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Gingerbread Men

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An old-fashioned substantially spiced cookie that’s perfectly puffed and soft!  Decorate with traditional raisins or icing and sprinkles.

Adapted from Young Abe’s Gingerbread Men recipe in The Presidents’ Cookbook by Cannon and Brooks (1968). 

  • Author: Erin Thomas
  • Prep Time: 30 Minutes
  • Cook Time: 10 Minutes
  • Total Time: 40 Minutes + Chill Time
  • Yield: About 30, 3-inch Gingerbread Figures 1x

Ingredients

Scale

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup molasses*

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ground ginger

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 tsp. ground cloves

2 large eggs, at room temperature and beaten

1 tsp. white vinegar

5 cups all-purpose flour, sifted

1 tsp. baking soda

Raisins or icing sugar for decoration

Instructions

In a medium bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy.  Beat in molasses, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.  Pour into a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.  Allow to cool to lukewarm.  

Return molasses mixture to a large bowl.  Using a standing or hand-held mixer, beat in eggs and vinegar.  Stir in sifted flour and baking soda until a smooth dough forms.  It will have the consistency of play dough.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap or a towel.  Chill for several hour or overnight. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line two to three baking sheets with parchment paper, Silpat liners, or leave ungreased.  Set aside. 

Roll dough on a moderately floured board to about 1/4-inch thick.**  Cut into desired shapes.  Place shapes about 1-inch apart on prepared baking sheets.  (If decorating with raisins, press raisin bits into dough for eyes, buttons or other decorative features.)  Bake for approximately 10 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before removing to wire rack to cool completely.  Decorate cooled cookies with icing and decorations as desired.  

Notes

*I used blackstrap molasses, which has a stronger sulphur taste and is not as sweet as traditional, store-bought molasses.  Sorghum syrup can be replaced as well.  Equal amount of all will suffice for this recipe. 

**To recreate the 19th Century gingerbread form, roll dough into two 1/2-inch wide coils about 4 to 6-inches long.  For the body, twist a coil into a ribbon like shape.  Press a second coil across the back of the ribbon shape.  Bake as directed.  

Find it online: https://gloveboxeats.com/?p=5440