Well you know what they say, it takes a real man to be vegan!
And these vegan gingerbread men are proof of that!
Finally a firm gingerbread cookies recipe that is durable for all sorts of decorating and strong enough to build houses too!
The insides are slightly chewy and soft~ basically everything I have always wanted in a man!
Use this dough for your gingerbread house project this year
And of course for the best gingerbread men & women cookies you will find
I have to admit I was never a big fan of anything with royal icing
But there’s something about this vegan version made with EnerG egg replacer that I really love so much
The icing will harden enough to stack and handle for packaging in cookie trays and gift bags
However it also stays slightly soft too! It’s a strange phenomenon that I really love!
If you do not want to make the EnerG version recipe then simply use the vegan sprinkles recipe here
Since it’s essentially royal icing but a simpler (harder drying) recipe
And while you are at it you can make the royal icing eyes for the gingerbread men cookies!
I was recently told by someone who never liked gingerbread cookies that she loves my recipe!
Notes for Success:
You will notice in the video I was using EnerG Egg replacer for the dough recipe but I have since converted back to using flax meal with aquafaba for super flax “egg” as the recipe below reflects that change
The original recipe from 2016 used 1 Tbs EnerG Egg reconstituted in 2Tbs water; both ways work great so it is your option.
This is a versatile recipe and cookies lend themselves well to interchanging the egg replacer with whatever you have or like to use best.
EnerG Egg replacer has leaveners added to them so if you use that one, your cookies will puff up slightly more than another egg replacer.
Some people ask why it is necessary to chill the dough before rolling
Once a dough has been mixed it is nice to give it time to “relax” before rolling
This gives the flour time to absorb the other ingredients and will allow for a stretchier dough that will not shrink or tighten when baking
Many people cannot get molasses which is a shame when it comes to gingerbread anything.
Molasses is the classic flavor that cannot be matched.
It is a liquid sugar with a deep, almost smoky flavor
You can use any other liquid sweetener like Golden Syrup, Maple Syrup or even dark corn syrup as a straight substitute with no adverse affects to the recipe
Just be aware that you will not achieve the same gingerbread taste that molasses imparts.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL YOUTUBE VIDEO TUTORIAL FOR HOW TO MAKE THESE COOKIES!
Vegan Gingerbread Men
Ingredients
- All Purpose Flour 3 cups (390g)
- Natural Cocoa Powder 2 teaspoons
- Baking Soda 1 teaspoon (5g)
- Ground Cinnamon ¾ teaspoon (2g)
- Ground Ginger 1¼ teaspoon
- Cloves 1/8 teaspoon
- Nutmeg 1/8 teaspoon
- Salt ¼ teaspoon
- Black Pepper 1/8 teaspoon *optional but awesome!
- Vegan Butter ½ cup (113g)
- Light Brown Sugar ½ cup packed (105g)
- Molasses ⅔ cup (226g) (158ml)
- Flax Meal 1 Tablespoon (8g)
- Hot Aquafaba *or hot water 3 Tablespoons (45ml)
- Vanilla Extract 1 teaspoon (5ml)
Instructions
- Combine flax meal with the hot aquafaba or water and whisk smooth, add the vanilla extract
- let it stand for about 5 minutes to thicken to a paste
- Sift the flour with the cocoa powder, baking soda and all of the spices and the salt and pepper, set aside.
- Cream the vegan butter with the brown sugar until light and fluffy about 4-5 minutes,
- Add the egg replacer mixture and then mix well, scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl for an even mix
- Add molasses to the creamed butter mixture and mix well
- Add the sifted flour mixture all at once, mix until it is all incorporated evenly.
- Turn out the entire dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap.
- Wrap the dough tightly and press into a disc.
- Refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight before rolling. *see notes above the recipe
- Once out of the fridge you must re-roll this dough. It may seem dry and crumbly this is normal, you must mash it all together and knead it back together, then RE-roll on a floured work surface until it is pliable.
- Cut your shapes, and place on a parchment lined sheet pan.
- Preheat the oven to 350° F, you will bake for approximately 18-22 minutes or until light golden brown.
- *The bake time depends on how big & how thick your cookies are, use your best judgement
Notes
Gingerbread cookies can be kept at room temperature for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container to prevent staling
Freeze either the cut out dough or the baked finished cookies for up to 2 months
For the Vegan Royal Icing
Vegan Royal Icing
For those who do not want to use EnerG egg replacer, just use my Vegan Sprinkles recipe instead- it is essentially a traditional ROYAL ICING RECIPE
Ingredients
- EnerG Egg Replacer
- Warm Water 6 Tablespoons (90ml)
- Vanilla Extract ½ teaspoon
- Confectioner's Sugar 4 cups (480g)
Instructions
- Combine the egg replacer with the warm water and whisk smooth
- Place the sifted confectioners sugar in a mixing bowl and then add the vanilla extract and the egg replacer mixture.
- Mix on medium to high speed until it is smooth
- Color as desired and decorate as you like
- Allow cookies to dry slightly at room temperature overnight on a sheet pan uncovered
Notes
Royal icing is best used right after you make it, but if you make too much you can store it in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Mix well to reconstitute but you may have to add more confectioners sugar to get it back to desired consistency
The cookies turned out great. The best recipe for gingerbread men I have made.
thankyou for the feedback!
hi, would it work to make the dough, roll it out, THEN put in fridge and then cut out?
yes sure
Can this recipe be made gluten free?
I have not tried it here, I have no trouble converting my cake recipes to GF, but I’m not quite sure about cookies, since cookies are heavy in flour compared to cake recipes which are heavy in liquid ingredients, so there may need some adjusting!
I have however, used this recipe CLICK HERE Gluten Free already It’s a good recipe
Omg! I loveeee that i no longer have to convert your awesome recipes to be egg free!!
Years ago after trying several different Italian butter cookie recipes, I found yours and it was the only one that ever converted over perfectly to make the most delicious beautiful cookies. I went through all the work of trying so many recipes and converting them over to egg free for my son who has severe food allergies .
He was quite young at the time but would always be sad whenever I told him he couldn’t eat those pretty colored cookies with sprinkles and frosting on them that people would put out on their tables because we had to worry about eggs being in them or cross contact from any peanuts or tree nuts .
The recipe turned out so good six years later I’m still making them and people are requesting for me to bring them for soecial occasions.
I cannot wait to try making these gingerbread cookies I’m so excited !!! Thank you ❣️
YAY! awesome!! CLick here for another great one!
Could I ask if you use a fan or conventional oven ?
Your recepies are great by the way.
Hi Thanks! I use standard conventional oven
Hi
What can I replace the egg replacer as I can’t find in Singapore. Thanks
you can use flax meal as an egg replacer 1 Tbs + 3 Tbs warm water
I need to make 200 ginger bread men… can I just times your receipe by
5 and will dough keep in fridge for how long??
yes dough will be fine for a week or more
Love love everything you do. Thank-you for all of your hard work.
I am excited to make your gingerbread “girls”, would you please give me a source for the eyes you use.
Thank-you for your time,
Suzie
Hi Thanks! Yes you will love this recipe! The men that I show here in this picture was from before my vegan days so I just bought candy eyes from Wilton and I am not 100% sure they are vegan. But you can always just make your own with some white royal icing and then black (or blue) for the iris
Excellent recipe thank you!
Can I use Bob Red Mill egg replacer for the icing?
No that kind of egg replacer is not good for this icing. Instead you can just make this royal icing, its so easy I use it for making Sprinkles all the time,and it is great for icing cookies too CLICK HERE
I used it on my Mini Gingerbread Houses
Hi Gretchen, would you be able to provide the gingerbread dough recipe which is not vegan. I’ve baked them every Christmas but now I can’t find it on the internet.
Thank you,
Mary
Hi Mary, sorry I no longer share non vegan recipes, but this recipe is a prefect rendition, no one would know it is not made with eggs and such.
Otherwise I am sure you can find some great non vegan recipes on the internet, but I DO hope you try this one.
Hi Gretchen
Will this cookies be “sturdy” enough to use as hanging tree ornaments?
Thanks in advance for your guidance.
YES!
Thank you for such a quick reply :). I absolutely LOVE every recipe of yours that I have tried. Are there plans to make your book available on Google Books? I keep searching for it there but never see it as an option for purchase.
I’ve never made gingerbread cookies before. How thick do I roll them out? Is there a benefit to waiting to roll it after 3 hours versus right away?
I made this dough, refrigerated overnight and then left out on the counter all day to make the recipe at night. I wasn’t sure the dough would be okay but it was fine. I had to add another 93 g of flour to get the dough the consistency as in the video. This dough is supple and resilient- it makes 2 houses and about 3 dozen mini cookies so it would probably make 3 houses – rolled out to 1/4 “ – 350 degrees about 8-10 min each batch. It took hours to do this but the dough determined everything – it didn’t fall apart after being worked and left out. Thank you for an excellent recipe.
Hi Gretchen,
I made the gingerbread cookies about a week ago during our cold snap here in North Central Florida. The cookies were cooled on a wire rack and stored in a tin until yesterday afternoon when I iced them. I left them out overnight to harden the icing. Well it’s been very humid and much warmer here the last few days and we having been running the a/c because we are waiting for repair. (It acted up during the 30 degree temps last week). I guess my cookies got soft from the humidity. Not much I can do at this point. I put them in the freezer but I need to bring to a potluck tonight and I can’t really keep them cold given as it will be over an hour before they are served. Any suggestions for the next time? I prefer crisper cookies and also like to do things a head of the event so I can enjoy the day. Thanks!