Gingerbread Snowflakes

Delicately spiced gingerbread cookies cut into beautiful snowflake shapes and decorated with icing. These festive cookies feature a perfect blend of molasses, warm spices, and brown sugar for a classic holiday treat.

24 servings

1 hr 17 min

Published October 4, 2025

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Ingredients

•⅔ cup molasses
•⅔ cup dark brown sugar
•1 tablespoon ground ginger
•1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
•½ teaspoon ground allspice
•½ teaspoon ground cloves
•2 teaspoons baking soda
•2 sticks unsalted butter
•1 large egg
•3¾ cups all-purpose flour
•½ teaspoon salt
•1 portion decorating icing
•1 piece metal offset spatula
•1 piece pastry bag
•1 set cookie cutters

Cooking Instructions

1.
Bring molasses, brown sugar, and spices to a boil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, and remove from heat. Stir in baking soda (mixture will foam up), then stir in butter 3 pieces at a time, letting each addition melt before adding next, until all butter is melted. Add egg and stir until combined, then stir in 3 3/4 cups flour and salt.
15 min
2.
Preheat oven to 325°F.
10 min
3.
Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead, dusting with as much of remaining 1/4 cup flour as needed to prevent sticking, until soft and easy to handle, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Halve dough, then wrap 1 half in plastic wrap and keep at room temperature.
5 min
4.
Roll out remaining dough into a 14-inch round (1/8 inch thick) on a lightly floured surface. Cut out as many cookies as possible with cutters and carefully transfer with offset spatula to 2 buttered large baking sheets, arranging them about 1 inch apart.
15 min
5.
Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are slightly darker, 10 to 12 minutes total (watch carefully toward end of baking; cookies can burn easily). Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. Make more cookies with remaining dough and scraps (reroll once).
12 min
6.
Put icing in pastry bag (if using) and pipe or spread decoratively onto cookies.
20 min

Ingredients

•⅔ cup molasses

•⅔ cup dark brown sugar

•1 tablespoon ground ginger

•1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

•½ teaspoon ground allspice

•½ teaspoon ground cloves

•2 teaspoons baking soda

•2 sticks unsalted butter

•1 large egg

•3¾ cups all-purpose flour

•½ teaspoon salt

•1 portion decorating icing

•1 piece metal offset spatula

•1 piece pastry bag

•1 set cookie cutters

Cooking Instructions

Bring molasses, brown sugar, and spices to a boil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, and remove from heat. Stir in baking soda (mixture will foam up), then stir in butter 3 pieces at a time, letting each addition melt before adding next, until all butter is melted. Add egg and stir until combined, then stir in 3 3/4 cups flour and salt.

15 min

Preheat oven to 325°F.

10 min

Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead, dusting with as much of remaining 1/4 cup flour as needed to prevent sticking, until soft and easy to handle, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Halve dough, then wrap 1 half in plastic wrap and keep at room temperature.

5 min

Roll out remaining dough into a 14-inch round (1/8 inch thick) on a lightly floured surface. Cut out as many cookies as possible with cutters and carefully transfer with offset spatula to 2 buttered large baking sheets, arranging them about 1 inch apart.

15 min

Bake cookies in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until edges are slightly darker, 10 to 12 minutes total (watch carefully toward end of baking; cookies can burn easily). Transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. Make more cookies with remaining dough and scraps (reroll once).

12 min

Put icing in pastry bag (if using) and pipe or spread decoratively onto cookies.

20 min