Bring the magic of Disney to your kitchen this holiday season with Mickey Gingerbread. This gingerbread cookie recipe is easy to follow and is guaranteed to hold its shape while it bakes. Soft and chewy Disney cookies are a magical addition to any dessert tray.
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If you have every visited Disney during the holidays, you know how magical it is. There are decorations at every park, a huge Christmas tree at Magic Kingdom, and sweet holiday treats at every resort and park.
This year my favorite treat were the Mickey gingerbread cookies from Hollywood Studios. They were sweet and had the perfect amount of spice. Plus, they were so stinking cute!
Since visiting Disney is not possible for everyone during the holidays, I have a fun copycat gingerbread recipe, so you can bake your own magic at home.
Why Make Mickey Gingerbread
Gingerbread is always a classic Christmas flavor. Transforming this soft gingerbread cookie recipe into a cute Mickey gingerbread will make your holiday cookie trays even more magical.
- Soft, chewy, and perfectly spiced with ginger, cinnamon, and molasses.
- Great for cut-outs because it holds shapes well when baked.
- Freshly baked gingerbread makes your kitchen smell so good.
- Looks and tastes just like the Disney gingerbread cookies.
If you love treats from Disney then you need to try these Mickey rice krispies, these Mickey cake pops, and the famous Dole whip.
Ingredients Notes
For soft gingerbread cookies from scratch you just need a few pantry staples. Make sure you allow enough time to chill the dough as you plan your holiday baking.
- Butter - Real butter is best. Butter spread or margarine will make the cookies spread too much.
- Dark Brown Sugar - This is a favorite to use for gingerbread. It keeps the cookies soft and makes them taste amazing.
- Molasses - The key ingredient in a gingerbread cookie is molasses. Using dark gives the cookies the best flavor. Do not use blackstrap because it is too bitter.
- Flour - Most of our recipes all for all purpose flour. Make sure you know how to measure flour correctly, so your recipes turn out right every time.
- Spices - A combination of cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, and nutmeg give it a great spice flavor.
- Dark Chocolate & White Chocolate Melting Wafers - Use melted chocolate to make the faces on the Mickey cookies. If you do not want to mess with melting chocolate you can also use tubes of ready made cookie icing.
How to Make Gingerbread Cookies
This gingerbread cookie recipe is easy to make. Feel free to cut it into different shapes and sizes, but Disney fans know that everything tastes better when it's Mickey shaped.
Make the Dough
Mix the wet ingredients. Beat the softened butter and brown sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the egg and molasses and mix again.
Add the dry ingredients. Stir together the dry ingredients in a smaller bowl and slowly mix them in until a soft and sticky dough comes together.
Scrape the bowl. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated. The dough is sticky, so do not be alarmed.
Roll and Bake
Divide the mixture into 2 balls. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a few hours.
Roll the dough. Unwrap 1 ball and place it between sheets of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to roll it out to ½" thick. (if you want more cookies, roll it ¼" thick)
Cut out shapes. Remove the top parchment. Use a Mickey cookie cutter dipped in flour to cut shapes, but DO NOT move anything. Place the bottom parchment with cut dough back in the fridge for 10-15 minutes.
Bake and cool. Remove the pan from the fridge and gently pull away the excess dough from around the shapes. Use a spatula dipped in flour to move the shapes to a baking sheet. Bake the chilled dough in a preheated oven immediately.
BruCrew Tip: The scraps can be gathered together and rerolled to make more cookies. But only do this once or the cookies will become tough.
Decorate Cookies
- Spoon melted white chocolate into a ziplock bag and cut one small corner off.
- Draw a line around the cookie edges, then add drizzles to the ears.
- Melt the dark chocolate and place in a bag. Cut the corner off and make the eyes, nose, and smile.
- Add red hots for the cheeks. You can also use mini red M&M's or pink melting chocolate.
Storage Recommendations
Counter - Store the cookies in a loosely sealed container at room temperature for 4-5 days.
Freezer - If you want to freeze the cookies before decorating, stack them in a freezer safe container separated by layers of parchment paper for up to 3 months. Thaw them on a wire rack for a few hours before decorating.
Tips and Tricks
Gingerbread is so fun to bake during the holidays. After making it a few times, here are our tips to help your cookies turn out great every time.
- Be patient! This dough is sticky, so it requires multiple chill times. But trust me, it is worth it.
- Roll the gingerbread dough balls between parchment paper to keep it from sticking to the counter and rolling pin.
- Dip the cookie cutter in flour to prevent it from sticking in the dough.
- If you use different size cookie cutters, be sure to bake the same size cookies together so they bake evenly.
- For the softest and thickest cookies, do not roll the dough any thinner than ½" thick.
- Make sure the cookies are completely cool before adding any royal icing or chocolate decorations.
- For another decorating option, dip the ears in melted chocolate and add some holiday sprinkles.
- For more fun Christmas cookies try these easy Christmas cookies to bake with kids!
Recipe FAQS
The main reason for hard gingerbread is over baking the cookies and rolling the dough too thin. Large cookie shapes will be done between 12-14 minutes and small cookies will be done around 10-11 minutes. If you roll the dough thinner, your cookies will be done sooner.
This gingerbread cookie recipe will spread if you use too much baking powder or if you bake warm dough. Follow the directions and measure your ingredients properly and then chill the dough multiple times.
When gingerbread is fully baked, the edges will be firm and the tops will not be shiny. The center of the dough should not be darker than the edges.
You can make the dough ahead of time and freeze it prior to baking. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the dough in the refrigerator overnight and then roll, cut and bake as directed.
More Classic Cookies
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Recipe
Mickey Gingerbread
Bring the magic of Disney to your kitchen this holiday season with Mickey Gingerbread Cookies. This gingerbread cookie recipe is easy to follow and is guaranteed to hold its shape while it bakes. Soft and chewy Disney cookies are a magical addition to any cookie tray.
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon allspice
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ½ dark brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup dark molasses (not blackstrap)
- ¾ cup white chocolate melting wafers
- ½ cup dark chocolate melting wafers
- 18 red hots
Instructions
- Stir together the dry ingredients in a bowl. Set aside.
- Beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. (about 1 minute) Add the egg and molasses and mix again.
- Scrape the bowl and slowly mix in the dry ingredients until a sticky dough forms.
- Divide the mixture into 2 balls. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours.
- Preheat oven to 350°.
- Unwrap 1 ball and place between sheets of parchment paper. Roll out to ½" thick, remove the top parchment. Cut out shapes, but do not move anything. Place the bottom parchment with cut dough back in the fridge for 10 minutes. Repeat with the other dough ball.
- Remove one pan and gently pull away the excess dough from around the shapes and place in fridge. Use a flat spatula dipped in flour to move the shapes to a baking sheet. Bake immediately for 12-14 minutes. Let cool on hot pan for 2-3 minutes, then gently place on a wire rack to cool completely.
- Repeat with 2nd pan of dough shapes and refrigerate excess dough. Once the dough scraps are chilled, press together and re-roll in between parchment. For a large cookie cutter you should be able to get 9 cookies.
- Once cookies are completely chilled, melt the white chocolate according to package directions. Spoon into a ziplock bag and cut one small corner off. Draw a line around the cookie edges, then fill in the ears.
- Melt the dark chocolate and place in a bag. Cut the corner off and make eyes, nose, and smile. Add red hots for the cheeks. Let set before placing in a loosely sealed container.
Notes
- Be patient! This dough is sticky, so it requires multiple chill times. But trust me, it is worth it.
- Roll the gingerbread dough balls between parchment paper to keep it from sticking to the counter and rolling pin.
- Dip the cookie cutter in flour to prevent it from sticking in the dough.
- If you use different size cookie cutters, be sure to bake the same size cookies together so they bake evenly.
- For the softest and thickest cookies, do not roll the dough any thinner than ½" thick.
- Make sure the cookies are completely cool before adding any royal icing or chocolate decorations.
- For another decorating option, dip the ears in melted chocolate and add some holiday sprinkles.
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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 9 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 353Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 61mgSodium: 149mgCarbohydrates: 47gFiber: 1gSugar: 14gProtein: 5g
Nutrition facts are an estimate and are not guaranteed to be accurate. If you need special diet advice, please see a registered dietician.
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