Gingerbread Cookies
Bring the warmth and smell of Christmas to your kitchen with these thin and crispy vegan gingerbread cookies.
From the book
The Little Book of Vegan Bakes
Discover 80 plant-based recipes for the beginner to the experienced baker
From cakes to cookies, there is no compromising on taste or texture
Learn to expand your skill-set with step-by-step guides to creating crunchy honeycomb, or luscious chocolate ganache
Introduction
You can’t beat the smell of warm gingerbread wafting through the house as a fresh batch of cookies bakes in the oven. A tin of these makes a great gift for friends and family. Have some fun experimenting with different-shaped cookie cutters – snowflakes, reindeer, Christmas trees – the possibilities are endless. You can enjoy these plain or decorate them with vegan royal icing.
Ingredients
| For the cookies: | |
|---|---|
| 80g (⅓ cup) | dairy-free butter/margarine |
| 4 tbsp | dark brown sugar |
| 1 | 'flax' egg |
| 3 tbsp | black treacle |
| 1 tsp | vanilla extract |
| 260g (2cups plus 1 tbsp) | plain flour, plus extra for dusting |
| 1 tsp | baking powder |
| 2 tsp | ground ginger |
| ½ tsp | ground cinnamon |
| ½ tsp | ground nutmeg |
Essential kit
You will need: an electric hand whisk or stand mixer and cookie cutters.
Method
Place the butter or margarine and dark brown sugar in a large mixing bowl and combine – you can use a wooden spoon, an electric hand whisk or a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Mix until creamy.
Add the flax ‘egg’, black treacle and vanilla extract, and combine. Add the flour, baking powder and spices, and mix until a soft dough forms (you may need to bring it together with your hands).
Wrap the dough in greaseproof paper and let it chill in the fridge for 2 hours before rolling out.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/200°C/400°F/gas mark 6 and line 2 baking trays with greaseproof paper. Sprinkle flour over a clean worktop. Roll out the chilled dough to a thickness of 5mm (¼in) and cut out the cookies using a medium-sized gingerbread man cutter. You can roll out the dough between 2 sheets of greaseproof paper if you prefer, to prevent any sticking.
Place the cookies on the lined baking trays and bake in the middle of the oven for 10–15 minutes. You may need to bake each tray separately if there isn’t enough room on one shelf for both trays.
Once baked, use a spatula to lift up the biscuits and place them on a cooling rack. Leave to cool fully before decorating.
The royal icing can be made before making the cookies or after.
Store at room temperature in a sealed container or cookie jar with a sealed lid – gingerbread cookies can last for months if stored correctly.
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