If you have ever been disappointed by mildly spiced gingerbread cookies before, these spiced gingerbread cookies are for you! Adding pepper to the perfect amount of spices, is a game changer! I dare to to try and eat just one!
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👩🍳Perfectly spiced gingerbread cookies
I have had so many gingerbread cookies in my life. All of them, kind of meh. Most gingerbread cookies have a mild amount of spices to them that make them kind of ordinary. Not these ones! I have these cookies packed with the perfect amount of spices. No one would dare to call these ordinary!
These gingerbread cookies are great on their own, but also can be used to decorate other desserts, like gingerbread cupcakes or gingerbread trifle.
By the way, if you like a punch of gingerbread spices to cookies, try my chewy chocolate gingerbread cookies that are made with fresh ginger.
Or try some other holiday recipes, like my creamy peanut butter fudge, whipped shortbread cookies, cranberry pecan upside down cake, or snappy turtle cookies!
🥘Ingredients
📃Ingredient notes
- pepper - yes, there is black pepper in these gingerbread cookies. Trust me, you don't taste the pepper. It helps give the cookies that huge spiced flavour.
- brown sugar - I used light brown sugar in this recipe. Feel free to sub with dark brown sugar. Your cookies will just come out a little darker in colour.
🔪Instructions
Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, pepper, and salt together in a medium bowl.
Beat butter and brown sugar in a large bowl until fluffy. Mix in eggs and molasses. Add in the dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Divide dough into two discs, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
When ready, roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to ¼-inch thick. Use cookie cutters to cut out shapes, and place them 1-inch apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Gently knead scraps together and re-roll out. Cut out cookies until all the dough is used.
Bake cookies in a 350°F oven for 10-12 minutes, or until the cookie bottoms are lightly browned. Cool on their cookies sheets for 2 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
🧁 How to decorate gingerbread cookies
- Icing - A quick icing made from powdered sugar and water. Or something more elaborate like royal icing.
- Sprinkles - Sprinkles belong on everything in my opinion!
- Powdered sugar - A little dusting of powdered sugar would fancy these cookies up!
✔️Expert Tips
- Make sure you chill the dough after it has been made. The dough will be too sticky to roll out.
- Chill the cookies after they have been cut out. They will hold their shape better if they go into the oven cold.
- Don't be worried about flour on your cookies. It will bake off.
💭 Recipe FAQ's
You can make the dough a day ahead. Roll out and bake the next day.
Yes, they can be frozen in an airtight freezer container for up to 3 months. The dough can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
No, gingerbread for making houses needs to be more sturdy so it can hold it's structure.
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📋 Recipe
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Spiced Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour plus more for dusting
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¾ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup unsalted butter room temperature
- ½ cup light brown sugar packed
- 1 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup molasses
Instructions
- Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
- Beat butter and brown sugar together in the bowl of an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs and molasses and mix until incorporated. Add dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Divide dough into two discs, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour or up to 2 days.
- Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll out dough to ¼ inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Cut into shapes of your choice and place 1 inch apart on the baking sheets. Knead scraps of dough together and re-roll out. Keep cutting cookies out until all the dough has been used.
- Refrigerate until the cookies firm up again, about 15 minutes.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes. Let cool and then store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make sure you chill the dough after it has been made. The dough will be too sticky to roll out.
- Use light or dark brown sugar. I used light for this recipe.
- Chill the cookies after they have been cut out. They will hold their shape better if they go into the oven cold.
- Don't be worried about flour on your cookies. It will bake off.
Lynnette Siegl
Why do you put black pepper into the dough?
Nina
It sounds odd but complements the spices in the gingerbread cookies. You can't taste the pepper at all. Try it and let me know what you think 🙂
April P.
Perfect cookies every time! I've made this recipe for the last 6 years or so at holidays and add 1 tsp of maple extract, 1/2 tsp Chinese 5 spice, 1/2 tsp garam masala. maybe my spices are not potent, but the extra savory spices make the cookie even more flavorful. Most people expect gingerbread cookies to taste like cardboard or nothing, but the extra spices and black pepper are a hit! Also, I roll the chilled dough out between plastic wrap to skip the dusting flour, and they turn out just fine!
Nina
I love your additions! They sound amazing!!! 🙂