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Classic Gingerbread
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Created by All Foods Natural Team, Tuesday, 25 November 2008
Description This is the classic recipe used to cut into different shapes and to build gingerbread houses. Do more than gingerbread people.
Ingredients
At a glance
Cuisine
American
Difficulty
Moderate
Seasonal
Thanksgiving
Christmas
Easter
Halloween
Valentine
Makes
36 round cookies
  • ½ cups sugar
  • ½ cup molasses
  • 1 ½  tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp ground allspice
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground clove
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • ½ cup butter, cut up
  • 1 large egg, beaten
  • 3 ½ cups flour
Methods/steps
  1. Heat the molasses and sugar with all the ground spices until the boiling point, stirring occasionally.
  2. Remove from heat then mix in the baking soda – it will foam – and butter – it should melt.
  3. Add the beaten egg and stir. Incorporate the flour now and stir to make dough.
  4. Knead the dough on a floured surface. Divide in half.
  5. Preheat oven to 325°F.
  6. Sprinkle flour on the surface and roll the first half of the dough until it is ¼ inch thick.
  7.  Use a shaped cookie cutter, or 3 to 4 inches round ones and cut as many cookies as you are able. Keep the trimmings.
  8. Place cookies on un-greased cookie sheet. Keep them at least 1 inch apart.
  9. Bake until the edges begin to brown, about 12 minutes.
  10. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and let them cool.
Santa Claus in a gingerbread shape.
A gingerbread shaped and decorated as a Chirstmasy reindeer head.
Additional Tips

Use light molasses or golden syrup if you prefer a lighter color for your cookies.

Use a wooden spoon preferably.

Wrap the remaining dough in wax paper and keep in the fridge until required.

Sprinkle flour also in the cookie cutter. It will work much better.

Use a metal spatula to transfer the cookies to the rack once out of the oven.

Use writing icing or your own homemade frosting to decorate the cookies.

If using your own frosting, don’t make it before the cookies are cool or it will dry. Divide the frosting into several bowls and add different food coloring – 1 or 2 drops would suffice – to each one.

Let the decorations dry completely before eating the cookies!

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