BEST GINGERBREAD COOKIES {RECIPE}

There is no better way to get into the festive spirit than decorate your tree, dress your house in loads of twinkle lights and bake gingerbread cookies. I used to use a different gingerbread recipe each year (thanks Google!) with mixed results, until I found this simple recipe on one of the BBC websites. This gingerbread recipe was so good it ended up in my recipe binder (very old school) and I have been making them with my boys each year.

There are few things worth mentioning before you get started:

The recipe will produce around 20 cookies, although all depends on what size and shapes you use. During our recent bake off we ended up with well over 25 cookies.

You can use food processor (as this recipe suggests) but if you don’t have one, you can simply work the flour and butter in your hands until the texture resembles fine crumbs and then follow the rest of the recipe.

DON’T SKIP refrigerating the dough as it will help to cookies keep shape whilst cutting and baking.

You can double up the recipe and either refrigerate the dough for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

Cookies keep well in airtight container for up to 5 days without loosing their cruch – if they ever last that long! 🙂 and once decorated they make a great gift for friends, family and neighbours!

If you are really not a fan of ginger flavour you can add less ground ginger (1 tsp) or skip it all together and replace it with either all spice/nutmeg, increasing cinammon ratio or add vanilla extract (1-2 tsp) to your egg & golden syrup mixture – possibilities are endless 🙂

Please let me know either here or over on my Instagram @frugally_balanced if you decide to make them.

• 

• 

INGREDIENTS:

• 350g plain flour plus extra for rolling out
• 1 tsp bicarbonate soda
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinammon
• 125g butter
• 175g light soft brown sugar
• 1 medium egg
• 4 tbsp golden syrup
• writing icing / sprinkles

METHOD:

1. Sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon and pour into the bowl of a food processor. Add the butter and blend until the mix looks like breadcrumbs. Add the sugar and mix together.
2. In a separate bowl beat the egg and golden syrup add to the dry ingredients and pulse until the mixture clumps together. Tip the dough out, knead briefly until smooth. If the dough is sticky add dusting of flour until the dough becomes smooth.
3. Wrap the dough in cling film and leave to chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
4. Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Line two baking trays with greaseproof paper.
5. Roll the dough out to a 0.5 cm thickness (£1 coin thickness) on a lightly floured surface. Using cutters, cut out the gingerbread men shapes and place on the baking tray, leaving a gap between them.
6. Bake for 12–15 minutes, or until lightly golden-brown.
7. Move to a wire rack to finish cooling.
8. When completely cool, decorate with icing / writing icing.

Advertisement