Easy gingerbread cookies that do not spread when baked is like a dream come true. These gingerbread cookies are perfect for Holiday cookie decoration. These cookies are crispy and will stay put to have the perfect shape to decorate.
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the holiday season! Time to get your cookie decoration on! Believe it or not, this wasn’t a tradition I grew up with but I sure made it one as soon as I moved to the united states.
There is something extra special about being in the cold weather, sipping on some hot chocolate, and decorating some gingerbread cookies. It’s calming and it also lets your creative side shine.
This is the best easy no spread crispy gingerbread cookie recipe ever!
Yes! This gingerbread cookie recipe is one of my favorite. It is not soft though so if you are looking for soft cookies, this might not be the recipe for you. This is a crispy cookie recipe that doesn’t spread. Once you ice these cookie though, the cookie base will absorb some of the moisture from that icing and slightly soften.
I love these cookies because they have a balance of spices and stay put whenever you place them in the oven . This way I know before they come out of the oven how they will really look like.
What does gingerbread taste like?
Gingerbread cutout cookies have a typical holiday-esque flavor. The main flavor profile comes from the molasses, then you get the flavor of the spices (cinnamon, ginger, allspice). After I made my Ginger molasses cookies recipe I found that the flavor is very similar to that with a way different texture.
Where did gingerbread men originate from?
This is a tough question because there are many articles saying different things but according to Carole Levin, the director of the medieval studies program at the University of Nebrasa-Lincoln, queen elizabeth I would serve royal gingerbread men to represent foreign dignitaries.
I can’t imagine how beautiful those must have been but as of right now, we do it to enjoy our time with our families and have a good time instead of trying to make the most beautiful masterpiece.
Here are some more holiday recipes you will love!
- 27 Easy No Bake Christmas Treats to Make with Kids
- Healthy Christmas Reindeer Peanut Butter Balls with Rice Krispies
- Festive Marbled Christmas Sugar cookie recipe
Ingredients for gingerbread cookies
Here are the ingredients you need to make your gingerbread cutout cookies too:
- Butter– You will need some softened butter for this recipe.
- Brown sugar and granulated sugar– You will need both sugars
- Vanilla extract– A little vanilla to elevate the flavors.
- Egg– The egg is used to find evrything together.
- Molasses– You will need unsuphured molasses to make these gingerbread men cookies
- Flour– All purpose flour works great.
- Spices– Cinnamon, ginger, and all spice are all used to give the spicy flavor in these cookies.
- Salt– A little spirnkle of salt to balance out the sweetness.
How to make easy gingerbread cookies?
- Start by preheating the oven to 375F then line a large baking sheet with parchment paper then set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the butter, the brown sugar, and the granulated sugar just until it’s incorporated. Don’t cream the mixture for this recipe. Add in the egg, the vanilla, and molasses, and mix just until incorporated again. Add in the flour, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, and salt and mix just until the flour disappears.
- Pour the cookie dough onto your work surface don’t worry if it’s crumbly, just press it together with your hands.) Roll the dough with a rolling pin to about ¼″ thickness. Using your cookie cutter, cut the cookie shapes that you want. Place on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 9 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool completely before you can decorate them with royal icing and enjoy!
How to decorate easy gingerbread cookies
Here are some ideas on how you can decorate your gingerbread cookies at home and have fun doing it!
Christmas tree cookie decoration ideas
Star cookie decoration ideas
Gingerbread house cookie decoration ideas
Gingerbread men cookie decoration ideas
I hope these gingerbread cookie decoration ideas were helpful and give you some inspiration to get creative next time you make cutout cookies. With these ideas you can decorate gingerbread cutout cookies but you can also decorate sugar cookies this way, just change the color of the royal icing.
To frost these easy gingerbread cookies use royal icing!
No spread easy gingerbread men cookies
If you tried and enjoyed this recipe, make sure to give it a 5 star rating by clicking on the 5 stars under the description.
No spread gingerbread men cookies (no chill)
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter softened
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg at room temperature.
- ⅓ cup molasses
- 3 cup all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoon ginger
- ½ teaspoon all spice
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Start by preheating the oven to 375F then line a large baking sheet with parchment paper then set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix the butter, the brown sugar, and the granulated sugar just until it's incorporated. Don't cream the mixture for this recipe. Add in the egg, the vanilla, and molasses, and mix just until incorporated again. Add in the flour, cinnamon, ginger, all spice, and salt and mix just until the flour disappears.
- Pour the cookie dough onto your work surface don't worry if it's crumbly, just press it together with your hands.) Roll the dough with a rolling pin to about ¼" thickness. Using your cookie cutter, cut the cookie shapes that you want. Place on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 9 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool completely before you can decorate them with royal icing and enjoy!
Nutrition
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Shannon Lonergan
How long do these keep for? I’m trying to plan all my Christmas baking 🙂
Chahinez
Sorry for the late reply! At room temperature, up to 2-3 weeks in an airtight container. In the fridge for 3-4 weeks if sealed well. And in the freezer up to 3 months in an airtight container or freezer bag. Let them thaw at room temp before serving.
If they start getting too hard, place a slice of bread in the container as the cookies will absorb moisture and soften up!
Krista
Would it work to decorate these cookies with raisins and chocolate chips before baking?
Chahinez
Sure, I don’t see why not 🙂
Ami
This is a perfect recipe for gbread cookies you don’t want to spead..at all! They taste good, softinside and crisp in the outside!..I highly recommend this recipe! I bake as a vendor at a farmer’s market, and this is an A+ recipe!
Chahinez
Thank you for such a nice review!
Ashley
Such a simple recipe, and so good. My daughter and I enjoyed making these together, and my husband demolished just about every one. Thank you for sharing a great recipe.
Chahinez
I am so glad you made them with your daughter. It’s such a bonding experience 🙂
Mel
I’ve never made gingerbread before and this recipe is very easy and tasty. I actually used becel baking margerine rather than butter as I have family members sensitive to milk products. I will probably use a royal icing to decorate them. I will definitely bake these again😋
Chahinez
So glad to hear that!! I do have a royal icing recipe that doesn’t spread which works so well for decorating there 🙂
Mel
Are these sturdy enough to build gingerbread houses with if we cut the shapes appropriately?
Chahinez
I would say so!
Suky
Hii thank you very much for this recipe. i’m gonna try ist this year. are they crispy?
Chahinez
They are! And you can always bake for an extra minute to make them even more crispy
Angela Walshe
Hello there, How long will these last in an airtight container without freezing please.
Chahinez
Up to 3-4 days at room temperature and one week in the fridge.
Cheryl Preston
This recipe was true to it’s promise! You save my sanity the night before a Holiday Catalog photoshoot and I needed a reindeer gingerbread cookie for the cover shot!!! The mix came together like you said, easy to follow and excellent results. Looked like I knew what I was doing! And it tasted good!!! Thank you. I was grateful to find your blog and great advice. Thank you.
Chahinez
I am so glad this recipe came in at the right time! 🙂
Maddie
Do they break easily? I’m looking for a recipe that I can pack in a box
Chahinez
They’re pretty strong and sturdy as long as you don’t pack them in too tightly.
Julie
I never leave a comment, but WOW!! Best Gingerbread Cookies recipe ever!!!
Chahinez
Omg thank you so much!
Lisa
I’m impressed with this recipe. I was very pressed for time this year and was looking for a no-chill, no-spread recipe. This worked out perfectly, and it’s delicious. Saved!
Chahinez
That’s awesome!
Andromeda T Letourneau
How can I make these softer?
Chahinez
Because these are no spread cookies, they will be a little crunchier. I am working on a softer gingerbread men cookie recipe so make sure you sign up to my newsletter to be notified when I post them! 🙂
Kate
I love this recipe, do you have any icing recipes that would go well with this? Thank you so much for posting this
Chahinez
Yes! I have a cream cheese frosting and a dulce de leche that would go great with gingerbread. I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Lisa
Best Gingerbread recipe ever! It truly is no spread and taste delicious, this was the easiest gingerbread recipe I have ever made and it will now be my go to recipe for gingerbread. Thank you.
Chahinez
Thank you so much!😁
Lindsey H Asmussen
This recipe delivered! Easy, no chilling required, no spreading. I substituted Nutmeg, Ground Clove and Cardamom, similar to an “old standard” recipe ingredients, rather than using the Allspice. Allspice, I just learned, is not a combination of spices mentioned previously. I always thought it was! It’s a single season ingredient derived from unripened berries of the Myrtle Pepper Tree found in Jamaica and South America having flavors similar to cinnamon, nutmeg, black pepper and clove. The “old standard” recipe called for 2 tsp of baking soda and spread soooo much, even with ample chilling time, shapes were unidentifiable. So very happy to have found this recipe, it’s going in my holiday cookie book!
Chahinez
I’m thrilled the recipe was a success for you! Your spice twists are a genius touch, and isn’t it cool learning about the origins of ingredients? It’s great that the no-chilling aspect made the process even easier. Thank you for adding it to your holiday cookie book!
Lori
Baked them and love them, thank you! I did do a double take at 384TBSP of flour for the metric. As they say, always read the recipe hehe
Chahinez
That’s awesome!
Crystal
made these again. They were a fail my 1st try, but 2nd try they were a hit. I think I undermixed them the first time.
thanks for the recipe, it’s in my keeper box.
Chahinez
I’m glad you tried again! Thank you for giving my recipe a chance!😁
Amy
The metric version has tablespoons instead of grams on the recipe. I appreciate do much having a metric version along with the volume.
Chahinez
Thank you for bringing this to my attention. It has been fixed
Ellen
This was one of the best recipes ever. I have been making gingerbread cookies for over 40 years. I love to try something new every year. Some are goo and some are okay. Your recipe was great. Easy to make. I made a double batch because I make a 6 inch gingerbread man. I increased the baking time to 11 minutes. Came out perfect. Can’t wait for my grandchildren to come decorate, a family tradition. Again thank you.
Chahinez
This warms my heart to hear you say that. Thank you for sharing and I hope your grandkids had a wonderful time.
Kris
This recipe worked perfectly, even with substituting for gluten free flour (I used a one to one mix and measured cups by weight, no other alterations to accommodate). Absolutely perfect, I added some orange zest because it’s my fave in gingerbread cookies.
Chahinez
Thank you so much for sharing!
Helen French
384 tbsp flour???
Chahinez
Recipe card metric conversion had a typo, it has been corrected.