These soft and chewy Gingerbread Cut Out Cookies are an incredibly delicious way to enjoy the holiday season! Each cookie gives you that classic gingerbread flavor with a simple vanilla bean glaze brushed over the top.
In a large bowl, using either your hand mixer or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the vegetable shortening and unsalted butter on medium-high speed until well blended.
½ cup Vegetable Shortening, ¼ cup Unsalted Butter
Add in the granulated sugar, ground ginger, baking powder, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, and salt. Then beat in the egg, full-flavored molasses, and apple cider vinegar.
½ cup Granulated Sugar, 1 teaspoon Ground Ginger, 1 teaspoon Baking Powder, ½ teaspoon Baking Soda, ½ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon, ½ teaspoon Ground Cloves, ¼ teaspoon Salt, 1 large Egg, ½ cup Full Flavored Molasses, 1 tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar
Add in the all-purpose flour, then mix together on low speed until the cookie dough has come together.
3 cups All-Purpose Flour
Divide the cookie dough into two sections, then roll each one out to ¼" thick between two sheets of lightly floured wax or parchment paper. Transfer each slab of cookie dough (keep the wax paper on top) to a baking sheet (you can stack them on top of one another), then chill in either the refrigerator or the freezer for a minimum of 1 hour. The colder the dough is, the easier it will be to use cookie cutters.
Adjust the oven to the 2nd level position (just above the center) and preheat your oven to 375ºF.
Dip your cookie cutters in a little bit of flour, then cut out your cookies placing them 1"-2" apart on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Reroll any leftover scraps of cookie dough.
Bake them for 6-8 minutes at 375ºF. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring them to a wire cooling rack to finish cooling. If the cookies are puffed up when brought out of the oven, gently pat them down with a flat spatula.
Vanilla Bean Glaze
In a small bowl, whisk together the sifted powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla bean paste until blended. The mixture should be thick but not so thick you can brush it easily onto the cookies.
1 cup Sifted Powdered Sugar, 2 tablespoon Milk (any dairy), ½ teaspoon Vanilla Bean Paste
Using a silicone brush, brush the vanilla bean glaze on top of each gingerbread cookie. Let them dry completely before storing them in a food container.
Notes
For chilling the cookie dough. You can also cover and chill the cookie dough immediately after it's made in the refrigerator for a minimum of 1 hour, then roll it out if you wish.For adding the glaze. Alternatively, you can dip the cookies into the glaze. Place them on a wire rack with a baking sheet or a paper towel underneath to catch any excess vanilla bean glaze. Let them dry completely before storing them in a food container. The number of cookies this recipe yields will depend on your cookie cutter.Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens.