Gingerbread People
December 9th, 2008 by AliHere is a recipe for Gingerbread People from the Chinaberry book Christmas Cookies by Sharon O’Connor. This set would make a great gift (even for yourself!); it contains recipe cards and a CD with music from The Nutcracker Ballet–a perfect combination of “ingredients.”
From the author: A spicy dough that bakes into delicious, semisoft gingerbread figures. This is the cookie I most look forward to baking every December.
| 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 egg 1/2 cup molasses 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda |
1/2 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon ground ginger 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon ground allspice Powdered Sugar Icing (recipes follows) |
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and molasses until blended.
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and allspice and stir until combined. Stir the flour mixture into the butter mixture until blended. On a lightly floured surface, form the dough into a disk. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days before rolling out.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to a 1/4-inch thickness. Using cookie cutters, cut the dough into gingerbread people or other fun shapes. Transfer the figures to a baking sheet, placing them about 1 inch apart.
- Bake for 6 to 8 minutes, or until set. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. If you wish, drizzle or spread the cookies with powdered sugar icing. Or, use a pastry bag to pipe designs onto the cookies and make faces and buttons with raisins and cinnamon red hots. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
Makes about 40 cookies.
Cook’s Tips: While the cookies are still hot and slightly soft, you can press raisins, cinnamon red hots, and other candy into the dough.
Powdered Sugar Icing: A shiny, easy-to-make icing.
1 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, pinch of salt, drops of food coloring (optional)
In a small bowl, combine all the ingredients and stir until smooth and thick enough to spread.
