Gingerbread

 This gingerbread recipe is different from my original; as it uses butter rather than shortening. They are softer with crisp edges. Another natashaskitchen.com

Ingredients:

• 2 1/3 cup flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (1 1/2 sticks)
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup molasses (Grandma's)
• 1 large egg, room temperature

Directions:

Sift flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, soda and salt into a medium bowl.

In mixer bowl. beat together butter, sugar and molasses until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes on medium-high speed.

Add egg and beat one minute.

Add flour mixture and beat on medium/low speed to combine. The dough will be soft and moist.

Transfer the dough to a well-floured surface. May stick so dust tops with more flour. Divide into 3 disks and wrap individually in plastic wrap. Refrigerate till firm, 1 hour or up to 24 hours. May also freeze dough for 3 months and defrost in refrigerator over night.

Preheat oven to 375-degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

On a well-floured surface roll out one disk of dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Turn dough while rolling to ensure it is not sticking to your surface. Using a cookie cutter, cut out as many gingerbread people as you can get. Gather scraps and chill to re-roll.

Set cookies at least 1-inch apart and bake until they barely turn brown at the edges, about 9-10 minutes. Transfer to cooling racks. Repeat with remaining chilled dough.

Maybe stored in air tight container for 5 days. Maybe frozen before decorating. Natasha's frosting is very soft and found hard to work with. Think I will stick to Royal Icing.

Note to self: smaller cookies need 9 minutes. 1-inch apart for sure!