Everybody has heard about gingerbread men, but this holiday season, switch things up a bit and make yours chocolate! These adorable Chocolate Gingerbread Men cookies are almost too cute to eat, but they’re too delicious not to! Use candy canes to make these tasty and oh-so-cute Christmas cookies even more special!
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Full of warm, gingerbread spices and a tasty twist from the addition of a bit of chocolate, these holiday cookies are delightfully different! The chocolate really comes through and pairs so nicely with the flavor – it’ll be hard to eat just one!
Grab your stand mixer, cookie cutters, and baking sheet and make your friends and family these adorable Chocolate Gingerbread Men. This is an easy recipe and the kids can help, too!
What you’ll love about this recipe
- These cookies are so cute!
- Chocolate gives them even extra flavor!
- They’re fun and easy to make!
Tools You’ll Need to Make chocolate Gingerbread Men
Ingredients To Make Chocolate Gingerbread Men Cookies
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Cocoa powder
- Cinnamon powder – Make sure your spices are nice and fresh for this recipe
- Ginger powder – Nice, fresh spices make all the difference!
- Salt
- Unsalted butter – If you use salted butter omit the pinch of salt
- White sugar
- Brown sugar
- Molasses
- Egg
- Vanilla extract
- Chocolate chips
How To Make This Chocolate Gingerbread Man Cookie Recipe
For a full list of ingredients and instructions, please scroll down to the recipe at the bottom of this page.
- Mix the dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and blend well with a whisk to ensure they’re all combined.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar.
- Add the molasses, egg, and
vanilla extract to the butter and sugar mixture. - Meanwhile, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips. When melted, let them cool slightly and add them to the butter sugar mixture.
- Working in two batches, add the flour mixture to the butter and chocolate. Keep the stand mixer on low as it’ll start to work hard.
- Form the dough into a disc and refrigerate it for 2-3 hours or until quite cold.
- Roll out the dough and cut your gingerbread men cookies. Place the cookies on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and fold up the arms slightly. Bake at 350-F for about 10 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool before moving.
- Decorate with royal icing and nestle an unwrapped candy cane into their arms.
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- When making this holiday cookie recipe, make sure the dough is fully chilled before rolling. It’ll be harder to roll out but the dough really does need to be cold to hold up to the moving.
- Roll the dough out on a well floured surface, or roll them out on parchment paper and transfer them to the baking sheet on the paper.
- Leftover royal icing will keep if covered with plastic wrap so use it for your next project.
Frequently Asked Questions
They’re not hard to make, but they do take some time just because the dough has to chill and then they have to bake and cool on the cookie sheet before moving them. Just allow plenty of time and enjoy the process!
No, but you can swap your favorite gluten-free flour blend for the all-purpose flour. I, however, have not tried the recipes with alternate flours so can’t comment on how well they turn out.
You can freeze these cookies (minus the candy canes) for a few months if they’re tightly wrapped, or keep them in an airtight container on the counter for 3-4 days. Be careful their delicate arms don’t break off!
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Step By Step Process
Ingredients. 
Cream butter and sugars. 
Add egg and molasses to bowl. 
Mix dry ingredients. 
Combine wet and dry. 
Wrap dough in plastic and chill. 
Roll out dough and cut cookies. 
Bake then decorate.
Chocolate Gingerbread Men Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons cinnamon powder
- 1 tablespoon ginger powder
- 1 pinch salt if using unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
Instructions
- Mix the dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl and blend well with a whisk to ensure they're all combined.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar.
- Add the molasses, egg, and vanilla extract to the butter and sugar mixture.
- Meanwhile, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips. When melted, let them cool slightly and add them to the butter sugar mixture.
- Working in two batches, add the flour mixture to the butter and chocolate. Keep the stand mixer on low as it'll start to work hard.
- Form the dough into a disc and refrigerate it for 2-3 hours or until quite cold.
- Roll out the dough and cut your gingerbread men cookies. Place the cookies on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and fold up the arms slightly. Bake at 350-F for about 10-12 minutes.
- Let the cookies cool before moving.
- Decorate with royal icing and nestle an unwrapped candy cane into their arms.
Notes
Chef Jenn’s Tips
- Make sure the dough is fully chilled before rolling. It’ll be harder to roll out but the dough really does need to be cold to hold up to the moving.
- Roll the dough out on a well-floured surface, or roll them out on parchment paper and transfer them to the baking sheet on the paper.
- Leftover royal icing will keep if covered with plastic wrap so use it for your next project.
Nutrition
A Note on Nutritional Information
Nutritional information for this recipe is provided as a courtesy and is calculated based on available online ingredient information. It is only an approximate value. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site cannot be guaranteed.
