Delicious, soft in the middle, crispy edged, perfect gingerbread cookies. This Small Batch Gingerbread Friends recipe makes just the right amount!
No matter if it is decorating a gingerbread house or making gingerbread cookies, gingerbread is a fun family activity and holiday tradition that many families share. Unfortunately, a lot of gingerbread cookie recipes make way too many cookies!
This recipe for Small Batch Gingerbread Friends makes just twelve 4 inch cookies or twenty 3 inch cookies, the perfect amount for a fun day with family decorating (and eating) delicious gingerbread cookies.
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What You’ll Need to make Small Batch Gingerbread Friends
- white sugar
- butter softened
- molasses
- milk
- large egg
- all purpose flour
- baking soda
- salt
- ground ginger
- ground cinnamon
- ground cloves
How to Make Small Batch Gingerbread Friends
I love gingerbread cookies and am happy to make as many as necessary to share with friends and neighbors throughout the holiday season but sometimes, we only want a few!
This small batch recipe, based on a delicious recipe that my Mother-in-Law has been using since my husband was a kid, makes just enough cookies to decorate and enjoy.
The cookies are delicious and the dough is easy to work with, even if you have never made gingerbread before. Start your own holiday tradition!
In the bowl of a stand mixer combine sugar, butter, molasses, milk and egg.
Mix on medium speed until the wet ingredients are well blended.
In a separate medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Mix together with a whisk or a fork until combined.
Switch to a paddle attachment on the stand mixer and on low speed slowly add the dry mixture to the wet mixture.
Scrape the sides of the bowl a couple of times as necessary until the dough comes together.
Remove the dough from the bowl and form into a disk shape. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap.
Put into the refrigerator and chill for a minimum of three hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the dough from the refrigerator onto a generously floured surface.
Roll out the dough using a floured rolling pin and your hands until it is 1/4 inch thickness.
Using cookie cutters in whatever shape you like, cut out the cookies.
Re-roll the scraps of dough to make additional cookies. Repeat until the dough is all used up. Place onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone baking pads, spaced about an inch apart.
Bake 8-11 minutes until lightly browned on the edges. Cooking time depends on the size of your cookies!
Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to wire racks to finish cooling. Once the cookies have cooled completely, decorate however you like!
These cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. Enjoy!
Other Delicious & Easy Holiday Treat Recipes
– These festive holiday treats are so easy and brighten up any table or holiday tray!
Christmas Pretzel Candy – Pretzel and toffee covered in a thin layer of chocolate. Sweet and salty deliciousness!
Rolo Turtles – salty pretzel, sweet caramel, and buttery pecan in one delicious bite!
Brown Sugar Candy – this is a childhood favorite made only during the holidays. Chocolate covered or not, it’s a special treat!
Devil’s Food Andes Mint Cookies – fun, festive and a great holiday cookie for celebrations and sharing!
Small Batch Gingerbread Friends
Delicious, soft in the middle, crispy edged, perfect gingerbread cookies. This Small Batch Gingerbread Friends recipe makes just the right amount!
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 3 hours hours 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 3 hours hours 20 minutes minutes
Servings: 12 4″ Cookies
Calories: 225kcal
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 3/4 cups white sugar
- 1/2 cup butter softened (1 stick)
- 1 1/2 tbsp molasses
- 1 tbsp milk
- 1 egg
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground cloves
Instructions
In the bowl of a stand mixer combine sugar, butter, molasses, milk and egg. Mix on medium speed until the wet ingredients are well blended.
In a separate medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Mix together with a whisk or a fork until combined.
Switch to a paddle attachment on the stand mixer and on low speed slowly add the dry mixture to the wet mixture. Scrape the sides of the bowl a couple of times as necessary until the dough comes together.
Remove the dough from the bowl and form into a disk shape. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for a minimum of three hours.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator onto a generously floured surface. Roll out the dough using a floured rolling pin and your hands until it is 1/4 inch thickness.
Using cookie cutters in whatever shape you like, cut out the cookies. Re-roll the scraps of dough to make additional cookies. Repeat until the dough is all used up.
Place onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone baking pads, spaced about an inch apart.
Bake 8-11 minutes until lightly browned on the edges. Cooking time depends on the size of your cookies!
Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before moving to wire racks to finish cooling.
Once cookies have cooled completely, decorate however you like!
These cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. Enjoy!
Nutrition *
Calories: 225kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 34mg | Sodium: 208mg | Potassium: 77mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 15g | Vitamin A: 259IU | Vitamin C: 0.01mg | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 1mg
* The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.
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Michelle Mundy As a busy working mom with kids on the go, I know how important it is to be able to make simple and delicious meals using everyday ingredients. The recipes shared here are family friendly with easy to understand step by step instructions. Tried and true, from our family to yours. Welcome to The Recipe Bandit! Click here to read more about me.
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