Ultimate Gingerbread Men Food

GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Sieve the flour, salt, bicarb, ginger and cinnamon into a large bowl. Heat the butter, sugar and syrup until dissolved. Leave the sugar mixture to cool slightly, then mix into the dry ingredients to form a dough. Chill the dough in the fridge for 30 mins.
• On a surface lightly dusted with flour, roll out the dough to a ¼-inch thickness. Stamp out the gingerbread men shapes with a cutter, then re-roll any off-cuts and repeat. Place your gingerbread shapes on the lined trays, allowing space for them to spread. Cook for 10-15 mins, then remove from the oven and leave to cool.

GINGERBREAD MAN MUG MATES

Steps:

• For the gingerbread people: Whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, allspice and salt in a medium bowl until well blended. Beat together the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer starting on low and increasing speed, scraping the sides of the bowl down as needed, until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the molasses and vanilla until combined, then beat in the egg. (The mixture will look curdled.) Turn to low speed and beat in the flour mixture, a little at a time, until the mixture comes together, then increase speed and beat until all the ingredients are well incorporated and you have a sticky dough. Divide the dough in half, flatten into 2 discs and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
• Position 2 racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Keeping the other disc refrigerated, roll 1 disc on a well-floured surface to a thickness of just over 1/8-inch, sprinkling flour on and under the dough as needed and sliding a spatula underneath every so often to prevent sticking. (If the dough looks crackly or breaks apart, press it back together from the outside-edge in.) Dust off the excess flour. Cut out gingerbread people using a 3-inch gingerbread cookie cutter, cutting as close together on the dough as possible. Pull away the extra dough around each cookie and use a small spatula to transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets about 1/2 inch apart, placed in 3 rows of 4. Gather together the scraps, leaving behind the excess flour, then knead them a few times to form a smooth dough again. Reroll them in the same way. If the dough gets too sticky, put it back in the refrigerator, wrapped in plastic, for a few minutes. (If there are any pieces of dough stuck to the work surface, scrape them away with a spatula, flour the surface again and then continue to roll the dough.) Freeze the cookies on the baking sheets to firm them, about 5 minutes.
• While the cookies chill, roll the dough scraps together into a long 1/4-inch rope and cut into 1-inch pieces. Remove the chilled cookies from the freezer and extend the left arm of each man with the 1-inch dough pieces by pressing the dough piece onto the tip of each person's arm. (This will reinforce them and double their length.) Make sure the gingerbread people are lined up evenly.
• Wrap eight 12-inch-long and 1/4-inch-diameter wooden dowels tightly with foil (keep them smooth), then spray them liberally with cooking spray. Line up 4 gingerbread people head-to-toe and wrap their left arms around the dowel, so that 4 people can hold one dowel at a time with 1/4 inch of space in between them. Repeat with the remaining groups of 4 and chill the cookies on the baking sheet in the freezer for 15 minutes. Repeat with the second disc of dough on the second baking sheet.
• Bake the cookies, rotating and switching the position of the baking sheets halfway through, until they are slightly firm to the touch but not browned, 12 to 15 minutes.
• Cool the cookies 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack and give the dowels a gentle twist to loosen them. Let the cookies cool completely, then slowly slide the cookies off the dowels one at a time, being careful not to break their arms. (The cookies will continue to firm as they cool.)
• For the icing: Combine the confectioners' sugar and meringue powder in a large bowl. Add 4 tablespoons water and beat with a hand mixer on low speed until the frosting thickens and becomes pure white. Separate the icing into bowls and color as desired.
• Put the icing into piping bags or resealable plastic bags and snip the corners to the desired size. Use the icing to decorate the cookies, then allow to dry, about 1 hour.
• Carefully slide the candy canes in place, with the hook facing behind each head, and pipe a small amount of icing in the holes to lock them in place. Rest on the edge of a cookie sheet with the hooks hanging off to set, about 1 hour.
• Hang cookies on a mug or glass filled with your favorite holiday beverage.

GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• Whisk Dry Ingredients on one bowl.
• Cream butter & sugar - In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together using a stand mixer or electric beater on speed 7 for 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy.
• Egg & vanilla - Add the egg and vanilla, then mix on speed 5 until combined (~30 sec).
• Molasses - Add the molasses, mix for 1 minute using speed 2.
• Gradually add dry ingredients - Add 1/4 of the Dry ingredients, then mix until you can't see flour (start on speed 1 to stop flour flying everywhere!). Repeat until all Dry ingredients are mixed in, then mix for further 15 seconds. Dough should be soft and a bit sticky - see video for texture.
• Refrigerate - Pat dough into a disc shape, wrap in the cling wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or until firm. (Can refrigerate 5 days or freeze 3 months).
• Preheat the oven to 375°F/190°C (170°C fan) and set a shelf in the middle. Line 3 x baking trays with parchment/baking paper.
• Take the dough out of the refrigerator and cut into half. Wrap half and return to the fridge.
• Roll out (Note 7)- Sprinkle a sheet of baking paper very lightly with flour. Place dough on top, sprinkle surface very lightly with flour. Place another sheet of baking paper on top. Roll dough out until 4mm / 1/6" thick using a rolling pin. As you work, flip and if paper is wrinkling, peel it off then put if back on, smoothing out wrinkles.
• Cut out shapes (Note 8) - Use a gingerbread cookie cutter to cut out gingerbread men shapes, firmly pressing to cut all the way through. If the dough sticks to the cutter, dip it into flour.
• Transfer - Use a palette knife (or large knife) to transfer shapes onto baking sheet. Place 6 on the first sheet. Tidy edges if necessary using a butter knife.
• Bake Tray 1 - Bake for 12 minutes (for classic light golden) or 14 minutes (dark golden and crisp). Then remove and cool fully on tray.
• Repeat - Meanwhile, gather scraps of dough, press together then roll out again. If dough is sticky, return to refrigerator and work on the other half of the dough instead. Repeat rolling out and cutting out. You should have 18 to 20 gingerbread men in total (depending on cutter size)
• Trays 2 & 3 - Fill and bake 2nd and 3rd tray with gingerbread men, 6 to 8 on each tray. I find the workflow that works best is baking one tray at a time ie. roll/cut-out/fill/bake one tray while you prepare the next.
• Decorate - Fully cool on trays, then decorate! Use a half batch of this Royal Icing recipe to pipe and stick on decorations (sets hard and doesn't soak into cookies). The recipe makes more than you need, but it's impractical to make less. So freeze leftovers in fully sealed piping bag for future use.

ULTIMATE EASY GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Heat the butter, syrup and sugar together in a small pan until melted, stirring occasionally. Set aside to cool slightly.
• Mix together the bicarb, ginger, cinnamon and flour in a large bowl. Pour in the buttery syrup mixture and stir to combine, then use your hands to bring together to form a dough. The dough will be soft at this point, but it'll firm up in the fridge.
• Put the dough on a sheet of baking parchment, shape into a rectangle, and lay another sheet of parchment on top of it. Roll the dough out to a thickness of ½cm. Transfer to a baking sheet to keep it flat, leaving the parchment in place, then chill in the fridge for 1 hr.
• Heat the oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5 and line a large baking sheet with more baking parchment. Remove the dough from the fridge and cut out shapes using a cookie cutter. We used 9cm stars, but you can choose any shape. We also made some with smaller stars cut out of the centre to thread ribbon through and hang from a Christmas tree.
• Place the shapes, spread apart, on the lined baking sheet, and bake for 10-12 mins. (Depending on the size of the cutters you use, they might need a few minutes more or less cooking in the oven). Leave to cool completely on the baking sheet.
• Meanwhile, mix the icing sugar with 1-2 tbsp water - you want to create a consistency that's thick and pipeable, and not too thin or it will run. Decorate the cooled biscuits with the icing using a piping bag with a thin nozzle. Find out how to make a piping bag.

GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• Sift the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and allspice into a medium bowl; set aside. Melt the butter and shortening in a medium saucepan; remove from the heat and stir in the brown sugar and molasses. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool slightly.
• Add the egg to the butter mixture; beat with a mixer on medium speed until incorporated. Reduce the mixer speed to low; beat in the flour mixture in two additions until just combined. Divide the dough in half; wrap each half in plastic wrap and pat into 1/2-inch-thick disks. Refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours.
• Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Working with 1 piece of dough at a time, roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured surface, dusting with flour as needed. Cut out gingerbread men with a 3 1/2- to 5-inch cookie cutter and arrange 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Brush off the excess flour and refrigerate the cutouts 15 minutes.
• Bake the cookies until golden around the edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool 3 to 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely. Decorate with royal icing and let harden at room temperature, about 1 hour.

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.

THE BAREFOOT CONTESSA'S ULTIMATE GINGER COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.
• Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and salt and then combine the mixture with your hands.
• Beat the brown sugar, oil, and molasses on medium speed for 5 minutes. Turn the speed to low speed, add the egg, and beat for 1 minute. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat for 1 more minute.
• With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients, then mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
• Add crystallized ginger and mix until combined.
• Scoop the dough with 2 spoons or a small ice cream scoop. With your hands, roll each cookie into a 1 3/4-inch ball and then flatten them lightly with your fingers.
• Press both sides of each cookie in granulated sugar and place on sheet pans.
• Bake for exactly 13 minutes. The cookies will be cracked on the top and soft inside.
• Let the cookies cool for a minute or two and the transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

THE MOST WONDERFUL GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves until well blended.
• In a large bowl (KitchenAid's great for this) beat butter, brown sugar, and egg on medium speed until well blended.
• Add molasses, vanilla, and lemon zest and continue to mix until well blended.
• Gradually stir in dry ingredients until blended and smooth.
• Divide dough in half and wrap each half in plastic and let stand at room temperature for at least 2 hours or up to 8 hours.
• Preheat oven to 375 deg. Prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment paper.
• (Dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, but in this case it should be refrigerated. Return to room temp before using.) Preheat oven to 375°.
• Grease or line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• Place 1 portion of the dough on a lightly floured surface.
• Sprinkle flour over dough and rolling pin.
• Roll dough to a scant 1/4-inch thick.
• Use additional flour to avoid sticking.
• Cut out cookies with desired cutter-- the ginger bread man is our favorite of course.
• Space cookies 1 1/2-inches apart.
• Bake 1 sheet at a time for 7-10 minutes (the lower time will give you softer cookies-- very good!).
• Remove cookie sheet from oven and allow the cookies to stand until the cookies are firm enough to move to a wire rack.
• After cookies are cool you may decorate them any way you like.
• I usually brush them with a powdered sugar glaze when I am in a hurry, but they look wonderful decorated with Royal icing.

GINGERBREAD MAN

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Line 2 baking sheets with baking parchment. Melt butter, sugar and syrup in a pan. Mix flour, soda, spices and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Stir in the butter mix and chopped ginger to make a stiff-ish dough.
• Wait until cool enough to handle, then roll out dough to about 5mm thick. Stamp out gingerbread men, re-rolling and pressing the trimmings back together and rolling again. Lift onto baking sheets. Bake for 12 mins until golden. Cool 10 mins on the sheets, then lift onto cooling racks.
• To decorate, mix icing sugar with a few drops of water until thick and smooth. Halve then slice cherries thinly to make smiles, and cut ginger into small squares. Spoon icing into a food bag, snip off the tiniest bit from one corner, then squeeze eyes and buttons, and a tiny smile onto 1 man at a time. Stick on a cherry smile and ginger buttons. Repeat; leave to set. Will keep up to 1 week in an airtight tin.

GINGERBREAD PEOPLE

Steps:

• Melt the sugar, golden syrup and butter in a saucepan, then bubble for 1-2 mins. Leave to cool for about 10 mins.
• Tip the flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices into a large bowl. Add the warm syrup mixture and the egg, stir everything together, then gently knead in the bowl until smooth and streak-free. The dough will firm up once cooled. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 mins.
• Remove the dough from the fridge, leave at room temperature until softened. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and line two baking trays with baking parchment.
• Roll out the dough to the thickness of a £1 coin, then cut out gingerbread people with a cutter. Re-roll the excess dough and keep cutting until it's all used up.
• Lift the biscuits onto the trays and bake for 10-12 mins, swapping the trays over halfway through cooking. Leave to cool on the trays for 5 mins, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Use the icing to decorate the biscuits as you wish, and stick on chocolate or sweets for buttons. Leave to dry for 1-2 hrs. Will keep for up to three days in an airtight container.

SOFT AND EASY GINGERBREAD MEN

Steps:

• In a large bowl, with mixer at slow speed, beat flour, sugar, butter, molasses, applesauce, egg, cinnamon, baking powder, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, baking soda, and salt until well mixed. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350°F On a lightly floured surface, working with half of the dough at a time, roll 1/8 inch thick. With floured cookie cutters, cut dough into shapes. Using a metal spatula or pancake turner, place cookies 1/2 inch apart on greased cookie sheets. Reroll trimmings and continue to cut shapes. Bake 8 minutes, or until very lightly browned. Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely.