These frosted gingerbread cookies with cream cheese frosting might be the cutest cookies ever? Think soft and chewy molasses cookies, topped with fluffy cream cheese frosting! Crumbl, eat your heart out!
Save This Recipe! 💌
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
These gingerbread frosted cookies are basically my dream Christmas cookie. Super soft? ✅ Filled with warm spices? ✅ Topped with frosting? ✅ ✅ ✅
These soft gingerbread cookies use my molasses crinkle cookies base, and then I've topped them with my go-to cream cheese frosting that you can also find on my gingerbread frosted cake.
Want even more holiday cookies? Try my chocolate dipped butter cookies, Christmas sprinkle sugar cookies, or peanut butter snickerdoodles!
Why you'll love this recipe!
- Christmas Flavors: you get all the Christmas vibes with these cookies thanks to a combination of brown sugar, molasses, and warm spices like cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves!
- Easy to Make: you will need a mixer to make the cookies and the frosting (or a super strong arm), but I promise this is a really simple Christmas cookie for the holiday season!
- Make Ahead: you can make the cookies a day ahead of time, then frost them just before you want to serve them! You can also make the cookie dough the night before, then bake in the morning.
Grab your ingredients
- Brown Sugar: it wouldn't be chewy gingerbread cookies without brown sugar! I'm using light brown sugar but you can also use dark brown sugar if that's all you have. The brown sugar makes these cookies chewy and caramelized.
- Unsalted Butter: I always use unsalted butter in my baking, that way I can control the amount of salt in the recipe.
- Molasses: you want to use unsulphured molasses and not blackstrap. Blackstrap molasses would be too bitter.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: ok, now I know this seems weird, but trust me on this. I saw Claire Saffitz use apple cider vinegar in her crinkle cookies. The acidity from the vinegar will make the cookies even softer and chewier!
- Pure Vanilla Extract: adding a dash of vanilla is going to give these cookies even more flavor.
- Kosher Salt: I always use kosher salt in my baking, but please note I use Diamond Crystal kosher salt and not Morton kosher salt - these are two types of kosher salts and Morton is much saltier!
- Cream Cheese: you'll need some full-fat cream cheese for the frosting. Please don't use a light cream cheese, you need the fat from regular cream cheese for flavor and it will also help keep the shape of the frosting.
- Spices: we're gonna be using ALL the warm spices for this! That means ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. If you want even more *spice*, then add a tiny pinch of black pepper.
- Granulated Sugar: the granulated sugar is for rolling the cookie dough balls to get sparkly cookies! Because the cookies are mainly covered in frosting, you can skip this step if you like.
Substitutions & Additions
- Treacle: live in the UK? Swap out the molasses for black treacle! I've tested these cookies with both and they both work.
- Apple Cider Vinegar: don't have any vinegar on hand? Just leave it out, the cookies will still be delish!
- Decorations: I got these cute little gingerbread houses from Target, but you could also just use sprinkles or find edible sugar decorations at the grocery store!
- Different Toppings: don't want to use cream cheese frosting? Swap it out for my simple vanilla icing from my no spread sugar cookies, white chocolate frosting from my cranberry lemon bread, or the buttercream frosting from my buttercream sugar cookies.
How to make this recipe
- Step 1: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl with a handheld mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar together until light and fluffy on medium-high speed.
- Step 2: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, and all of the spices. Set aside.
- Step 3: Add the molasses, egg, vanilla extract, and apple cider vinegar. Beat on medium speed, then scrape down the sides and the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula so all of the batter is getting evenly mixed.
- Step 4: Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat until just combined - you don't want to overmix it. Place the bowl, cover the top in plastic wrap, in the fridge for at least 1 hour to chill. You can leave it overnight if you wish.
- Step 5: Preheat the oven to 375°Fahrenheit and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out 1.5 tablespoons of gingerbread cookie dough (I use a medium cookie scoop for this) and roll into balls in your palms. Then roll the dough ball in granulated sugar.
- Step 6: Place the cookie dough balls on the baking sheet. Bake one sheet at a time for 10-12 minutes, you want the edges to have set. Let the cookies cool on the sheet for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Step 5: Time to make the frosting! Beat the butter and powdered sugar together in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Then add the cold cream cheese, salt, vanilla, and if you like a pinch of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves! Beat until light and fluffy.
- Step 6: Frost your cookies and enjoy! I used a large round piping tip in a piping bag to pipe frosting on each of the cooled cookies, then added sprinkles and edible decorations.
My Top Baking Tips
- Cold Cream Cheese: My secret to having cream cheese frosting that isn't runny? Cold cream cheese! It will help the frosting keep its shape.
- Chilling Dough: Look, I know that chilling the dough is annoying. I get it! But if you don't chill these cookies before baking, they're more likely to spread out in the oven giving you sad, flat cookies.
- Measuring Flour: I am once again here to tell you - buy a kitchen scale! It will make your life so much easier and there will be fewer dishes to clean up. It's so easy to add too much flour if you're using measuring cups, and then your cookies will be dry.
- Scoot Cookies: if your baked cookies come out and aren't perfectly round, use a large biscuit cutter or mug to gently scoot the cookies into a perfectly round shape.
- Spreading: these cookies do spread a lot in the oven, so make sure you leave enough space on the baking tray.
Serving Suggestions
- These must be served next to the Christmas tree with a glass of milk for Santa (or yourself!)
Storage & Freezing
Keep these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days. If keeping in the fridge, let the cookies come to room temperature before serving.
To freeze the unfrosted cookies, place in an airtight container or ziplock bag in the freezer for up to 2 months. Let thaw before frosting.
Make these Christmas recipes next!
Made This Recipe?
Make sure to leave a ⭐️ rating and review below! You can tag me on Instagram @alpineella or follow along on Pinterest, Facebook and TikTok!
Thank you!
Ella
Recipe
Soft Frosted Gingerbread Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
Get into the Christmas spirit with frosted gingerbread cookies! Soft and chewy molasses cookies topped with cream cheese frosting.
Equipment
- Stand Mixer
- Hand Mixer
- Bowls
- Kitchen Scale
- Cookie Sheets
- Measuring Spoons
- Rubber Spatula
- Piping Bag
- Large Round Piping Tip
- Medium Cookie Scoop
Ingredients
Gingerbread Cookies
- 2 ¼ cups (270 grams) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 ½ sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter room temperature
- 1 cup (204 grams) light brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg room temperature
- ¼ cup (84 grams) unsulphured molasses or treacle
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ cup (100 grams) white sugar for rolling
Cream Cheese Frosting
- 3 oz (85 grams) full fat cream cheese Cold
- ¼ cup (56.75 grams) unsalted butter Room Temperature
- 2 ½ cups (300 grams) confectioners' sugar
- pinch kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Ella's Baking Tip!Weigh your ingredients with a kitchen scale for the best results!
Instructions
Cookies
- In a large bowl, whisk together all of the dry ingredients - the flour, baking soda, spices and salt. Set aside.2 ¼ cups (270 grams) all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking soda, 2 teaspoons ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, ½ teaspoon ground cloves, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream the butter and light brown sugar together until light and fluffy. This will take 1-2 minutes.1 ½ sticks (170 grams) unsalted butter, 1 cup (204 grams) light brown sugar
- Add the molasses, egg, vanilla extract and apple cider vinegar. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Make sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl so all of the batter is combined!2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1 large egg, ¼ cup (84 grams) unsulphured molasses, 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on your lowest speed. As soon as there are no more streaks of flour, stop the mixer.
- Place the cookie dough in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour. If you want to leave it any longer (you can leave it overnight!) I recommend covering the top of the bowl with plastic wrap.
- Preheat the oven to 375°Fahrenheit/190°Celsius and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Take the cookie dough out of the fridge, it should be quite firm. Scoop out the dough in 1 ½ tablespoon balls. Roll the cookie dough between your palms to form them into perfect cookie dough balls. Roll the cookie dough in the white sugar until completely covered. Repeat with all of the dough.½ cup (100 grams) white sugar
- Place the cookie dough balls on the prepared cookie sheets, making sure they are 3 inches apart. These cookies do spread quite a lot so they need space!
- Bake the cookies one sheet at a time for 10-12 minutes. Keep the remaining unbaked cookie dough balls in the fridge so they don't become too warm. The cookies are done when they have cracked on top and the edges are set. The dough in the cracks might look slightly underdone which is what you want, that way you have a soft and chewy cookie!
- If the cookies aren't as cracked as you would like, bang the cookie sheet on your counter or stove once or twice, this will create more cracks. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 15 minutes before moving to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Frosting
- In a large bowl with a handheld electric mixer, or in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy.¼ cup (56.75 grams) unsalted butter, 2 ½ cups (300 grams) confectioners' sugar
- Add the cold cream cheese, salt, and vanilla extract and mix until just combined.3 oz (85 grams) full fat cream cheese, pinch kosher salt, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Frost your cooled cookies and enjoy! I used a large round piping tip in a piping bag, then added sprinkles.
Save This Recipe! 💌
I'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Notes
My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way.
Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipe. 1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt. Please note, I am using Diamond Crystal kosher salt and not coarse salt.
Molasses: Make sure you are using unsulphured dark molasses. You can also use treacle if you don't have molasses.
Storage: keep the baked cookies in a tupperware for up to2 days at room temperature, or in the fridge for up to 5 days. Freeze unfrosted cookies in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 2 months. Let thaw in the fridge overnight before frosting.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below! You can also tag me on Instagram @alpineella so I can see what you made!
Luz says
Hi. Love your cookies. Was wondering where you found the little gingerbread houses to decorate your cookies with?
Ella says
Hi! I got them from Target, I think it was the Favorite Day brand!
Luz Schemel says
Thank you so very much !!