These Giant Ginger Cookies with Icing are a warm winter treat with plenty of spice! They're perfect for the holidays or a cookie exchange. You'll be craving them every year!
You can't possibly know how excited I am to share these ginger cookies with you today.
I've been wanting to share a giant ginger cookie with you for years. I had one at a restaurant in the Twin Cities all that time ago that blew my mind and made a ginger lover out of me.
And yes, I am the kind of person who gets cookies at a RESTAURANT. Deal with it.
These iced ginger cookies are my best recreation of that fateful cookie. A few interesting things to note about this recipe:
- These cookies are HUGE. Like, the size of your face. Unless you have a really big face. You can definitely make them smaller if you prefer but you should probably keep an eye on the baking time.
- The icing for the cookies is optional. Which is kind of crazy, because I LOVE icing. The spices in the icing add another layer of flavor to the overall cookie, but the actual cookies themselves are so melt-in-your-mouth delicious that they don't absolutely need it.
- There is a crunch, then a softness, then a magical unicorn Christmas party in your mouth when you bite into these. Don't believe me? Just try them.
Ginger cookie ingredients
- All purpose flour
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Butter
- Light brown sugar
- Granulated sugar
- Ground ginger
- Cinnamon
- Ground cloves
- Nutmeg
- Allspice
- Molasses
- Eggs
Icing ingredients
- Confectioner's sugar
- Milk
- Ground ginger and cinnamon to taste
Why do these ginger cookies need to cool so long?
Because of their large size, soft interior, and crisp exterior, we're going to need to let the cookies cool for as long as possible on the baking sheet.
To save time, I like to prepare two baking sheets. As soon as one comes out of the oven I can pop the other one in.
The first is done cooling and ready for more dough once the other one comes out. This will cut down on time significantly with the long cooling time.
Tips for customizing:
- Crumble leftover cookies into gingerbread cookie dough ice cream for an out of this world Christmas time ice cream concoction, or use to make ice cream sandwiches with the aforementioned ice cream
- Add a couple extra tablespoons of flour for a puffier cookie
- Sprinkle iced cookies with chopped candied ginger for an extra pop of ginger
- Leave off the icing and roll cookie balls in coarse sugar (such as turbinado sugar) for a crunchy sweetness
If you make this recipe, be sure to rate it, leave a comment, or tag #theliveinkitchen on Instagram!
Recipe
Giant Ginger Cookies with Icing
Ingredients
For the cookies
For the icing (optional)
- 3 ¾ cup confectioner's sugar
- ¼ - ⅓ cup milk
- Ground ginger and cinnamon to taste
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on medium speed until light and creamy. Add the spices and mix until combined. Add the molasses and eggs and mix until just incorporated. Add the flour mixture in two parts, pulsing the mixer to keep the flour from flying out, then mixing on medium low speed until no more dry flour remains. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate 15 minutes or overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat. Spoon out balls of dough about 2 tablespoons in size and roll between your hands to make a smooth ball. Place only two or three balls on the baking sheet with plenty of space all around them. Bake 14-16 minutes or until the dough has spread, the edges are browned, and the middles are still a little soft. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the pan before removing to a wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough, refrigerating the dough in between batches.
- To prepare the icing, sift confectioner's sugar into a large bowl. Whisk in milk 1 tablespoon at a time until the desired consistency is reached. Add a few dashes of ginger and cinnamon to taste, just to give it a little flavor, and spoon over cooled cookies.
Notes
- Crumble leftover cookies into gingerbread cookie dough ice cream for an out of this world Christmas time ice cream concoction, or use to make ice cream sandwiches with the aforementioned ice cream
- Add a couple extra tablespoons of flour for a puffier cookie
- Sprinkle iced cookies with chopped candied ginger for an extra pop of ginger
- Leave off the icing and roll cookie balls in coarse sugar (such as turbinado sugar) for a crunchy sweetness
Mary Devine says
I love Ginger cookies. Why haven't you had me over to eat these with you? 🙂 I will have to try this recipe. I can smell them already.
Lindsay Moe says
Sorry, I ate them all! They are really good, we'll have to try them together.