Irresistible Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

If these Irresistible Chewy Gingerbread Cookies don’t put you in the holiday spirit then I don’t know what will!

Happy National Cookie Day!!!! I honestly didn’t know that this day existed until yesterday when I was making gingerbread cookies! Isn’t that ironic?!

I had been promising my boys that I would make them gingerbread cookies for Christmas, but I thought they would forget! Truth is, I’ve never made gingerbread cookies before so I was slightly intimidated to make them. AND I thought that my kids would forget I even promised them that lol!

Boy, was I wrong! Lol! As soon we started putting up Christmas decorations, my four-year-old starting asking me about gingerbread cookies…or Coo-Coo Bread, which is what my 2-year-old calls them! ? Lol!

I finally built up enough courage and started playing around with a few recipes. Surprisingly, my first batch of these Irresistible Chewy Gingerbread Cookies turned out really good! The only thing I tweaked was the amount of ginger, cinnamon, and the baking time. I like to really taste my spices, so I added more ginger and cinnamon.

Determining the right baking time was really tricky. I baked each batch at different times until I achieved the perfect consistency. The baking time also depends on how thick or thin you roll the cookie dough. I like mine slightly thin, so I baked them for about 6-7 minutes and they turned out perfectly! When I baked them for 8-10 minutes, they turn out too hard, so be sure to keep a close eye on them!

Let’s talk about cookie decorating…

So I’ve never decorated a cookie before or made my own royal icing. I was way too intimidated to try this too! I even considered sprinkling the cookies with powdered sugar to avoid decorating them! Since my boys were really looking forward to these cookies, I knew that I needed to at least put a smiley face on them!

My royal icing consisted of powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk. Super easy! I made 3 batches in 3 different colors: white, red, and green. I put the icings in Ziploc sandwich bags and cut a tiny hole in the corner of each one.

Then I started decorating each cookie. I completely used my own imagination and started to have some fun! I drew Santa hats, little bow ties…I really had a great time doing this because I love to paint!

The icing took about 30 minutes to 1 hour to completely dry. When these Irresistible Chewy Gingerbread Cookies were ready, I placed them on the kitchen counter so that my boys would see them when they came home from school. Their reaction was priceless!

My oldest son’s eyes got so big as he screamed, “Mommy, you made gingerbread cookies!” And then he gave me the sweetest hug and said, “I love you, mommy!” My 2-year-old screamed, “Coo-Coo Bread, Coo-Coo Bread!” This made all of that hard work totally worth it! How will you be celebrating National Cookie Day??

Print Pin

Irresistible Chewy Gingerbread Cookies

Servings 36

Author Beautiful Eats & Things

Ingredients

• 2 and ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• ¾ teaspoons baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ cup salted butter at room temperature
• 1 large egg
• ½ cup dark molasses
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar

Instructions

• Cream butter. Beat until creamy.
• Beat in egg, molasses, and vinegar.
• Sift all of the dry ingredients together and then blend sifted dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.
• Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• When the dough is done chilling, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll the dough to your desired thickness, about 1/2″ thick, on a floured surface and cut into desired shapes. Place shapes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a baking mat. Gather and reroll remaining pieces of dough as needed, using all of the dough.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 6-7 minutes for softer cookies, or bake for about 8-10 for a sturdier cookie. Let the cookies cool on a cooling rack for about 5 minutes.
• Repeat with remaining dough.
• Leave plain or decorate with icing.

Notes

I know you'll love these recipes too:

• 25 Days of Dietitian-Approved Christmas Cookies
• Ginger Cranberry Pistachio Shortbread Cookies
• Spice Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes about 36 (4 inch) cookies

Nutritional Information (1 cookie): Calories 89, Carbohydrates 14g, Fat 4g, Protein 1g, Saturated Fat 1g, Fiber 1.4g, Sugars 8g