Vegan Gingerbread Cookies

Name: Vegan Gingerbread Cookies
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 40 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 1/2 (382g) cups all-purpose flour; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg; 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1/2 teaspoon baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt; 1/2 cup vegan butter; 1/2 cup dark brown sugar; 1/4 cup molasses; 1/4 cup canned pumpkin; 2 tablespoons maple syrup; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 teaspoons lemon zest; 3 cups powdered sugar; 2 tablespoons water; 1 tablespoon corn syrup; ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract; Pinch coarse salt

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What I love about these vegan gingerbread cookies

Last year, we perfected our no chill sugar cookie recipe with buttercream frosting, and we had a blast decorating cookies with family. So this year, I knew I wanted to try gingerbread men.

We deciding to go completely vegan for those of you who are also dealing with an egg allergy. We used canned pumpkin as an egg replacer, and it worked so well in this recipe. The flavor compliments the gingerbread spices and the color enhances the color of the cookies. So it’s a win-win.

To make the royal icing without egg, we used corn syrup instead of meringue powder. It’s simple to find and keeps the icing soft while adding a little bit of shine.

A dozen vegan ginger bread cookies decorated and laying out on a counter.

Here’s what you’ll need to make them

Electric mixer

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baking sheet

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Wire cooling rack

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Vegan ginger bread cookies on a plate decorated with holly leaf candy and red dots.

How to make this vegan gingerbread recipe

Whisk the dry ingredients. Start by combining the flour, spices, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl. Stir with a whisk until everything is evenly distributed. Set the bowl aside for later.

Cream the butter and sugar. Use an electric mixer to beat the vegan butter and sugar together at a medium speed until they’re light and fluffy. This should take a minute or two, and you really want to make sure it’s fluffy, nut just combined. We really want the air incorporated into the mixture.

Add the wet ingredients. Mix in the molasses, pumpkin, maple syrup, vanilla extract and lemon zest and beat until these ingredients have completely combined into the butter mixture.

Combine everything. Next, add about 1/2 cup of flour at a time and mix until each addition has incorporated into the wet ingredients. Scrape the sides of the bowl if you need to, and keep adding the flour mixture until everything is mixed in.

Chill the dough. Divide the dough into two balls and wrap them with plastic wrap. Put them into the fridge for at least 1 hour. Chilling the dough and allowing it to rest helps to prevent the cookies from spreading while they’re baking, so don’t skip this step.

Vegan gingerbread cookies decorated with royal icing on a cookie sheet.

Roll and cut out cookies. When you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350˚F and line a baking sheet or two with parchment paper. Then flour your working surface and roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness.

Use cookie cutters to make shapes and place them onto your prepared baking sheets. Continue to re-roll the dough and cut cookies as needed until you’ve run out of dough. Make sure your keep your surfaced floured to prevent the cookies from getting stuck.

Bake the vegan gingerbread cookies. Put your cookies in the oven for 8 – 10 minutes. Remove the cookies and allow them to rest for a few minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack to cool. The cookies should be set on top but still soft.

Decorate the cookies. While the cookies cool, mix the icing ingredients until smooth. Transfer to a piping bag with a small round tip. When the cookies are completely cool, decorate your cookies as desired.

If you want to decorate with sprinkles or anything like that, do it while the icing is still wet to give them something to stick on.

Allow icing to dry completely before stacking cookies.

Close up of vegan gingerbread cookies decorated for christmas.

FAQs and tips on making vegan gingerbread cookies

Should gingerbread cookies be hard or soft?

Gingerbread cookies should be firm with a slight bite, but still soft. They should not be crispy like a cracker. I always recommend erring on the side of undercooked for your first sheet pan. See how they bake up and then adjust your timing accordingly, if needed.

Are gingerbread and gingersnaps the same?

They are very similar, you could even say just variations of each other. Gingersnaps are made to be very firm, and will snap if you try to break them in half. Gingerbread cookies will have a more traditional soft/chewy cookie texture.

How do you know when your gingerbread cookie is done?

You will bake them for 8-10 minutes, only the edges should be firm when you remove them from the oven. The tops should be set, but still soft.

Gingerbread men decorated for Christmas on a plate, one to the side with a piece broken off.

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