Gingerbread Two Ways

Plate of treats I made last year - including my beloved gingerbread, bottom right.

I've been known to make copious treats for the holidays. In years past, I've taken a vacation day in the week before Christmas and spent several hours in the kitchen, concocting 4-5 types of cookies and candy. This year, I decided to scale back a bit. I'm trying to lose weight, so I really don't need dozens of cookies around. And I just don't have the time or inclination to bake that much this year. Thus, I decided I would make only my very favorite cookies this year: gingerbread.

I came upon this recipe after going vegan in 2008. Some recipes can be "veganized" by subbing vegan margarine for butter, etc., but that can be hit-or-miss. This gingerbread, however, is what I like to call accidentally vegan, in that the recipe doesn't call for any dairy or eggs. I'd never been a big gingerbread fan, but this recipe changed all that. It makes a soft, spicy dough that you can cut festive shapes out of and pipe adorable decorations onto. Perfect Christmas cookies.

This year, though, something went awry. I think it was because I used blackstrap molasses instead of regular molasses (as it was the only kind King Soopers had, and I was too lazy to go to another store). The dough was so gooey it was nearly impossible to roll out, and it was so sticky I couldn't get the cut cookies off the counter in one piece. I tried chilling the dough for another hour, then adding some extra flour to dry it out, but it didn't help. I also tried cursing it into submission, but (shockingly) that didn't work, either. My first instinct was to just give up. This quote, from the excellent film Forgetting Sarah Marshall, came to mind:

I was disappointed, because baking is my thing and I make tons of treats every year and everyone would be expecting them. I thought about making a new batch of dough, but that would've put me way behind schedule. But then I remembered a Facebook exchange I'd had with an old friend after writing this post. I came away from it resolved to stop getting caught up in holiday crazy and focus on doing things I enjoy and spending time with people I love. So I decided to stop stressing and make it work.Yes, I wouldn't be making my usual gingerbread men that everyone thought were so adorable and yummy, but I could still salvage the approximately five pounds of dough I had (yeah, I tripled the recipe) and make something, right? So I rolled the dough into balls, popped them in the oven, and hoped for the best.

Gingerbread whoopie pies with peppermint buttercream filling. 

I ended up with super soft, really flavorful cookies. They're not terribly sweet, so I used some peppermint buttercream I had in the fridge (cupcake leftovers) to up the sugar factor. I sandwiched them together, crushed up some candy canes to coat the sides, and voilà! Cute Christmas treat. It certainly wasn't what I was expecting, but it still turned out just fine.

Gingerbread Cookies

½ cup brown sugar
½ cup shortening
¾ cup dark molasses (or blackstrap, if you're in the mood for whoopie pies)
1/3 cup cold water
3 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ginger
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. ground allspice
½ tsp. ground cloves
½ tsp. ground cinnamon 

Mix brown sugar, shortening, molasses, and water. Add remaining ingredients and mix until combined. Cover and refrigerate at least two hours. If you're aiming for whoopie pies, roll dough into balls and place on cookie sheet. If you want gingerbread men, roll out dough to ¼” thick. Cut cookies and place 2" apart on baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

The peppermint frosting was made using the buttercream recipe from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World, but I subbed peppermint extract for vanilla. If you choose to make gingerbread men, I usually ice them with a mixture of powdered sugar, water, and a dash of lemon juice (just add the liquid a tablespoon at a time to powdered sugar until you've reached the taste/consistency you want).

In closing, I offer you my takeaway from this experience: work with what you've got and try to enjoy the ride, because everything's going to be just fine. Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!