Nothing Says Christmas Like Gingerbread Men

If there is one scent that says “Christmas,” it is gingerbread cookies baking in the oven. As the holidays draw closer, be sure to make the traditional holiday cookie recipe. This cookie dough recipe, while easy to prepare requires lengthy refrigeration time. Make sure that you allow enough time for chilling prior to the actually cutting and preparing of the dough.

The traditional gingerbread cookie recipe includes:

1-cup butter

1-cup sugar

½ cup dark corn syrup

1-teaspoon cinnamon

1-teaspoon nutmeg

1-teaspoon cloves

1-teaspoon ginger

2 eggs well beaten

1-teaspoon vinegar

5 cups flour

1-teaspoon baking soda

In a small saucepan, begin by creaming the butter with the sugar. Add the corn syrup and spices and blend well; heat all of the ingredients on the stovetop, stirring constantly until boiling. Once the mixture has boiled, remove from heat and let cool.

While the heated mixture is cooling, sift the flour and baking soda into a large bowl. Sifting large amounts of flour can take considerable time; so allowing the mixture to cool while you sift the flour is a great way to multi-task during your baking process.

When the mixture has reached room temperature, add the well-beaten eggs and vinegar to the mixture. Once these ingredients are well blended, begin to add the flour/baking soda combination to the liquid mixture, forming a smooth dough.

This dough must be chilled for several hours or overnight.

When you are ready to begin cutting the cookies, roll onto a lightly floured surface and cut into shapes. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Make sure that the cookies are completely cooled before you begin to decorate.