Sourdough Gingerbread Cookies

These sourdough gingerbread cookies are so fun! They’re full of warming spices and molasses flavor and topped with royal icing. They are one of my all time favorites for the holiday season.

side view of baked cookies.

This recipe is a great way to use up discard sourdough starter

For more sourdough discard recipes, check out these overnight sourdough pancakes, sourdough banana bread with chocolate chips and sourdough cheese scones.

The sourdough starter in this sourdough gingerbread recipe can be is best with unfed sourdough starter, though you can also use a bubbly active starter.

The dough will undergo a long chill period time during which the bacteria in the starter begin breaking down the carbohydrates and starches in the flour.

broken cookie.

Ingredients

You can find the actual ingredient amounts for this recipe in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post. For these sourdough gingerbread cookies, you will need:

  • Butter. You can use salted or unsalted butter in this recipe
  • Brown sugar – Soft brown sugar helps with the moisture content in the cookie. If you’ve only got granulated sugar, you can substitute it for that but you’ll add some extra molasses. Remove 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar and add an extra 2 tablespoons of molasses instead. 
  • Unsulphured molasses – This brings a rich flavor. You can use blackstrap molasses too but it’s stronger in flavor.
  • A large egg
  • Vanilla extract or vanilla paste
  • Salt 
  • All-purpose flour
  • Sourdough starter discard or bubbly starter.
  • Baking soda 
  • Gingerbread spices – ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves.

Equipment

This is a cut-out gingerbread cookie recipe so you will need some cookie cutters. You could make gingerbread men, Christmas trees, stars, or whatever shapes you like. Alternatively, you can simply use a glass to cut circles of dough.

An electric mixer is helpful for creaming the butter and making the royal icing.

iced gingerbread man.

Method

In a small combine flour, salt, baking soda and spices.

In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment) cream butter, brown sugar and molasses until it’s thick and fluffy. Beat in the egg and the sourdough starter until it is combined.

flour and spices in a bowl.
molasses and sugar.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula to combine it into a thick and sticky dough.

molases, egg yolk, sourdough starter in a bow.
gingerbread dough.

Shape the dough into a mound and cut it into 2 pieces. Wrap the pieces in plastic wrap and chill them in the fridge for at least 3 hours, or all the way up to 36 hours. The dough discs can also be frozen for future use.

Rolling

Unwrap one of the pieces of cold dough and place it on a floured workspace. Roll it out until it’s 1/4 inch thick, dusting the top of the dough to stop it from sticking to the rolling pin.

The initial rolling will be harder and the dough will crack. It will get easier to roll each time as the butter in the dough will soften.

Use as much flour as you need to roll it out without it sticking. 

Use cookie cutters to cut out dough shapes and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spaced around an inch apart. If you’re cutting different-sized cookies, bake the same-sized cookies on the tray together so they bake evenly.

Gather up all the scraps of dough and re-roll it and continue with the cutting.

cut out cookies.

Bake cookies

Bake the cookies for around 8-10 minutes, depending on their size. For crispier cookies, you can bake them a few minutes longer.

Once baked, remove the cookies from the tray and place cookies on a wire rack to cool.

Icing

The cookies can be iced when they have cooled down completely.

To make the icing, add an egg white to a medium bowl and use a hand mixer to beat it on medium speed until frothy. Add in the powdered sugar and beat it in on low speed until combined. Turn the mixer onto medium-high speed and beat for 3-4 minutes until thick and glossy.

Add the icing to a piping bag and decorate the cookies as desired.

icing a gingerbread cookie.

Storing 

Leftover cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 7 days.

Unbaked cookie dough can be wrapped up tight and frozen for up to three months. Baked cookies can be frozen too, without the glaze.

iced gingerbread star.

More recipes

side view of baked cookies.

Sourdough Gingerbread Cookies

Yield: 25
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Additional Time: 3 hours
Total Time: 3 hours 20 minutes

These sourdough gingerbread cookies are so fun! They're full of warming spices and molasses flavor and topped with royal icing.

Ingredients

  • 375g (3 cups*) all-purpose flour*
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • 200g (1 packed cup) brown sugar
  • 113g (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
  • 70g (1/4 cup) unsluphured molasses
  • 65g (1/3 cup) sourdough discard
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Royal icing

  • 1 pasturized egg white
  • 150g (1 1/4 cup) powdered sugar
  • Water if needed

Instructions

  1. In a small combine flour, salt, baking soda and spices.
  2. In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment) cream butter, brown sugar and molasses until it's thick and fluffy.
  3. Beat in the egg and the sourdough starter until it is combined.
  4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and use a rubber spatula to combine it into a thick and sticky dough.
  5. Shape the dough into a mound and cut it into 2 pieces. Wrap the pieces in plastic wrap and chill them in the fridge for at least 3 hours, or all the way up to 36 hours.

Rolling

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F /176°C.
  2. Unwrap one of the pieces of cold dough and place it on a floured workspace. Roll it out until it's ¼ inch thick, dusting the top of the dough to stop it from sticking to the rolling pin.
  3. The initial rolling will be harder and the dough will crack. It will get easier to roll each time as the butter in the dough will soften.
  4. Use as much flour as you need to roll it out without it sticking.
  5. Use cookie cutters to cut out dough shapes and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, spaced around an inch apart. If you're cutting different-sized cookies, bake the same-sized cookies on the tray together so they bake evenly.
    Gather up all the scraps of dough and re-roll it and continue with the cutting.
  6. Bake the cookies for around 8-10 minutes, depending on their size., until lightly browned around the edges. For crispier cookies, you can bake them a few minutes longer.
  7. Once baked, remove the cookies from the tray and place them on a wire rack to cool.

Icing

  1. To make the icing, add an egg white to a medium bowl and use a hand mixer to beat it on medium speed until frothy.
  2. Add in the powdered sugar and beat it in on low speed until combined. Turn the mixer onto medium-high speed and beat for 3-4 minutes until thick and glossy. If the icing is too thick, add a few drops of water as needed.
  3. Add the icing to a piping bag and decorate the cookies as desired.

Notes

*The cup measurements given are US sized. Note that these are smaller than metric. For best results, use grams.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 25 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 129Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 17mgSodium: 104mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 1gSugar: 10gProtein: 2g

This is an informational estimate only. I am not a certified Dietitian or Nutritionist

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