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This right here is the easiest gingerbread biscuits recipe in the world! With a perfect balance of spices, these delicious gingerbread cookies provide a warming comfort on a cold Winter’s day.
Whether you prefer thin and crunchy gingerbread biscuits or soft gingerbread biscuits, this recipe has got you covered!
The difference is as simple as rolling your dough out thinner/thicker and knowing the cooking times. Easy peasy! It’s even great for beginner bakers.
As for decorating, you really can use your imagination with these beautiful cookies! I like to use either royal icing or white chocolate as the added sweetness balances out the heat from the ginger perfectly.
They also look incredibly cute on top of gingerbread cupcakes, and go perfectly with a gingerbread latte!
Gingerbread biscuits are also a wonderful Christmas bake to get the kids involved in. Even if you make the dough beforehand, they will love cutting out shapes and decorating them!
And if they’re a bit too spicy for the little ones, chocolate gingerbread cookies are sure to go down a treat instead!
How to make gingerbread biscuits – recipe summary
- Melt together the muscovado sugar, golden syrup and butter.
- Whisk together the ginger, cinnamon and flour.
- Dissolve bicarbonate of soda in water.
- Mix the melted sugar mixture, bicarbonate of soda and an egg into the flour.
- Bring to a dough then chill for 1 hour.
- Roll out and press shapes using cutters.
- Bake then cool completely.
- Decorate with royal icing or white chocolate.
Ingredients
Here’s everything you need to know about the ingredients needed to make gingerbread biscuits.
- Sugar – Dark muscovado sugar is my go to in gingerbread. It adds a richness and chewiness that you just can’t get with other sugars! Stick to this one if you can or, at the very least, use a brown sugar rather than white.
- Golden Syrup – Golden syrup is unique to the UK and has a very distinct flavour. You can use light corn syrup in the US but it won’t taste the same.
- Butter – I always use unsalted butter in baking as it gives you complete control over the salt content. You can use salted but just know that it will affect the flavour.
- Ginger – Ground ginger is best in gingerbread biscuits, I wouldn’t use fresh as it will mess with the balance of ingredients.
- Cinnamon – This helps to round out the flavour of the ginger and create an overall more Winter warming Christmas flavour. I also use ground.
- Flour – Plain flour (or all purpose in the US) only here! Don’t use self raising as we don’t want that much of a rise in these biscuits.
- Bicarbonate of Soda – Helps to add that perfect little lift, but not too much.
- Egg – Free range organic are my favourite (for hopefully obvious reasons) but any medium sized egg will work fine.
- Royal Icing or White Chocolate – You can decorate these however you like. I used royal icing this time but have use white chocolate in the past and both work brilliantly.
Recipe tips
Here are some helpful tips so you can get these gingerbread biscuits right first time!
- Read the recipe all the way through before you start. This will help you avoid any unnecessary mistakes!
- Prepare/weigh out your ingredients before you begin. (This honestly makes life SO much easier!)
- Don’t substitute the dark muscovado sugar for another type, it’s so important to the overall ‘gingerbread’ flavour.
- Like crunchy gingerbread? Roll the dough to 3mm thick and bake 9cm shapes for approximately 6-8 minutes.
- Prefer soft gingerbread? Roll the dough to 6mm thick and bake 9cm shapes for approximately 7-9 minutes.
- If you want to decorate neatly, allow enough time for it. (It’s more time consuming than you think!)
- Make smaller gingerbread biscuits and use as decorations on other bakes. Think cheesecakes, Christmas rocky road or even gingerbread cupcakes!
Gingerbread Biscuits – Step by Step Picture Recipe
(For a printer friendly version, see the recipe card at the end of this post)
* Please note the chilling times in the recipe before you begin! *
Ingredients
Here is what you will need to make 30-40 crunchy gingerbread biscuits or 15-20 soft gingerbread biscuits.
- 180g (3/4 Cup + 2 tbsp) Dark Muscovado Sugar
- 90g (1/4 Cup) Golden Syrup *
- 100g (1/2 Cup) Unsalted Butter
- 3 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 360g (2 + 3/4 Cup) Plain Flour #
- 1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
- 1 Egg
*Light corn syrup in the US
#All purpose flour in the US
Essential equipment
- Small Saucepan
- Wooden Spoon
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Small Pot/Glass
- Rolling Pin
- Christmas Cutters (approximately 9cm)
- Baking Tray
- Cooling Rack
Instructions
Firstly, place the dark muscovado sugar (180g | 3/4 Cup + 2 tbsp), golden syrup (90g | 1/4 Cup) and unsalted butter (100g | 1/2 Cup) into a small saucepan and set over a low/medium heat.
Stir often with a wooden spoon until the mixture is completely melted, then set to one side.
Next, place the ground ginger (3 tsp), ground cinnamon (1 tsp) and plain flour (360g | 2 + 3/4 Cup) into a large bowl and mix together.
Then dissolve the bicarbonate of soda (1 tsp) in 1 tsp of water in a small pot or glass.
Time to mix things together! Make a well in the centre of the flour in the large mixing bowl then pour in the melted sugar/butter mixture, the bicarbonate of soda and the egg (x 1).
Beat together well until it comes together to form a rough, sticky dough.
Now cover your gingerbread and place into the fridge for 1 hour to firm up. It should become rollable.
About 45 minutes in – preheat your oven to 180ºC/Fan 170ºC/356ºF.
Once the dough is chilled, roll out half of it on a lightly floured work surface. (This is just to make it easier to manage.)
If you’re making thin/crunchy gingerbread biscuits – roll your dough out to 3mm thick.
If you’re making thicker, soft gingerbread biscuits – roll your dough out to 6mm thick.
I’ve had this AMAZING Joseph Joseph rolling pin (affiliate link) for years and it’s great for when you want to roll out to exact measurements!
Then use your chosen Christmas cutters to press out shapes in the dough. The baking times in this recipe are based on your biscuits being approximately 9cm tall so bear this in mind.
Lay your gingerbread biscuits out on a large baking tray. They won’t spread much so there’s no need to space them really far apart.
It’s also worth noting that they do tend to stick to the tray so it’s best if you line with a sheet of baking paper or a silicon baking mat. (Yes, I learnt my lesson with the biscuits in the image below hahaha!)
For thin/crunchy biscuits – bake for approximately 6-8 minutes. For thicker, soft biscuits – bake for approximately 7-9 minutes. They should be darker in colour and will harden up on cooling.
After a minute or two on the tray, you should be able to transfer your gingerbread biscuits to a wire rack to cool completely.
Repeat the process until all the dough is used up.
Then you can decorate using either royal icing or melted white chocolate. Whatever you choose, allow them to set completely at room temperature.
How to store gingerbread biscuits
Gingerbread biscuits are best stored in a metal container at room temperature and eaten within 5-7 days. If you store them in plastic containers, the sugar tends to sweat and this can quickly alter the texture of your biscuits. Metal is best!
Is gingerbread the same as biscuits?
Gingerbread typically refers to a broad variety of baked goods that contain ginger. It could be anything from a ginger loaf cake to gingerbread biscuits.
So, in a way, yes – gingerbread is the same as biscuits!
Why are my gingerbread biscuits soft?
This could happen for a number of reasons. You may have rolled your biscuits too thick or not baked them for long enough. If you haven’t stored them correctly (see how to store gingerbread biscuits above) this could also make them go soft. Being left out uncovered for long periods of time will also soften your gingerbread biscuits.
How long do gingerbread biscuits last?
It can vary but usually gingerbread biscuits will last for up to 1 week when stored properly. (In a metal tin at room temperature.)
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Have you made this recipe?
Have you made these gorgeous gingerbread biscuits? I’d love to know if you have! Send me your pics, comments and questions on Facebook, Twitter and Instagramor email me at emma@kitchenmason.com.
Easy Gingerbread Biscuits - Printable Recipe
Yield: 40
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Chill Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 1 hour 28 minutes
This right here is the easiest gingerbread biscuits recipe in the world! With a perfect balance of spices, these delicious gingerbread cookies provide a warming comfort on a cold Winter’s day.
Ingredients
- 180g (3/4 Cup + 2 tbsp) Dark Muscovado Sugar
- 90g (1/4 Cup) Golden Syrup *
- 100g (1/2 Cup) Unsalted Butter
- 3 tsp Ground Ginger
- 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
- 360g (2 + 3/4 Cup) Plain Flour #
- 1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
- 1 Egg
Essential Equipment
- Small Saucepan
- Wooden Spoon
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Small Pot/Glass
- Rolling Pin
- Christmas Cutters (approximately 9cm)
- Baking Tray
- Cooling Rack
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, melt together the sugar, golden syrup and butter over a low/medium heat. Set aside.
- Mix together the ginger, cinnamon and flour in a large mixing bowl. Set aside.
- Dissolve the bicarbonate of soda in 1 tsp of water in a small pot/glass.
- Make a well in the middle of the flour and add the melted sugar/butter mixture, the bicarbonate of soda and the egg. Beat until it comes together to form a sticky scrappy dough.
- Cover and chill for 1 hour to firm up. Then preheat your oven to 180ºC/Fan 170ºC/356ºF.
- Roll half the dough out on a lightly floured surface. Roll to 3mm for thin/crunchy biscuits and 6mm for thicker soft biscuits.
- Cut out shapes using 9cm Christmas cutters.
- Space your biscuits out on a lined baking tray. They won't spread much so no need to leave lots of space. Bake for 6-8 minutes for thin/crunchy biscuits and 7-9 minutes for thicker soft biscuits.
- Allow to sit on the tray for 1-2 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Decorate with royal icing or melted white chocolate then allow to set completely at room temperature before storing in a metal tin at room temperature. Consume within 5-7 days.
Notes
*Light corn syrup in the US
#All purpose flour in the US
This recipe makes approximately 30-40 thin/crunchy gingerbread biscuits OR 15-20 thicker soft gingerbread biscuits.
See the main post for a more detailed, step by step picture recipe.
Be sure to read the recipe tips section for lots of helpful information before you begin making this recipe.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 40Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 77Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 10mgSodium: 4mgCarbohydrates: 13gFiber: 0gSugar: 5gProtein: 1g
Nutritional information on kitchenmason.com should only be used as a general guideline, I am not a certified nutritionist. Please always check labels for allergens where applicable.
