Gingerbread Cut-Out Cookies
Cookies
3 cups flour or 3 cups Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 GF flour or 3 cups of your favorite GF flour + ¾ tsp xanthan gum (omit if your flour already contains)
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp all spice
¼ tsp salt
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature (if you only have salted butter, just omit the salt)
½ cup brown sugar, packed
½ cup molasses
1 egg
1 tsp GF vanilla
Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp meringue powder (if you can’t find this at your local grocery store, you can order it on amazon)
¼ tsp GF vanilla
1 tbsp cold water
Cookies
In medium bowl, whisk together flour, xanthan gum (if using), baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, all spice & salt. Set aside
In large mixing bowl, cream together butter & sugar on medium-high until light & fluffy (about 2 minutes).
Add molasses, egg & vanilla. Beat on medium until thoroughly combined.
Gradually add flour mixture mixing on low speed until dough comes together. (If the dough is too dry & crumbly, slowly add up to 1 tbsp cold water until it comes together)
Divide dough in half. Shape each half into a ball & flatten to about 1 inch thick. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap & refrigerator for at least 2 hours (3 hours if using regular flour) & up to overnight.
Remove dough from refrigerator. If it is too stiff to work with, just let it set out on the counter for a few minutes until it is soft enough to roll out.
Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
On lightly floured surface, roll out dough to ¼ inch thickness. Using gingerbread man cookie cutter (or any other holiday-related shape you may have), cut dough into cookies (See Notes)
Place on baking sheet. If there is flour dusting on top of the cookies, you can gently brush it off with a pastry brush.
Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes, until edges are slightly crisp.
Cool on pan for 5 minutes.
Remove to wire cooling rack to finish cooling completely.
Icing
Whisk together powdered sugar & meringue powder.
Add vanilla & water, mixing on medium-high speed until smooth. If the icing is too thick, add water – a few drops at a time. If it is too thin, add more sugar – a little at a time.
Transfer the icing to a piping bag with a fine round tip.
Pipe icing onto cookies. (See Notes) If you are adding any other sprinkles or decorations to the icing, add it right away before the icing sets or it won’t stick. If you want to get really creative, you can add food coloring to your icing before you put it in the piping bag. (See Notes)
Notes:
This recipe is based on one from aheadofthyme.com/gingerbread-cookies. Thanks Sam & Dan!
Using a 5 inch cookie cutter is recommended. You can use smaller cookie cutters, but decorating will be a little more challenging – especially if you are not skilled with piping on the icing. If your dough is sticking to your surface, just gently lift the cookie up with a flat metal spatula (& use a little more flour under the dough when you roll it out the next time).
If you have not worked with piping icing before, I suggest practicing on a paper towel or hard surface to get a sense of how the icing comes out of the piping bag. And don’t worry if they are not perfect – the cookies will still be delicious & whoever eats them will appreciate your effort! Or if you are not going to freeze them, you can buy decorating icing in tubes at the grocery store & use that - which many find easier & less intimidating than making & piping their own icing!
Surprisingly, these cookies freeze well – even after they are iced! Just layer them in an airtight container with parchment or waxed paper between each layer.