Gingerbread Cookies

These Gingerbread Cookies are wonderful all year, but they are particularly significant & appropriate during the Winter Holiday Season for many people. The combination of fragrant, warm spices fills your house with wonderful scents that evoke childhood memories and helps to continue family traditions!

Ingredients

• 5 cups
  

  all-purpose flour

• 1 1/4 cups
  

  firmly packed dark brown sugar

• 2 tablespoons
  

  ground cinnamon

• 2 tablespoons
  

  ground ginger

• 1 teaspoon
  

  ground cloves

• 1/2 teaspoon
  

  salt

• 1 1/3 teaspoon
  

  baking soda

• 20 tablespoons
  

  salted butter, cut into pieces

• 1 1/4 cup
  

  unsulphured molasses

• 3-4 tablespoons

  milk

Directions

In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment, stir together flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt, and baking soda at low speed until combined, add butter and mix at medium-low speed until mixture for about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low and gradually add molasses and milk until dough is evenly moistened then ncrease speed to medium and mix until thoroughly combined.

Scrape dough onto work surface; divide in thirds. Working with one portion of dough at a time, roll 1/8-inch thick between two large sheets of parchment paper. Leaving dough sandwiched between parchment layers, stack on cookie sheet and freeze until firm, 20-30 minutes. Dough can be left in the freezer if contained in plastic freezer bags for up to a month.

When ready to use, preheat oven to 325. Wait until oven is to temperature before getting dough from freezer. Use cookie cutters to make desired shapes, and carefully transfer cookies to lined baking sheet or SilPat. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Do not overbake or cookies will be too hard. (But still okay for making a gingerbread house!)

When cookies have cooled, decorate with Royal Icing, if desired.