Gingerbread Boys Food

GINGERBREAD BOYS

Steps:

• Cream the butter and the sugar together. Add the egg and mix well. Mix in the orange peel and dark corn syrup. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, ground cloves and salt, mixing until well combined. Chill dough for at least 2 hours, I like to chill overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch thick. Cut into desired shapes using cookie cutters. Place cookies 1 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are firm and lightly toasted on the edges.

GINGERBREAD BOYS

Steps:

• In a bowl, cream shortening and sugar. Add molasses and egg; mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt and nutmeg; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Divide dough in half. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours., On a lightly floured surface, roll out each portion of dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a 4-in. cookie cutter dipped in flour. Place 2 in. apart on greased baking sheets. , Bake at 350° for 9-11 minutes or until edges are firm. Remove to wire racks to cool. Decorate as desired.

GINGERBREAD BOY COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, molasses and vinegar; bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; cool to lukewarm. Stir in egg. Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon and salt; stir into molasses mixture to form a soft dough., Divide dough into thirds. Shape each portion into a disk; wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or until easy to handle., On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 3-in. gingerbread boy cookie cutter. Place on greased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 7-9 minutes or until edges are firm. Remove to wire racks; cool completely. Decorate as desired.

GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, cream together the dry butterscotch pudding mix, butter, and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in the egg. Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, and cinnamon; stir into the pudding mixture. Cover, and chill dough until firm, about 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease baking sheets. On a floured board, roll dough out to about 1/8 inch thickness, and cut into man shapes using a cookie cutter. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are golden at the edges. Cool on wire racks.

SHERRILL'S SECRET SOFT GINGERBREAD BOYS

Steps:

• In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the butter, oil, honey, molasses and brown sugar. Cook, stirring, until the butter melts and the mixture just comes to a full boil; immediately start timing and cook for exactly 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat; let cool slightly.
• In a large bowl, using a stand mixer or electric hand mixer on low speed, combine the flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Working carefully to avoid splashes, add the butter-molasses mixture. Beat on low speed until the ingredients are blended. Increase the speed to medium, until very well blended; if the mixer motor labors, stop and complete the mixing by hand. (The dough will seem too soft at this point.) Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until the dough has stiffened and is barely warm.
• Divide the dough into thirds. Roll out the portions a generous 1/4 -inch thick between sheets of baking parchment or waxed paper. Stack the rolled portions (paper still attached) on a tray or baking sheet. Refrigerate for at least 30 to 40 minutes, or freeze for 20 to 25 minutes or until cold and firm. (The dough may be refrigerated for up to 12 hours, if preferred.).
• Place a rack in the middle third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Grease several large baking sheets, or coat with nonstick spray oil.
• Working with 1 dough portion at a time (leaving the remainder chilled), gently peel away 1 sheet of paper, then lightly pat it back into place. (That will make it easier to lift cookies from the paper later.) Flip the dough over, then peel off and discard the second sheet. Using a 4- to 5-inch gingerbread girl or boy cutter, cut out the cookies. Using a spatula, transfer cookies to baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. (If at any point the dough softens too much to handle easily, transfer the paper and cookies to a tray or baking sheet, and chill until firm again.) Gather up and reroll the dough scraps between sheets of paper. Continue cutting out cookies until all the dough is used. Very firmly press raisins into the cookies for eyes and front buttons.
• Bake for 9 to 14 minutes, until the cookies are slightly colored on top and slightly darker at the edges; it's better to overbake than underbake. Set aside to firm up about 4 minutes; then, using a wide spatula, transfer to wire racks set over a sheet of waxed paper. Have all the cookies lined up and slightly separated before beginning the glaze.
• For the glaze: In a medium saucepan, combine the confectioners' sugar, oil and water until well blended. Bring to a boil, stirring, over medium-high heat, for 30 to 45 seconds or just until the mixture is smooth and becomes translucent. Stir to recombine the glaze, then use immediately while it is still hot. (If the glaze is allowed to stand and cool, it may thicken and become sugary. In that case, add a teaspoon of hot water to thin it again, place over medium heat and continue stirring until the sugar dissolves. Immediately remove from the heat and use.).
• Using a pastry brush or a paper towel dipped in the glaze, brush the cookies until their tops are coated all over with an even layer, not too thick or too thin. Stir the glaze frequently to prevent it from separating. Let the glazed cookies cool completely, at least 1 hour; the glaze may become slightly sugary and flaky.

GINGERBREAD BOYS WITH A BITE

Steps:

• For the cookies:
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• In a medium bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and nutmeg. Set aside. In a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add egg and molasses, and beat until smooth. Add the flour mixture, a little at a time, and mix until incorporated and a dough is formed. Refrigerate until firm, at least 3 hours.
• Roll dough out to 1/4-inch thick, and cut gingerbread men with cookie cutters. Transfer to an ungreased cookie sheet and bake until set, about 6 to 8 minutes. Cool on wire racks.
• For the icing:
• In a mixer, combine sugar, cream of tartar, and egg whites*, and beat until stiff peaks form, about 7 minutes. Mix in the lemon juice to taste. Transfer icing to a piping bag and decorate gingerbread men.

GINGERBREAD BOY COOKIES

Steps:

• In medium bowl, sift together 3 cups of the flour, the baking soda, allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and salt. Set aside.
• In large bowl, cream together the brown sugar and butter. Add the molasses and eggs, stirring until incorporated.
• Add the sifted flour and spices. Stir well.
• Add the rest of the flour (unsifted is fine), a cup at a time, until the dough is firm, but not dry. (You may not need all of the flour, you may need a little more.).
• Divide dough into quarters, roll into a ball & pat into a thick disc shape. Wrap each disc in plastic wrap and refrigerate until easy to handle (about 30 minutes to an hour) or until you're ready to roll it out.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Grease 2 or more cookie sheets (I use parchment paper instead of greasing) and set aside.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out one disc at a time to a 1/2 inch thickness. Cut with gingerbread boy cookie cutter, getting as many cut as possible. Transfer cookies to prepared cookie sheets, gently press raisins in for eyes and buttons, if desired.
• Re-roll any scraps to get as many cookies as you can.
• Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Bake, one sheet at a time, for 12-13 minutes.
• Allow cookies to cool on sheet, 2 minutes, then remove to cooling rack to cool completely.
• Decorate boys (or girls) with colored royal or buttercream icing, if desired.