Gingerbread Cookie Sandwiches Recipes

Steps:

• 1. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices; set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until they appear light and fluffy. Add the egg and mix to combine. Add the molasses and mix to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl once if needed.
• 2. Working in three batches, add the dry ingredients, mixing between each addition until just incorporated. Remove the dough and turn it out onto a sheet of plastic wrap; form into a disk, wrap tightly and refrigerate until firm, at least 2 hours. (Dough can be made up to 1 day ahead.)
• 3. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Remove the dough and cut it in half. Re-wrap one half and place back in the fridge; let the other sit at room temperature a few minutes to soften slightly. Lightly flour a work surface and your rolling pin, and roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thick.
• 4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using cookie cutters, cut out the gingerbread men, and transfer to the prepared sheets. (If the dough feels very soft, refrigerate the gingerbread men on the baking sheet for 15 minutes before placing in the oven to bake.) Bake until cookies appear firm and like they're just starting to crisp, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove and let cool on the sheet 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
• 5. Meanwhile, make the sandwich filling. Beat together the butter, vanilla, and salt until fluffy. Add the confectioners' sugar in 2 batches and beat on low speed until incorporated. Add the milk and beat until the mixture is thick but spreadable, adding more milk in 1 teaspoon increments as needed. Spread some of the icing onto half of the cooled gingerbread men; sandwich each with another cookie.

Steps:

• In a blender, combine ice cream and cinnamon. Transfer to a freezer container; freeze for at least 2 hours., Meanwhile, in a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg, then molasses. Combine flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or until easy to handle., Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 3-1/2-in. gingerbread-shaped cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are firm. Remove to wire racks to cool., To make ice cream sandwiches, spread 1/4 cup softened ice cream over the bottom of half of the cookies; top with remaining cookies. Wrap each in plastic wrap; freeze on a baking sheet at least 1 hour.

Steps:

• Beat margarine and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on low speed until mostly incorporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, another 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in egg yolk, then molasses.
• Whisk sifted flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg in a separate bowl until well combined. Gradually add flour mixture to the molasses mixture, beating until well blended and smooth.
• Divide dough in half and form each into a 1-inch-thick disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 to 3 hours, or overnight.
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Working with one disk at a time, and leaving remaining disk in the refrigerator, unwrap chilled dough and place on a lightly floured surface. Working from the center to the edges, roll dough with a floured rolling pin to a thickness of 1/4 inch.
• Cut dough into desired shapes with cookie cutters, dipping the cutters into flour as needed so they don't stick to the dough. Fit the cookie cutters as closely together as possible to cut as many cookies as you can. This will minimize the number of times you have to re-roll the dough.
• Transfer gingerbread cookies to ungreased cookie sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Gather any dough scraps into a ball, flatten, re-wrap with plastic wrap, and refrigerate to use for later batches.
• Bake each sheet in the preheated oven until firm, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool while you finish rolling, cutting, and baking the remaining cookies.
• Frost or decorate cooled gingerbread cookies as desired.