Gingerbread Men
This Gingerbread Men recipe makes warmly spiced biscuits with crisp edges and slightly softer middles. Golden syrup gives the dough its familiar caramel flavour, while ground ginger and cinnamon keep the spice gentle enough for a family biscuit tin. Decorate them with simple white icing, or leave a few plain for anyone who prefers them that way.
For a hot South African Christmas, bake these in the cooler morning hours and decorate once the kitchen has cooled down. The dough needs a proper chill, especially in summer, but it rolls neatly between sheets of baking paper. They are easy to make ahead, pack into little gifts or put out alongside cold drinks after Christmas lunch.
Ingredients
For the biscuits
For the icing
Instructions
Make and chill the dough
- 1Whisk the cake flour, ginger, cinnamon, bicarbonate of soda and salt together in a bowl.
- 2In a separate large bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar until smooth and creamy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the golden syrup and egg, scraping down the sides of the bowl.
- 3Add the dry ingredients and mix just until a soft dough forms. Divide into two portions, flatten into discs and wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or until firm enough to roll.
Roll and bake
- 1Heat the oven to 180 °C, or 160 °C fan. Line two large baking trays with baking paper. Keep one dough disc in the fridge while you work with the other.
- 2Roll the dough between two sheets of baking paper to 5 mm thick. Peel off the top sheet and cut out shapes with a roughly 10 cm gingerbread-man cutter, lightly dipped in flour. Transfer to a prepared tray, leaving 2 cm between biscuits. Gather and re-roll scraps gently; repeat with the remaining dough.
- 3Chill the cut shapes on their trays for 15 minutes before baking. If the dough becomes sticky while cutting, slide it onto a tray and refrigerate for 10–15 minutes rather than adding lots of flour.
- 4Bake one tray at a time for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned and the surfaces look dry. The middles will still feel a little soft. Leave on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer carefully to a wire rack to cool completely. Keep the second tray chilled while the first bakes.
Decorate
- 1Mix the icing sugar with 20 ml water, then add the remaining water a few drops at a time if needed. Aim for thick icing that pipes easily without spreading. Spoon into a small piping bag and snip a tiny opening.
- 2Pipe faces, buttons and simple outlines onto the cold biscuits. Leave flat until the icing is completely dry, usually 1–2 hours, or longer in humid weather, before packing into an airtight container.
Nutrition (per serving)
- Calories
- 151 kcal
- Carbohydrates
- 26.2 g
- Protein
- 1.7 g
- Fat
- 4.6 g
- Saturated fat
- 2.8 g
- Sugar
- 15.1 g
- Fibre
- 0.5 g
- Sodium
- 54 mg
- Cholesterol
- 19 mg
Estimated values based on the ingredients used.
Notes
Christmas tips
- Bake in the cooler morning hours so the oven is off before the hottest part of Christmas Day. Keep unused dough refrigerated.
- For gift bags, let the icing dry fully first. Pack carefully with baking paper between layers to protect the decorations.
- Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry cupboard for up to 1 week. Humid summer weather can soften the biscuits, so avoid leaving the tin open.
- Freeze the wrapped, unbaked dough inside a freezer bag for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge before rolling.
Frequently asked questions
Are these gingerbread men soft or crisp?
At 5 mm thick, they have crisp edges and slightly softer centres once cooled. Bake towards the shorter end of the time range for softer biscuits, or a minute or two longer for a crisper finish, watching the edges closely.
Why is my dough too sticky to cut?
Warm butter makes this dough soft, especially in a summer kitchen. Chill the rolled dough for 10–15 minutes and try again. Too much extra flour can make the biscuits dry and tough.
How many biscuits does this recipe make, and how long does it take?
Expect about 24 biscuits using a roughly 10 cm cutter, though cutter shape affects the yield. Preparation takes about 90 minutes including chilling. The listed cooking time is per tray; allow 20–24 minutes for two batches, plus cooling and 1–2 hours for the icing to dry.
