then enjoy!

SOFT AND EASY GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• In a large bowl, with mixer at slow speed, beat flour, sugar, butter, molasses, applesauce, egg, cinnamon, baking powder, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350°F On a lightly floured surface, working with half of the dough at a time, roll 1/8 inch thick. With floured cookie cutters, cut dough into shapes. Using a metal spatula or pancake turner, place cookies 1/2 inch apart on greased cookie sheets. Reroll trimmings and continue to cut shapes. Bake 8 minutes, or until very lightly browned. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.

SOFT GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Beat the butter in a stand mixer or with electric beaters until it is soft and then beat in, one by one, the sugar, golden syrup and treacle. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Tip in the flour, baking powder and ginger along with a pinch of salt and beat in the flour on a slow speed until it is just combined. The dough will be very soft at this point. Scrape the dough into a container and chill it in the fridge for about 8 hours or overnight. You don't have to leave it for this long but it does improve the flavour.
• To roll out the dough you'll need a non-stick work surface that is lightly dusted with flour. Scoop out a small batch of the dough (it will still be very soft) and roll it out carefully to about 2mm thick. Cut out gingerbread people or circles and transfer them to a lined baking sheet. When you have filled the sheet (leaving enough room for spreading) put it into the fridge for 30 mins along with the remaining dough (you can freeze the dough in batches, if you like).
• Heat the oven to 170C/150C fan/gas 3. Cook the gingerbread for the 10-12 minutes depending on level of crispness don't try and remove them from the sheet until the gingerbread shapes have cooled enough. Cool completely and then decorate if you want. You can freeze the cooked gingerbread if you like, or keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container

SOFT GINGERBREAD TILES WITH RUM BUTTER GLAZE

Steps:

• Place the butter, sugar and molasses in the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment in place. Beat on medium speed until smooth and incorporated. Add the egg yolk and continue to beat until fully combined.
• Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, salt and pepper into a bowl. Turn the speed of the mixer to low, and add the dry ingredients to the butter and molasses. Once the mix comes together, tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead gently. Roll out the dough so that it is about 1/4 inch/ 0.5 cm thick. If the dough is very soft, you will need to chill it.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
• Dip the cookie stamps in a small bowl of flour, shake off any excess and then press them firmly into the dough, one at a time, to create a deep imprint. How far you need to press to get an imprint will depend on your stamp; the patterns on some are more deeply cut than others. Bear in mind that the cookies rise a little when cooked, so any soft imprints will disappear. Using a round cookie cutter that is slightly larger than the pattern, cut out the pieces of imprinted gingerbread. Transfer the cookies to the lined baking sheets, spaced about 3/4 inch/2 cm apart. Reroll the dough and continue to stamp and cut cookies until all the dough is used up.
• Bake for 9-10 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until firm to the touch. They will continue to firm up as they cool, so don't be tempted to bake them for any longer.
• To make the rum butter glaze while the gingerbreads are in the oven, as the glaze needs to be brushed onto the cookies while they are still warm, sift the confectioners' sugar and cinnamon into a small bowl. Add the melted butter, rum (or lemon juice) and water and mix with a spoon until smooth. The glaze will thicken slightly if it sits around, so stir through a little more warm water if you need to-it should be the consistency of runny honey.
• Remove the cookies from the oven, leave them to cool for 5 minutes, then brush or dab the glaze all over with a pastry brush. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Make-Ahead
• Once the dough is made, it can be covered in plastic wrap and kept in the fridge for up to 2 days before baking.
• Storage
• These will keep for up to 5 days in an airtight container. The glaze will discolor and crack a little, but this will not affect how they taste.

SOFT GINGERBREAD BISCOTTI

Steps:

• Position a rack in the middle of the oven & preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, just 2 teaspoons of the ginger & 2 teaspoons of the cinnamon, as well as the cloves, the 3/4 cup of granulated sugar & all of the brown sugar.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, butter & vanilla extract, then pour this egg mixture into the flour mixture, stirring with a wooden spoon until dough comes together in a soft & slightly sticky mass.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface & knead several times until smooth.
• Divide dough in half, then shape each piece into a log about 8 inches long & 2 inches wide before setting each log some 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet.
• In a small bowl, stir together the remaining 1 teaspoon of ginger, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon & the 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Brush the logs with the egg white & sprinkle each log with 1/3 of the spiced sugar mixture.
• Bake logs 25 to 30 minutes or until they are puffed & golden brown, then set the baking sheet on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.
• Reduce oven temperature to 300 degrees F, then using a serrated knife, cut each log into 1/2-inch-slices (about 15 each).
• Arrange the biscotti, flat-side down, on the baking sheet & sprinkle with another 1/3 of the sugar mixture, then bake for 6 minutes or until biscotti are light golden brown.
• Turn the biscotti over, sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture & bake another 6 minutes.
• Cool biscotti on the baking sheet set on a wire rack for 5 minutes before removing them to the rack to cool completely.
• Store in an airtight container or in a zip-lock bag for up to 4 days.

SOFT ORANGE-CLOVE GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Mix all dry ingredients together and cut in the butter.
• Add the wet ingredients. Knead a few seconds.
• Roll out on a lightly floured surface pretty thick, about 1/4 inch. Cut out cookies and bake at 350 degrees F for 12-14 minutes.
• *NOTE: Cookies should be baked but still soft and chewy, not crisp. Serving size is approximate.

MAGENBROT, SOFT GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven at 190°C (heat and timing are basing it on convection oven).
• Mix well all the ingredients for the dough together.
• Cover your square mold of 30 to 40 cm with baking paper and smear your dough.
• Bake 30-40 minutes at 190°C.
• Remove tray from oven and store at least 8 hours.
• Cut the dough into rectangles of a size of about 2 cm by 3 cm.
• For the glaze melt at low temperature the chocolate in the water.
• Add all the remaining ingredients, mix well and keep warm.
• Dip your pieces of dough into the glaze, let drop on a grate.
• Transfer on a tray and let dry some hours. Turn once and let dry again.
• Store in an airtight containers.

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!

TARTINE'S SOFT GLAZED GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• To make the dough, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl. Set aside.
• Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium-high speed until creamy. Slowly add the granulated sugar and mix on medium speed until the mixture is completely smooth and soft. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
• Add the egg and mix well. Add the molasses and corn syrup and beat until incorporated. Stop the mixer again and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until a dough forms that pulls away from the sides of the bowl and all the ingredients are well incorporated.
• Remove the dough from the bowl, flatten it on a large piece of plastic wrap into a rectangle about 1 inch thick, cover the dough with the plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick liner.
• Unwrap the dough and place on a floured work surface. If using a plaque with a design, roll out the dough 1/3 inch thick, lightly dust the top with flour, press your cookie molds over the dough, and then cut out the shapes with a small knife and place on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Alternatively, using the mold as a guide, cut around it with a small knife, flip the mold over so the design is facing you, and place the dough over it, pressing it into the design. Unmold the shapes onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between them.
• If using a patterned rolling pin, lightly dust the lined baking sheet with flour and transfer the dough to the pan. Lightly dust the top of the dough with flour and roll it into a rectangle about 1/3 inch thick with a plain pin. Then, using the patterned pin, roll over the dough with enough pressure to ensure a clear impression of the design. Trim the sides with a small knife. It is not necessary to cut into smaller sizes before baking.
• Bake the cookies until lightly golden along the sides but still soft to the touch in the centers, 7 to 15 minutes. The timing will depending on the size of the individual cookies, or if you have made a single large patterned piece that will be cut after baking.
• While the cookies are baking, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners sugar and water until smooth.
• When the cookies are ready, remove from the oven and let cool on the pan on a wire rack for about 10 minutes. Then, while the cookies are still warm, using even strokes, brush a light coat of glaze on the top of each cookie, evenly covering it.
• Let the cookies cool completely. When the glaze dries, it should leave a shiny, opaque finish. If you have used a patterned pin to make a single large plaque, cut into the desired sizes with a small, very sharp knife. At the bakery, we cut them into 3-by-4-inch rectangles, but 1 1/2 by 4 inches makes a nice smaller size.

SOFT GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9 x 13 pan.
• Cream brown sugar and butter thoroughly.
• Add eggs and molasses and combine.
• In a separate bowl, whisk dry ingredients together.
• In a separate bowl, combine boiling water and baking soda.
• Add dry ingredients and water/soda to mixing bowl alternately, mixing well with each addition.
• Pour into pan and bake for 30-35 minutes or until done.
• Serve with whipped cream on top.

SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES (GLUTEN FREE & VEGAN)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Cream margarine and brown sugar together in a large bowl. Add molasses and applesauce. In a separate bowl mix flours, baking soda, xanthan gum, salt, ginger and cinnamon. Add dry ingredients to wet and mix well. Scoop out tablespoonfuls of cookie dough and roll out into a ball. Dough will be rather sticky. Roll into white sugar then place on a cookie sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes. Keep an eye on them. You would hate to overbake these tasty gems. Let cool at least 5 minutes on the cookie sheet before removing from sheet. The cookies will be slightly crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside.

SOFT GINGERBREAD WHOOPIE PIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375*F Blend butter, sugar and egg. Scrape bowl as needed. Add molasses and mix again. In a small bowl combine baking soda and hot water. Mix well until soda is dissolved. Add soda water to butter mixture and mix. Add in salt, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon and mix. Add in flour 1/2 cup at a time until all mixed, scraping bowl as needed. Mixture should be the consistency of a thin brownie batter. Scoop batter with a small cookie scoop onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 10 - 12 minutes or until soft and fluffy. Allow to cool. While cookies are cooling, make cream cheese frosting. Blend together cream cheese & butter. Add vanilla and cinnamon. Mix well. Add powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time until all is added. Add heavy whipping cream and mix well, scraping bowl as needed. Scoop a heaping amount of frosting onto the bottom of one cookie and squish a second cookie on top. Do this to all of cookies and devour immediately!

SHERRILL'S SECRET SOFT GINGERBREAD BOYS

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the butter, oil, honey, molasses and brown sugar. Cook, stirring, until the butter melts and the mixture just comes to a full boil; immediately start timing and cook for exactly 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat; let cool slightly.
• In a large bowl, using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer on low speed, combine the flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Working carefully to avoid splashes, add the butter-molasses mixture. Beat on low speed until the ingredients are blended. Increase the speed to medium, until very well blended; if the mixer motor labors, stop and complete the mixing by hand. (The dough will seem too soft at this point.) Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until the dough has stiffened and is barely warm.
• Divide the dough into thirds. Roll out the portions a generous 1/4 -inch thick between sheets of baking parchment or waxed paper. Stack the rolled portions (paper still attached) on a tray or baking sheet. Refrigerate for at least 30 to 40 minutes, or freeze for 20 to 25 minutes or until cold and firm. (The dough may be refrigerated for up to 12 hours, if preferred.).
• Place a rack in the middle third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Grease several large baking sheets, or coat with nonstick spray oil.
• Working with 1 dough portion at a time (leaving the remainder chilled), gently peel away 1 sheet of paper, then lightly pat it back into place. (That will make it easier to lift cookies from the paper later.) Flip the dough over, then peel off and discard the second sheet. Using a 4- to 5-inch gingerbread girl or boy cutter, cut out the cookies. Using a spatula, transfer cookies to baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. (If at any point the dough softens too much to handle easily, transfer the paper and cookies to a tray or baking sheet, and chill until firm again.) Gather up and reroll the dough scraps between sheets of paper. Continue cutting out cookies until all the dough is used. Very firmly press raisins into the cookies for eyes and front buttons.
• Bake for 9 to 14 minutes, until the cookies are slightly colored on top and slightly darker at the edges; it's better to overbake than underbake. Set aside to firm up about 4 minutes; then, using a wide spatula, transfer to wire racks set over a sheet of waxed paper. Have all the cookies lined up and slightly separated before beginning the glaze.
• For the glaze: In a medium saucepan, combine the confectioners' sugar, oil and water until well blended. Bring to a boil, stirring, over medium-high heat, for 30 to 45 seconds or just until the mixture is smooth and becomes translucent. Stir to recombine the glaze, then use immediately while it is still hot. (If the glaze is allowed to stand and cool, it may thicken and become sugary. In that case, add a teaspoon of hot water to thin it again, place over medium heat and continue stirring until the sugar dissolves. Immediately remove from the heat and use.).
• Using a pastry brush or a paper towel dipped in the glaze, brush the cookies until their tops are coated all over with an even layer, not too thick or too thin. Stir the glaze frequently to prevent it from separating. Let the glazed cookies cool completely, at least 1 hour; the glaze may become slightly sugary and flaky.

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.

BIG, SOFT, GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• prep. time-15 min. cooking time-10 min serves-2 dozen preheat oven to-350 degrees 1) sift all ingredients in the A section and set aside. 2) In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup of sugar until fluffy and light. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir in the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Roll dough out on floured counter and cut out shapes or roll out in balls the size of a walnut and roll in sugar. Place cookies 2 inch. apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 min. Allow them to cool on the sheet for 5 min.

GRANDMOTHER'S SOFT GINGERBREAD CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and lightly flour a 9-inch-round springform baking pan.
• In a bowl, whisk together the flour, soda, salt, cloves, ginger, and cinnamon.
• In a mixing bowl with electric beaters or by hand with a whisk, beat together the sugar, molasses, oil, and eggs until well blended and smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until blended, scraping the bowl once or twice. Add the boiling water and beat just until smooth. Don't overmix or the cake will be tough. The batter will be thin.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and place on a baking sheet to catch any drips. Bake in the center of the oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes. Let cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes before removing the pan sides.
• For the whipped cream In a mixing bowl with electric beaters or by hand with a whisk, whip together the cream, sugar, and vanilla to soft peaks.
• To serve, cut the cake into 12 to 16 wedges. Transfer to dessert plates and put a dollop of whipped cream and a few sprinkles of nutmeg on top.

SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• In a medium size bowl, whip together the molasses, honey, butter, shortening, brown sugar and vanilla extract until fluffy and there are no visible large chunks for butter or shortening. Sift into this mixture the flour, followed by the remaining ingredients. Stir until combined.
• The dough will be soft, like a very thick batter. Scoop it onto a sheet of waxed paper and roll into a short, wide log. Make sure all of the dough is covered, and refrigerate for a few hours (I prefer to let it chill overnight) to allow the flavours to fully develop. You can bake the dough before refrigerating, but the resulting cookie will not be as tasty.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator and pinch off about 2 tablespoons worth of the dough, roll it into a ball and place it on an ungrease cookie sheet. Place each cookie dough ball about 2 inches apart (on a standard half-sheet pan, you can fit 15 cookies) and tamp down the dough balls with the palm of your hand or the bottom of a drinking glass. The cookies will spread out and become thinner, but if you do not flatten the cookie balls a bit, the centers will not cook all the way through.
• Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes, but watch the cookies carefully, as the bottoms tend to burn quickly. You'll know the cookies are done when the tops change from a darker brown to a more opaque, lighter brown colour.

SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• 1. In a large bowl or in a food processor or mixer add butter, and brown sugar mix until creamed. Add egg, vanilla, honey, molasses and orange zest. Mix until well combined.
• 2. In a separate bowl sift in flour, salt, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda and ground cloves. Add to wet batter little by little until well combined. The dough will be wet still but it wont stick to your hands. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and put in fridge for at least 1 hour. I like to make mine the day before. You can either roll into a log or do cut outs.
• 3. Pre heat oven to 350 line cookie sheets with parchment or spray the pans. I like to cut mine into shapes so I flour a board and roll out to 1/4 inch thick and let my kids go wild with the cookie cutters. When you bake them they won't expand much so 1 inch apart is ok. Cook in preheated oven for 15 minutes. Let cool in pan for 5 then in cooling rack if you have one. Decorate and enjoy. Dough can be frozen as well.

SOFT GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F. Mix together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture. Shape the dough into walnut sized balls, and roll them in the remaining 4 tablespoons of sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. You don't need to flatten them. Bake for 10-12 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. Makes approximately 30 cookies. Store in an airtight container.