The Best Gingerbread Recipe Ever
Soft and Chewy Christmas Cookies
The best gingerbread cookie recipe is a family Christmas recipe whose source is unknown. Overwhelmingly, people make the same comment about this ginger bread recipe - that the gingerbread cookies are soft and chewy, with a delicate flavor. Commercial gingerbread cookies are often hard as a rock with a strong flavor. Sometimes they even put a hard glaze on the gingerbread cookies. Here is the easy Christmas cookie recipe:
Mix Dry Ingredients
Mix dry ingredients with fork:
- 4 cups of sifted flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ginger
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon cloves
In Large Bowl:
- Cream together 1 cup Crisco and 1/2 half cup sugar and 1/2 cup light brown sugar.
- Gradually add 1/3 cup light/mild molasses and 2/3 cup light corn syrup.
- Gradually add dry ingredients to syrup mixture. You can mix by hand or with a mixer.
- Shape the dough into 2 - 3 balls, wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
Holiday Cookie Cutters:
For Thanksgiving you can choose gingerbread men, turkeys (“ginger-birds”) if available (they are hard to find), or footballs, which come in a set at hobby stores. For Christmas cookies, gingerbread men are the favorite, but stars, trees or, as with other holiday recipes, traditional seasonal shapes can be used and decorated.
Roll the Dough
Place a small open pan of flour on the counter. Spread flour on the counter or on wax paper, if preferred. Take the balls of dough from the refrigerator. Flatten them a little with your hands and rub with flour before rolling.
If dough is slightly sticky, flour the rolling pin frequently and rub the dough often with a sprinkling of flour as you roll the dough. If dough is somewhat crumbly and harder to roll, press rolling pin hard and make a few cookies at first. The second rolling will be easier and the gingerbread dough will become moister with each rolling.
When dough is 1/4 inch thick, dip cookie cutter into flour pan before every cut. If you plan on using raisins for decoration, cut raisins in half and gently press into cookies before baking. With a well-floured spatula, lift shapes from dough and place on greased cookie sheet.
Bake the Gingerbread Cookies
Bake @ 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Depending on the size of the cookie cutters, the dough should yield approximately 36 gingerbread cookies. Children love to make a gingerbread house with the last of the dough.
Once baked, the gingerbread cookies will be very moist and delicate. After a few minutes gently loosen from the cookie sheet. When firm, move them to a surface to cool. When they are completely cool, place them in a tin or plastic container, separating each layer with wax paper until you are ready to frost.
Frost and Decorate the Christmas Cookies
Make frosting or decorate the gingerbread cookies as desired. White vanilla icing on the edge of the cookies makes them even moister and complements the flavor and warm light brown color of the cookies.
Place in refrigerator until icing is firm, place cookies on a tray and cover with plastic wrap. For longer-term storage or for gift tins, carefully stack cookies separating each layer with wax paper.
A Christmas Recipe that Can Become a Tradition
Children love the shapes and flavor of this soft and chewy gingerbread cookie recipe. The molasses in the gingerbread cookies is good for them. Adults love to eat the holiday cookies with coffee. But be sure to include at least one extra Gingerbread Man, because he tends to disappear!
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