Mini Gingerbread Men Cookies

These adorable mini gingerbread men cookies beat any classic cookies during a holiday season. They are best enjoyed with a glass of cold or warm milk and are great to bake with kids.

We all know that holiday cookies are a must. But they can be so time-consuming to bake and decorate!

But you are in luck because I have a delicious gingerbread man recipe that comes into play.

With this simple recipe, you get a quick batch of the cutest tiny gingerbread men ready in less than an hour (chilling time is not included)!

Making these cute little guys at home is so much fun, and it is more fun to host a holiday party at your place, serving your guests with cookies.

I guarantee that you will have an amazing time making them with your little ones and eating them too. Yes, they are tastier than store-bought Trader Joe's mini gingerbread men cookies!

The good news? The Gingerman minis look adorable and festive enough without any decoration!

All you need is some patience (while chilling the cookie dough) and love, then sit back and relax while they bake away in the oven.

Finally, you have yourself a batch of yummy-looking mini Christmas cookies that will bring a smiley face to everybody.

They make a great gift for friends and family members who can't stop talking about how delicious they taste.

Get creative and use your other mini cookie cutters to make variable gingerbread cookies.

Then follow the guide on making a cookie box from one dough and enjoy!

And don't forget to download and print out FREE printable gift tags and a Season's Greetings card.

Now, what are you waiting for? Is your mixing bowl out yet? Indeed, it should be.

Jump to:

• Why you should try this recipe
• Ingredients
• How to make a mini gingerbread man
• Recipe variations
• Equipment
• Storage instructions
• Expert tips
• Frequently asked questions
• Love gingerbread recipes? Try these next!
• Need to adjust your baking pan size?
• Recipe card
• Comments

Why you should try this recipe

This recipe for mini gingerbread men cookies is easy and fun to bake.

It makes a basic gingerbread cookie dough that could be used to make different holiday cut-out cookies, including a small gingerbread house and gingerbread sandwich cookies.

The cookie dough may be made five days in advance. Keep it refrigerated. Once you are ready to bake, just roll it out, cut it into shapes, and bake.   

With this flavorful and "self-sufficient" recipe, it is easy to forget about possible mini gingerbread man decoration. You just don't need to make any!

The cookies are just of the perfect size, the one-bite size one.

Finally, these holiday treats - small gingerbread man cookies - are loved by kids and adults.

Ingredients

Here is a quick overview of what ingredients you will need. Follow the full recipe below for exact amounts and instructions. I recommend making the recipe as written for the best results.

Flour: use all-purpose flour to make the cookies. You can replace it with pastry flour or all-purpose gluten-free flour with perfect results.

Baking soda (aka sodium bicarbonate): it is a leavening agent helping cookies rise. Don't confuse it with baking powder, please.

Spices: warm spices such as ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg pack cookies with festive flavors.

Butter: the recipe calls for unsalted butter. Make sure that the butter is softened at room temperature.

Sugar: use granulated sugar or caster sugar. Replace it with brown sugar if desired.

Large egg: Make sure it is at room temperature for the best baking results. 

Honey: use any liquid honey. But the strong-flavored buckwheat honey is the most preferable for making gingerbread cookies.

How to make a mini gingerbread man

To make the cookie dough, mix flour, baking soda, and all the spices in a mixing bowl.

In a separate large bowl, beat butter with sugar with an electric mixer for about 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the egg and warm liquid honey (warm it in the microwave for a few seconds) and whisk with a mixer.

Pour the dry ingredients into the principal preparation and mix with a rubber spatula.

Transfer the dough to a working surface lined with plastic wrap, cover it well with plastic, and refrigerate for 2 hours. 

Preheat the oven to 355 degrees F/180 degrees C. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Using a rolling pin, roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper to 5/32"/4 mm thick.

Dip a mini gingerbread man cookie cutter (from the mini cookie cutters set) into flour, and cut out shapes.

Peel off excess cookie dough from around the miniature gingerbread men.

Use a cookie spatula or a palette knife to carefully lift the cookies without ruining their shapes and place them on the prepared baking sheet.

Collect the dough scraps, re-roll them, and cut more cookies until you have used up all the dough.

Then, bring the cookie shapes to the freezer for a few minutes to facilitate transferring them to the baking sheet.

Bake for 5 to 7 minutes. Watch out for the mini cookies during baking: they can burn out quickly.

Take them from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack.

Recipe variations

True gingerbread cookies should be packed with festive flavors due to warm spices.

While you can play with adding spices according to your taste, it is not recommended to use more than 3 to 4 kinds of spices.

Of course, you can change the amounts of the standard spices listed in the mini gingerbread cookies recipe.

Or simply add ½ teaspoon of ground cloves. Cloves give a nice touch of spice and warmth to the dough.

Leave small gingerbread men cookies undecorated or dip them in melted chocolate.

What about mini gingerbread man decorations? Use white cookie icing or homemade royal icing with a piping bag fitted with Ateco pastry tip 00 or 1, or design your cookies.

Now let you for a creative gingerbread man! Pipe a smiley face, dress him up with decorative shorts, and simply put buttons or a zig-zag across the arms and legs.

Let your cookies stay at room temperature for at least 2 hours; better overnight for the icing to set.

Another simple way to bring a finishing touch to the cookies is to top them with icing (powdered) sugar.

Equipment

What baking tools or equipment do you need to make these cookies? You will need a mixing bowl, a rubber spatula, and an electric mixer or a stand mixer to make the cookie dough.

To make the cookie cut-outs, use a rolling pin, a set of mini cookie cutters, a baking sheet, and a cookie spatula. Finally, prepare a wire rack for cooling down your cookies.

Storage instructions

Store your miniature gingerbread man cookies between layers of parchment paper in an airtight container in a dry place for up to 1 week.

You can freeze undecorated cookies in a Ziploc freezer bag for up to 3 months. To thaw, let them stay at room temperature.

Expert tips

1. Make-ahead option: make the cookie dough and chill it overnight, then bake the cookies the next day. You can refrigerate the dough well wrapped for up to 5 days.
2. If the cookie dough becomes soft and sticky during the roll/cutting process, just stop and refrigerate it for a few minutes to make it easier to work with. Make sure to cover the dough with plastic wrap or cookie shapes with parchment paper.
3. If you want softer cookies, roll the dough out as mentioned. For crispy cookies, roll the cookie dough thinner, but adjust the baking time. It may be less than 5 to 7 minutes.
4. Add a few seconds to the baking time for the deeper golden color of the cookies. Don't burn the cookies!
5. Bake one tray at a time for the best baking results. While you bake it, you fill another baking sheet with cookies.

Frequently asked questions

Love gingerbread recipes? Try these next!

Print

Recipe card

The nutritional information has been calculated using an online recipe nutrition calculator such as Verywellfit.com and is intended for informational purposes only. These figures should be used as a general guideline and not be construed as a guarantee.