Gingerbread Men Sandwich Cookies– Before it’s too late

January 9, 2012

I am partly in denial that the holidays are over, I never realized how much of a winter-y christmas fan I was until I went to college in Southern California where leaves failed to change colors in the fall and the weather just didn’t want to decide to be cold or warm.  But somehow I am still in So Cal and dealing with my winter withdrawals (80 degrees in January..REALLY!?!) and was so excited this year when we got our very own christmas tree! I have never had the responsibility of going to get my own tree and decorations let alone buying my own wrapping paper and traveling home the day before christmas with gifts in tow.  As silly as it sounds it was a lot of fun feeling extra grown up during this time.

So naturally (along with constant Michael Buble holiday pandra playing) we needed to find ways to bring in holiday cheer, besides the tree and wreath and holiday bows scattered around the apartment.  What better way to do this than christmas cookies!! I’ve had my fair share of sugar cookies and peanut brittle so after finding a set of about 7 cookie cutters of various sized gingerbread men it was decided, gingerbread men cookies.

But with all these sizes of cookie cutters it immediately came to me that I wanted to do a sandwich cookie with a jam center.  As long as you have the different sizes of cookie cutters this recipe is very easy.  I got a fantastic cookie cookbook at the holiday party for the office I intern at and in that book was a basic gingerbread cookie dough so that part was taken care of.  To figure out the jam was a little more difficult, I wanted it to stand out but not be overpowering, so on a whim I got a ginger rhubarb jam from Cost Plus World Market and crossed my fingers.  Well the jame tasted good, but I didn’t think it was quite sweet enough so with some raspberry preserves from Trader Joes in the fridge I figured I didnt have anything to loose by trying to mix them together… and it was PERFECT!  Sheer luck, but these cookies turned out so well…they just don’t travel that well in a plastic zip lock when you are flying home.  ENJOY!

Gingerbread Men with Ginger Rhubarb Raspberry Jam

Casaceli, Tina. Milk & Cookies. San Francisco: Chronical, 2011. Print.

Ingredients: 

• 21/4 c All purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 large egg, at room temp
• 1 egg white, at room temp
• 1/4c unsalted butter, at room temp
• 1/2 c granulated sugar
• 1/3 c light brown sugar
• 2 tbl molasses
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

Jam filling

• about 3/4 cup Ginger rhubarb jam
• about 1/4 cup raspberry jam
• (adjust to taste)

Recipe: 

1. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl.  Set aside.
2. combine the egg and egg white in a small bowl, whisking to blend.  Set aside.
3. Put the butter in a bowl of a standing electric mixer with paddle attachment.  Begin beating on low speed.  Increase the speed to medium and beat for about 3 min.  or until light and creamy.
4. Add the granulated sugar and brown sugar along with the molases, ginger, cinnamon and flour mixture and continue to beat for 3 min.
5. Reduce the speed to low and add the egg mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.  When the dough is well blended, remove the bowl from the mixer and scrape the paddle clean.
6. Divide the dough in half and form each piece into a disk.  Cover each disk tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 24.
7. Preheat oven to 350
8. Line baking sheets with baking mats or parchment paper, or spray with nonstick spray
9. Flour a clean surface, unwrap one piece of dough and place on floured surface.
10. With a rolling pin, roll the dough out to about 1/4 inch thick.  Cut out cookies using cutters.  (If you are making sandwich cookies make sure to cut out equal parts of top and bottom halves)
11. place cookies about 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets and repeat process with remaining dough
12. Transfer cut cookies to the fridge and chill for about 15 min (to help keep their shape during baking)
13. Bake for about 15 min or until slightly colored around the edges
14. Remove from oven and let cool on wire racks.
15. Pair up the halves and spread jam on the bottom half, top it with the top half and set aside.

{The finished cookies!}

Written by Kristin Posted in Sugar-y Cravings, Vegetarian