These Gingerbread Men Cookies are easy to make and bake up soft, chewy with slightly crispy edges and full of warm and cozy spices with cinnamon, ginger, and molasses. A family favorite and perfect for holiday gifting, cookie exchanges and Christmas cookie plates!
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Our Favorite Gingerbread Men Cookie Recipe
‘Tis the season for holiday cookies galore! Whenever I think of Christmas classics….shortbread, cut out sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies always come to mind.
These Gingerbread Men Cookies are my son’s absolute favorite holiday cookie. We not only make them in December but a few times throughout the year as well. Since we also love making cookie boxes for holiday gifts, we’ve also added a few more gingerbread cookie recipes to our site like our Keto Gingerbread Men Cookies, Vegan Gingerbread Cookies, Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies and Keto Ginger Molasses Cookies for our friends and family who have dietary concerns.
Why we love this gingerbread cookie recipe
We’ve tried quite a few recipes throughout the years and finally found one that my son loves best. It’s based off of this no fail recipe from America’s Test Kitchen. We dial down the ginger, add some nutmeg and freeze the dough briefly before popping the pan in the oven.
These gingerbread cookies bake up soft, chewy and is full of that warm ginger, brown sugar and molasses flavor. And I love that the cookies hold their shape without any spreading in the oven. They’re just the right amount of sweetness and are packed with all the warm holiday spices and will make the house smell amazing.
And if you’re looking for a crispier cookie, just roll the dough a bit thinner than listed and bake for 1-2 minutes longer if needed.
Cookie Recipe Ingredients
This classic gingerbread men recipe uses butter instead of shortening and can easily be made gluten-free and refined-sugar free with just a few simple ingredient swaps.
- Flour – be sure to measure correctly (spoon, sweep and level method) – for gluten-free gingerbread men cookies, use a 1-1 flour such as Bob’s Red Mill 1-1 Baking Flour or Cup4Cup.
- Dark brown sugar, packed – you can also sub with coconut sugar for an unrefined sugar option or use a brown sugar substitute of your choice such as Lakanto Golden Monk Fruit Sweetener. You may have to adjust the amount.
- Gingerbread spices: ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves and ground nutmeg
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Unsalted butter, cut into cubes and softened slightly – you can also try swapping with your favorite vegan butter
- Unsulphured molasses
- Milk, at room temperature – use dairy or non-dairy milk of your choice
How to make Gingerbread Men Cookies
- MIX THE DRY INGREDIENTS: Start by stirring together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, salt, and baking soda at low speed in a stand mixer. Add butter and mix until gritty.
- ADD THE WET INGREDIENTS: Very slowly add molasses and milk and mix until thoroughly combined.
- ROLL OUT DOUGH: Divide dough in half and roll the first dough portion out between two large sheets of parchment paper, into a 1/4 inch thickness. Place rolled dough sheet (with parchment papers) on a large baking pan.
- REPEAT with second half of dough and stack on top of the first sheet.
FREEZE THE DOUGH: Place baking pan in the fridge for 2 hours or freezer for 25 minutes.
- LINE THE BAKING SHEETS: Heat oven to 350 F degrees. Line two large baking pans with parchment paper and set aside.
CUT INTO SHAPES: Remove one dough sheet from freezer, peel off both parchment papers to ensure the dough is not sticking and lay back on top of bottom parchment sheet. Using a cookie cutter (I used a 3-inch), cut into shapes and transfer to lined baking pans at least 3/4 inch apart. Repeat with remaining dough. Place the baking sheet back in the freezer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, remove the other dough sheet and repeat.
- BAKE (one pan at a time) in preheated oven until cookies are puffy and just set around edges, 8 to 11 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Be careful not to overbake.
- COOL COOKIES: Allow cookies to cool on baking pan for 2 minutes, then remove with wide metal spatula to wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with any remaining dough.
HELPFUL TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST GINGERBREAD MEN COOKIES:
Chill the Dough
Just like these sugar cookies, it’s important to refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour, and up to 2 days. This helps the dough roll out cleaner and helps the gingerbread men keep their shape.
Line your pans with parchment paper
Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick between two parchment papers. The parchment paper helps to ensure the dough does not stick without having to incorporate any extra flour into the dough. For a crispier cookie, roll the dough out to 1/8 inch.
Freeze the dough before baking
Just before baking, pop the baking pan once more into the freezer for about 10 minutes to help the butter firm up and prevent spreading.
Do not over-mix
Once you add the flour to the rest of the ingredients, mix until just combined. This ensures the cookies stay soft and chewy.
Do not overcrowd the pan
Place the gingerbread cutouts at least 1 inch apart so they have enough room to breathe.
Do not overbake
If you are using a standard sized gingerbread cookie cutter, the cookies should only take about 8-11 minutes in the oven. For smaller cookies, you may have to reduce the time to 7-8 minutes.
How to frost Gingerbread Men Cookies
Royal Frosting Ingredients
- Powdered sugar,sifted
- Meringue powder
- Pure vanilla extract
- Warm water – use less for stiff icing and more for thin icing
- Gel food coloring, optional
For my frosting, I went with my simple go-to royal icing recipe.
I use this recipe for decorating sugar cookies and gingerbread cookies. This recipe uses meringue powder to stabilize the icing instead of egg whites but feel free to use your favorite royal icing to decorate your cookies.
- Beat all ingredients together until icing forms peaks, about 7 minutes.
- Tint with gel food coloring as desired.
- Fill piping bags with frosting and decorate cookies.
Once they’re all dressed up, you can enjoy them as is or package them up for friends, family or your neighbors.
Storage Instructions
You can store your cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Can Gingerbread Cookies be Frozen?
Yes, the great thing about making gingerbread cookies is that they store well in the freezer and will taste just as good as fresh cookies once you thaw them.
How to freeze:
You can freeze the unbaked cookie dough in an air-tight storage container or large resealable freezer bag for up to 3 months in the freezer.
Baked gingerbread cookies also freeze perfectly. Simply place the gingerbread cookies on large baking sheets and freeze for 20 minutes, or until hard. Transfer the frozen cookies to an resealable containers or large ziptop bags for up to 3 months.
To thaw: Remove frozen baked cookies from the freezer and allow to that at room temperature. Once thawed, you can roll the balls in more powdered sugar, if desired before serving.
More Christmas Cookies you will love:
50+ Must Have Cookies for the Holiday Cookie Platter
Perfect Holiday Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
Shortbread Thumbprint Cookies – 7 Ways
Classic Pecan Snowball Cookies
This gingerbread man cookie recipe is a classic holiday favorite. These easy holiday cookies are perfectly spiced with cinnamon, ginger, and molasses. They bake until soft and chewy with slightly crisp edges.
- 3 cups flour measured correctly (spoon, sweep and level method)
- 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 Tablespoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 cup 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into cubes and softened slightly
- 3/4 cup unsulphured molasses
- 2 Tablespoons milk room temperature
- 2 cups powdered sugar sifted
- 1-1/2 Tablespoons meringue powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 3 Tablespoons warm water less for stiff icing and more for thin icing
- Gel food coloring optional
- In the bowl of a stand mixer on low speed fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, salt, and baking soda at low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Add butter pieces, one at a time while mixing at medium-low speed until mixture is slightly gritty, about 1-2 minutes.
- Very slowly add molasses and milk and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Divide dough in half and roll the first dough portion out between two large sheets of parchment paper, into a 1/4 inch thickness. Place rolled dough sheet (with parchment papers) on a large baking pan.
- Repeat with second half of dough and stack on top of the first sheet.
Place baking pan in the fridge for 2 hours or freezer for 25 minutes.
- Heat oven to 350 F degrees. Line two large baking pans with parchment paper and set aside.
Remove one dough sheet from freezer, peel off both parchment papers to ensure the dough is not sticking and lay back on top of bottom parchment sheet.
Using a cookie cutter (I used a 3-inch), cut into shapes and transfer to lined baking pans at least 3/4 inch apart. Repeat with remaining dough. Place the baking sheet back in the freezer for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, remove the other dough sheet and repeat.
Bake (one pan at a time) in preheated oven until cookies are puffy and just set around edges, 8 to 11 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Be careful not to overbake.
- Allow cookies to cool on baking pan for 2 minutes, then remove with wide metal spatula to wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with any remaining dough.
Beat all ingredients together until icing forms peaks, about 7 minutes.
Tint with gel food coloring as desired.
Fill piping bags with icing and frost cookies.
Did you try this recipe?
Eva @ Eva Bakes -
What a great project with your son, Kelly! My daughter loved baking and decorating gingerbread people with me a few years ago. We might have to do it again this holiday season!