Rum-Glazed Soft Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients

• 6 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 0.333 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
• 0.25 cup blackstrap or regular unsulphured molasses
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1.875 cup all-purpose flour (plus extra for pressing and rerolling)
• 1 tbsp Dutch-processed cocoa powder
• 0.5 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon (for the cookie dough)
• 0.125 tsp ground cloves
• 0.25 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 0.125 tsp table salt
• 0.125 tsp coarse sea salt
• 0.667 cup confectioners' sugar (for the rum butter glaze)
• 0.125 tsp ground cinnamon (for the glaze)
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter (melted; for the glaze)
• 1 tbsp dark rum or lemon juice (use rum for the rum glaze or lemon juice as an alternative)
• 1 tsp warm water (plus extra hot water if needed to thin the glaze)

Steps

1. 1

   Place the room-temperature butter, packed dark brown sugar, and molasses in the bowl of an electric stand mixer. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 2 minutes.

2. 2

   Add the egg yolk and beat until it is completely incorporated into the butter mixture.

3. 3

   Over a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, black pepper, and table salt through a large-mesh sieve. Add the coarse sea salt directly to the sifted flour mixture.

4. 4

   Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Beat on low speed only until the flour is fully incorporated; do not overmix.

5. 5

   Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it gently just until cohesive. Place it on a sheet of parchment paper and roll it evenly to 1/4-inch thickness.

6. 6

   Transfer the rolled dough, still on the parchment, to a cookie sheet. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes so the dough firms before stamping.

7. 7

   Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

8. 8

   Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator. If using a cookie stamp without enclosed edges, have a round cookie cutter that is the same size as, or slightly larger than, the stamp ready.

9. 9

   Dip the round cutter and the bottom of the stamp in flour. Press the cutter into the dough, then press the stamp firmly into the dough inside the cutter so the design is deeply imprinted; the dough will puff slightly during baking.

10. 10

    Transfer each stamped round to a lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough, rerolling scraps as needed until all the dough is used. Regular cookie cutters may be used without stamping if desired.

11. 11

    Bake the cookies for 5 minutes, then rotate the baking sheets. Bake for another 4–5 minutes, or until the cookies feel firm to the touch. Do not bake longer than 10 minutes, because they continue to firm as they cool.

12. 12

    While the cookies bake, sift the confectioners' sugar and cinnamon for the glaze into a small bowl.

13. 13

    Add the melted butter, dark rum or lemon juice, and warm water. Whisk until smooth. The glaze should have the consistency of maple syrup; if it is too thick, whisk in a small amount of hot water. It will thicken slightly as it cools.

14. 14

    Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheets for 1 minute.

15. 15

    Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and let them cool for 4 more minutes. While they are still warm, brush the rum-butter glaze over the tops with a pastry brush.

16. 16

    Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Chilling the dough for at least 30 minutes and rolling it to a true 1/4-inch thickness are important for soft cookies. Apply the glaze while the cookies are still warm. The recipe is adapted from Soft Gingerbread Tiles associated with Sweet by Ottolenghi & Goh and Tartine by Prueitt & Robertson.

Nutrition per serving

• dessert
• cookies
• baked
• holiday
• Christmas
• soft cookies
• spiced
• vegetarian