Ingredients
3/4 cup butter, softened1 cup packed brown sugar1 large egg3/4 cup molasses4 cups all-purpose flour1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda1/4 teaspoon salt2 teaspoons ground ginger1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon3/4 teaspoon ground clovesVanilla frosting of choiceRed paste food coloring
Preparation
Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and molasses. In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and spices; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Divide dough in half; shape each into a disk. Wrap in plastic; refrigerate, covered, until firm enough to roll, 4 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut 60 gingerbread men using a floured 3-1/2-in. cookie cutter. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. If desired, cut sixty 1-1/4-in. triangles for hats; attach to gingerbread cutouts, pressing edges to seal. If desired, cut sixty 1/4-in. circles; attach to hats for pompoms.
Bake cookies until edges are firm, 8-10 minutes. Remove to wire racks; cool completely.
Tint some of the frosting red; use red frosting for hats and buttons. Cut a small hole in the corner of a pastry bag or heavy-duty resealable plastic bag; insert #3 round pastry tip. Fill bag with white frosting; pipe faces and trim on hands and feet. Using a #16 star pastry tip, pipe decorations on hats.
