This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my full disclosure for details.

Hi Bold Bakers!

Christmas is all about COOKIES! And one of the most iconic cookies for the holidays have to be Homemade Gingerbread Men Cookies. This spiced cookie dough is so simple to make and the dough goes a very long way. You don’t have to be a pro to make the sweetest looking gingerbread men, with my recipe you’ll have all tips and trick to making these adorable Homemade Gingerbread Men!

Can Gingerbread Men be made ahead of time?

To get ahead this Christmas, I like to make this dough, and maybe even double it and then pop it into the freezer in big chunks. Then I can take out this Gingerbread Men dough when I know I’ll have guests over and bake off some fresh cookies. This whole recipe should provide you with lots of cookies for friends and family over the Holidays.

How do i make gingerbread?

No matter what shape you choose to bake these into, they pack a holiday punch as they are loaded with spiced and molassas! Ginger, cinnmaon and clove makes these cookies sweet and spicy while the molasses and brown sugar keep this cookie moist and chewy, which is what allows it to be shaped into all kinds of fun things from little me to entire gingerbread cookie homes! The cookie itself is really easy to make and can be made in one bowl with a whisk or hand mixer.

How to decorate gingerbread men

These delightful little men are so simple to decorate if you have the desire to do so. I fill a bag full of my Royal Icing and go to town. Now, as you can see I am not winning any awards for my cookie decorating skills. However with a few squiggly lines and some festive sprinkles you can transform plain Gingerbread Men into these lovely little guys that look like they might talk to you. Get creative and have fun, if you don’t like the decoration you added simply let it dry then remove it and start again.

Have you visited my Holiday Baking Headquarters page? You’ll find every recipe you could possibly need for the holidays including Christmas Cookies, Desserts, my best-ever baking tips and more!

If you like gingerbread you’ll love these recipes!

Follow Bigger Bolder Baking on Pinterest for more baking ideas!

Gingerbread Men Cookies Recipe

4.78 from 71 votes

Print Recipe

Make your Christmas Cookies Bolder and better with my Homemade Gingerbread Men Cookies. You can make these sweet little guys or even a Gingerbread House!

Author: Gemma Stafford

Make your Christmas Cookies Bolder and better with my Homemade Gingerbread Men Cookies. You can make these sweet little guys or even a Gingerbread House!

Author: Gemma Stafford

Ingredients

¾ cup (6oz/171g) butter, softened
1 cup (7.5oz/ 216g) packed brown sugar
1 egg
¾ cup (9oz/ 260g) molasses/treacle (or honey if molasses isn't available)
4 cups (1lb 2⅛oz, 537g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and molasses. Combine the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hours or overnight or until easy to handle.
On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/4 in. thickness.
Cut out your cookies with cookie cutters. Carefully place them on a baking tray lined with parchment.
Bake at 350oF (180oC) for 12-15 minutes.
Once cooled decorate with royal icing or store then in an air tight container for up to 7 days. The crisper they are the longer they will stay fresh.

157 Comments

most useful

newest oldest

Inline Feedbacks

View all comments

Abigail Torres-Soto

3 years ago

I actually have a question; are these soft cookies or hard cookie? I prefer if they are soft & chewy almost cake like; does the recipe or cooking time change if I want this type of cookie? Please advise.

View Replies (1)

Natasha Arsova

4 years ago

Hi Gemma,
I made this cookies for the first time and went very well. I used honey instead of molasses, but they are very delicious and full of christmas and winter flavors. Thank you and Happy new year!

Best wishes
Natasha

Gunjan

Hey Gemma, can I use maple syrup instead of molasses and honey? And if yes thn what quantity. Also how to make royal icing for cookie decoration? Thanks

Tatiana

2 years ago

Hi Gemma! Can I halve this recipe? If so, should I still use one egg? Thank you!

Richa

Hey Gemma how many cookies will come out of this proportion ?

Elaine

Hi Gemma, can you please tell me what I did wrong, my cookies cracked while cooking. I don’t do much baking.
Thanks, Elaine

Charlotte

How do you make ground ginger at home?

Myra Chheda

Hi,
Can I use flax seeds instead of egg? If yes how much?
Can you plz make a video of this recipe.
Merry Christmas. Happy New Year.

Last edited 2 years ago by Myra Chheda

View Replies (3)

Tina Wright

Hi Gemma I love your channel I have a question can you use sorghum instead of molasses since I don’t have it on hand?

Dot

I have just made these and got a good number out of the mixture. However, despite leaving the dough in the fridge overnight, it was still really soft and sticky this morning. I had to add loads of flour to the dough as I took it from the bowl, and could only manage a small handful at a time as it just fell apart once I cut anything out and tried to lift it out. I followed the recipe precisely. I know that flour can differ and make the consistency different, but was surprised and how different this actually was.… Read more »