The art of making the perfect gingerbread

Here is a list of pointers you need to keep in mind while making gingerbread man cookies

Your New Year’s eve festive menu is incomplete without gorging on the customary gingerbread man cookie. The gingerbread man is a cookie made from gingerbread in a shape of a crystallized human. The cookie is made with a dough of vanilla flour, egg and sugar and by baking it at 350 degree celsius. However, there are a few pointers to be kept in mind if you want a flawless gingerbread cookie. Here are your pointers:

USE MOLASSES

You can’t make the gingerbread man if you don’t use molasses. Molasses is the dark brown juice that is extracted from raw sugar during the refining of the sugar. Too add sweetness to your gingerbread, add it. It will add a unique dark flavour. But if you want to get a rich texture then use it with a combination of brown sugar. This will ensure that your gingerbread is firm and crisp on the outside and moist and chewy on the inside.

CHILL THE DOUGH

Once the dough is made with all the ingredients then make sure you put it in the refrigerator for minimum two hours or overnight. This ensures that the ingredients are properly absorbed in the dough. It also makes it easier to roll the dough without it cracking or crumbling. This process will make your dough firm.

LEAVE SPACE

Leave space between the cut-outs on the baking sheet. It’s important to give this space. This allows the cookies to bake properly and it prevents the cookies from sticking to each other. There should be at least a gap of 1cm between each gingerbread cookie when placed on the baking sheet.

BAKE AT MODERATE HEAT

Since your gingerbread cookie is primarily made up of sweeteners such as molasses and brown sugar, they can burn a lost faster at a high temperature compared to cookies made with white sugar. Therefore, it’s imperative that you bake your gingerbread cookie at moderate temperature. Bake at approximately 162 degree celsius to ensure even cooking.

LET THEM COOL DOWN

Another mistake we make while making the gingerbread cookie is that we don’t let the batch cool down properly. Before we apply the icing, wait for the cookie to cool down. If this is not done properly then the icing could melt on the cookie before the cookie becomes firm. Follow these simple steps to ace your foodie festivities.