Most of us have a holiday memory of making cookies with our families as kids. During the holidays, we like to have our kids home with us rather than in day care if we can, and we want to have fun holiday activities to do. And what better holiday activity is there than baking gingerbread cookies? Try out this recipe to make gingerbread cookies with your kids.
Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup margarine
- ½ cup white sugar
- 1 large egg yolk. If there are egg allergies in your family, you can try one of these egg substitutes.
- ½ cup molasses (don’t use blackstrap, as it will overpower the other flavors)
- 2 cups flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder and ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon each of ground cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg. You can adjust the amounts of these spices depending on your tastes.
Baking Instructions
Whisk together all your dry ingredients (except the sugar) and then set them aside. In another bowl, combine the margarine and sugar. The easiest way to get the right consistency is to use an electric mixer. Next, mix in the egg yolk and then the molasses. Gradually add in your dry ingredients until the dough is well-blended.
You need to chill the dough before you bake it, so divide it in half and form each half into a disk about 1 inch thick. This makes it easier to roll the dough out when it’s cold. Wrap the dough disks and chill them in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 hours or overnight.
When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350º and take one of your dough disks out of the refrigerator. Lightly flour your work surface and your rolling pin and roll the dough to about ¼-inch thick. Next, grab your favorite cookie cutters and cut out shapes. The dough can be a bit sticky, so you might need to flour your cookie cutters, too. Arrange your cut-out cookies onto ungreased baking sheets and bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies are firm.
Once the cookies are baked, transfer them to a wire rack cool. After they are completely cooled, you can decorate them with your favorite icing or frosting. If you decided to go for the traditional gingerbread people shape, you and your kids can make gingerbread cookie self-portraits!
