Easy Gingerbread Biscuit Recipe with Icing
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An absolute favourite at Christmas time is a good gingerbread biscuit recipe. These cookies (as my North American friends call it) are flavourful and fun to decorate!
Ingredients
Cookies
- ⅔ cup Butter, room temperature (See Note 1)
- ¾ cup Brown sugar , packed (See Note 2)
- ⅔ cup Unsulphured molasses, See Note 3
- 1 Egg, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 3 ½ cups Flour
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 tablespoon Ground ginger, See Note 4
- 1 tablespoon Ground cinnamon, See Note 4
- ½ teaspoon Allspice, See Note 4
- ½ teaspoon Ground cloves, See Note 4
Icing
- 350 g icing sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon butter, slightly melted
- Water, for consistency
- Food colouring, optional
Instructions
Cookies
- Add room temperature butter and sugar to a large bowl. Using a hand mixer or bench mixer, combine until they’re a creamy texture (approx. 2 minutes). Add egg, molasses and vanilla, and beat again.
- Mix dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking powder, spices) in a separate bowl. Combine the wet ingredients with the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon. Use your hands for the final part to form a dough ball and place on a lightly floured benchtop.
- Use a rolling pin and roll the dough until it’s about 1cm thick. Place on a baking tray and refrigerate overnight (or up to 2 days).
- Remove from fridge, re-roll dough to desired thickness and use your cookie cutters to shape.
- Add cookies to a lined baking pan and bake for 10-15 minutes @175C (depending on thickness). Let cool for another 15 minutes as this will help the center harden.
Icing
- Wait for the cookies to cool before icing then combine icing sugar, vanilla extract, butter and food colouring together. Adjust consistency with water until it is as desired (add small amounts at a time)
- Spread on cookies (or dip the top of the cookie in).
- Refrigerate 4 hours until icing has cooled and hardened.
Notes
Note 1 (Butter)
I have made this recipe with Nuttelex (an oil based butter) as a dairy-free alternative and have had no issues with the texture, taste or final product.
Room temperature is essential, but you don't want it to melt (so if you're making these in Australia at Christmas, this won't take long).
Note 2 (Brown Sugar)
The brown sugar helps give the cookies a deeper flavour of caramel and toffee which is why I use brown sugar for gingerbread cookies. If you want a more subtle flavour, or if you're in a pinch, substitute with white sugar.
Note 3 (Molasses)
The molasses helps bring out the deep, rich, caramel gingerbread flavour. It gives the cookies that TANG you know and love. If you're not the biggest fan, reduce the amount or replace with golden syrup. It also makes the dough very sticky which helps them hold their shape. Note 4 (Spices)
The heart and soul of the cookies and gives them stunning depth of flavour. These can easily be adjusted to your preferences.
The molasses helps bring out the deep, rich, caramel gingerbread flavour. It gives the cookies that TANG you know and love. If you're not the biggest fan, reduce the amount or replace with golden syrup. It also makes the dough very sticky which helps them hold their shape. Note 4 (Spices)
The heart and soul of the cookies and gives them stunning depth of flavour. These can easily be adjusted to your preferences.
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