Directions:

In a large bowl using a hand-held mixer or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter for 1 minute on medium speed until completely smooth and creamy. Add the brown sugar and molasses and beat on medium high speed until combined and light in color. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed. Next, beat in egg and vanilla on high speed for 2 full minutes. It may look chunky and separated after the eggs are added, this is normal.

. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves. On low speed, slowly mix into the wet ingredients until combined. The cookie dough will be quite thick and slightly sticky. Divide dough in half and place each portion onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Wrap each up tightly and pat down to create a disc shape. Chill discs for at least 3 hours and up to 3 days. Overnight chilling is ideal!

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 2-3 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

Remove 1 disc of chilled cookie dough from the refrigerator. Generously flour a work surface, as well as your hands and the rolling pin. Don’t be afraid to continually flour the work surface as needed- this dough can be sticky. Roll out disc until 1/4-inch thick. Cut into shapes. Place shapes 1 inch apart on prepared baking sheets. Re-roll dough scraps until all the dough is shaped. Repeat with remaining disc of dough.

Bake cookies for about 9-10 minutes. If your cookie cutters are smaller than 4 inches, bake for about 8 minutes. If your cookie cutters are larger than 4 inches, bake for about 11 minutes. The edges should be slightly darker than the rest of the cookie.

Allow cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet. Transfer to cooling rack to cool completely. Once completely cool, decorate as desired.

Cookies stay fresh covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. Decorate with royal icing as desired

Non-traditional Royal Icing (no raw eggs or meringue powder)
Timing: 5 minutes active, up to 4 hours inactive if decorating
Makes about 1 cup of icing

Mix powdered sugar, milk, corn syrup, and vanilla together in a large bowl. You are looking for a consistency that will drip off of a spoon slowly. If it is too thick, add water 1 tsp at a time. If it is too thin, sprinkle in a bit more powdered sugar.

Divide into smaller bowls and dye using food gel coloring. Start with only 1 drop! It is easier to add color than it is to remove it.

Decorate your cookies by either dipping them face-down into the icing and scraping off excess on the side of the bowl, OR by piping the icing in a border and then flooding it with more icing

If you want to layer the icing (such as ornaments on a tree or faces on gingerbread men) allow the base color to dry for at least 2 hours before piping on top

Add sprinkles while icing is wet.
When not using a particular color of icing or while waiting for a base color to set, cover the remaining icing with either a wet paper towel or in a tightly sealed container so it doesn’t dry out