Gingerbread Men

Corban just recently read the story of the Gingerbread Man for school.....and after reading that, the kids wanted to make some gingerbread. I've actually never made gingerbread before, so this was a great idea to me! So yes, in the middle of August, our house smelled like fall/winter and Christmas time...and that was just fine with me! I thought these were fantastic cookies! I wouldn't choose them over chocolate chip cookies, mind you, but they're delightful for something different. We'll certainly be making them again when the weather cools down. The recipe came from Allrecipes.

Recipe:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1 egg
2-1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Frosting/decorations (optional)

In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Stir in molasses and egg. Combine the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg; blend into the molasses mixture until smooth. Divide dough in half, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least one hour.

Preheat the oven to 350°. On a lightly floured (I used powdered sugar instead of flour) surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters. Place cookies 2 inches apart on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 8 to 10 minutes (exactly 8 for me) in the preheated oven, until firm. Remove from cookie sheets to cool on wire racks. Frost or decorate when cool.

I just made a little glaze of powdered sugar, milk, and a dash of cinnamon and piped on for my frosting. The buttons are raisins, "glued" on with some frosting.