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Active Time
1 hr (not including decorating)
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Total Time
1 day (includes chilling dough)
Ingredients
Makes 40 to 80 cookies (Depending on size)
For cookies:
For royal icing:
Make cookies:
Step 1
Pulse shortening, brown sugar, and molasses in a food processor until smooth. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking soda, spices, and salt. Add to processor and blend just until combined.
Step 2
Turn out dough onto a floured surface and knead briefly, allowing dough to absorb a little more flour if sticky. Divide dough in half and form each half into a 3-inch square. Wrap each in plastic wrap and chill at least 1 day.
Step 3
Preheat oven to 325°F with rack in middle. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
Step 4
Roll out 1 piece of dough on a floured pastry cloth using floured sleeve-covered rolling pin until very thin (less than 1/16 inch thick), about a 15-inch square. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters and, using offset spatula to transfer, arrange about 1/2 inch apart on baking sheets.
Step 5
Bake cookies, 1 sheet at a time, 10 minutes. Let stand 1 minute on sheet, then loosen with spatula and transfer on parchment to a rack to crisp, about 10 minutes. If first batch isn't crisp, bake 1 minute more (on baking sheet), then bake remaining batches 10 to 11 minutes. Cool cookies completely on rack.
Step 6
Repeat with remaining dough (cool baking sheets and line with fresh parchment). Reroll scraps once for extra cookies if desired.
Make icing:
Step 7
Beat together icing ingredients in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until just combined, about 1 minute. Increase speed to high and beat until icing holds soft peaks, about 3 minutes more. If desired, divide icing and add food coloring.
Step 8
Fill pastry bags with icing and pipe decoratively on cookies, then let set, about 1 hour.
•Dough can be chilled up to 2 weeks.
•Cookies (without icing) keep in an airtight container at room temperature 1 month.
•Icing can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, its surface covered with a damp paper towel and bowl covered with plastic wrap. Beat with mixer 1 to 2 minutes before using.
Leave a Review
Reviews (3)
Back to TopIf the icing directions were better, I would give it 4 forks... Follow the recipe on the powdered egg whites (beat water and powdered egg whites to peak, then add sugar, vanilla and lemon juice, then add more sifted powdered sugar-1/2 to 3/4 c, depending on how thick you like your frosting). The cookies are delicious. Goodbye gingerbread. And they look so festive once the icing dries (plan a 3 day process: one day to chill, on day to bake and cool, one day to frost and set). I am making my the recipe again now for a party because the little cookie shapes and bright frosting are so very festive!
Anonymous
San Francisco, CA
12/20/2011
These cookies were a hit and nicely spiced (not too molasses-y). I thought that 1/16'' thick cookies would be too thin to move from my silpat pastry sheet to baking sheet, so I made them 1/8'' thick. I didn't bother with a covered rolling pin- the silpat and judicious use of flour was enough to prevent sticking. The dough rolled out well. I used my own royal icing recipe for decorating.
AndyBlue
Brooklyn, NY
12/28/2008
Tasty, spicy, crispy cookies -- pretty much as advertised! I used a floured flour sack towel as my base for rolling out the dough (as suggested by the recipe) and I'm very glad I did -- the dough hardly stuck at all. Instead of buying a special sleeve for my rolling pin, I covered it in waxed paper and that worked just fine (dough didn't stick to it either).
sdostal
Silicon Valley
12/19/2008
