Gingerbread House Cookie Recipe - No Spread, Holds Up, Delicious!

Gingerbread House Cookie Recipe

Yield: Makes two 6 x 6 inch houses from our Gingerbread House Kit OR 2 dozen 2" cookies.

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened (You can substitute with 1 cup vegetable shortening)
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses
2 large eggs
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons ground ginger
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground clove
4 ½ - 5 cups all-purpose flour (Adjust flour if the dough is sticky)

1. Preheat oven to 375º F, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat® mats.
2. Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together butter (or shortening) and sugar until smooth. Add molasses, and mix until combined.
3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add cornstarch, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and clove. Mix on medium-low speed until combined.
4. With your mixer on low, add the flour, ½ cup at a time, until the dough forms a ball and pulls cleanly away from the sides of the bowl. If your dough is still too sticky, add up to an additional ½ cup of flour.
5. The dough will look dry when you first add your flour, but will come together after a few minutes of mixing.
6. Roll out the dough to a thickness of ¼ inch between two sheets of parchment paper. Place rolled out dough in the refrigerator to chill for at least two hours.
7. Remove one piece of chilled dough at a time from time from the refrigerator and cut shapes with the included gingerbread house cookie cutters.
8. Transfer shapes to the prepared baking sheets, and bake for 10 - 15 minutes, or until the cookies are set around the edges and just a little softer towards the centers.

Gingerbread House Baking Tips

Here are some tips on making these adorable gingerbread houses whether for yourself, gifts or for sale. 

• Gingerbread cookies are sturdier than sugar cookies, and better for construction.

• To decorate the house, you can use your our classic vanilla royal icing recipe, or add in a special flavor like butter or cream cheese.

• Using brown icing that matches the color of the cookie will help hide the “seams” in construction. 

• If you are using a Cookie Countess paint palette to paint your house, we found that one Rainbow palette was enough to paint one full house, or choose 2 of our other 4 color palates for even more options!