Gingerbread Latte Cookies

Real espresso powder awakens the cozy spices and molasses in our gingerbread latte cookies, with a matching espresso glaze for an unmistakable latte flavor.

All the festive warmth, buzzy caffeine and cozy spice of a holiday gingerbread latte have found their way into our soft gingerbread latte cookies. Instant espresso powder is the latte catalyst found in the boldly spiced gingerbread dough and the glaze that completely covers each cookie. Baking the cookies is a treat in itself, filling the kitchen with every single note of dark gingerbread and freshly brewed coffee. These are truly soft and tender cookies—even the wafer-thin glaze easily shatters with each bite.

Here’s hoping you’ll have enough molasses left to enjoy the cookies with an actual gingerbread latte. Fingers crossed.

Ingredients for Gingerbread Latte Cookies

• Butter: Forget to take the butter out of the fridge? Soften butter quickly by cutting it up into cubes or shredding it on a cheese grater.
• Sugars: We use both granulated and light brown sugars in our gingerbread latte cookie recipe. Granulated sugar makes the outsides of the cookies barely crispy, and brown sugar keeps the insides soft and chewy.
• Eggs: Two large eggs bind the ingredients together.
• Molasses: Molasses is the key ingredient in gingerbread cookies. It adds that quintessential tang and dark hue that makes our brains recognize the festive flavor.
• All-purpose flour: All-purpose flour is the best type of flour for cookies. The mix of hard and soft wheat keeps the cookies strong enough to hold their shape but soft enough to become chewy and tender.
• Spices: We perfected the spice blend—ginger, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg—to really make these cookies taste like a festive gingerbread-flavored cookie.
• Espresso powder: Adding instant espresso powder to the cookie dough and glaze gives the cookies a latte flavor.
• Icing: Our espresso-flavored icing is created from milk, confectioners’ sugar, espresso powder, vanilla extract and a pinch of salt to make everything shine.

Directions

Step 1: Make the cookie dough

Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a large bowl, use a hand mixer or stand mixer to cream the softened butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, five to seven minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Add in the molasses and vanilla extract and mix well.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, ground ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, instant espresso powder, salt, cloves and nutmeg. Gradually add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture until just combined.

Step 2: Portion and bake

Drop the cookie dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake the cookies until they spring back when touched lightly, 12 to 15 minutes. Try not to overbake or they won’t be soft. Remove the cookies from the baking sheets to wire racks.

Step 3: Mix the glaze

In a small bowl, whisk 3 tablespoons of the whole milk with the instant espresso powder until dissolved. Add the vanilla extract and salt to the espresso mixture. Gradually whisk the confectioners’ sugar into the espresso mixture in parts, making sure to smooth out the lumps before adding more confectioners’ sugar. And in enough of the remaining milk—1 teaspoon at a time—until the desired consistency is reached.

Step 4: Decorate

Dip the tops of the cookies into the icing. Gently remove the excess icing by using a small offset spatula to swipe across the top. Let the icing set before stacking the cookies on a Christmas cookie tray or in an airtight container.

Recipe Variations

• Include orange zest: I love adding orange zest to my gingerbread recipes. The brightness is a nice complement to the dark, spicy flavors. Add 1 teaspoon of orange zest to the cookie dough or glaze.
• Try a different glaze or frosting: Feel free to omit this recipe’s glaze and instead decorate the cookies with melted white chocolate or cover them in mocha frosting.

How to Store Gingerbread Latte Cookies

Store gingerbread latte cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to four days. If they’re starting to go stale, place a piece of sandwich bread in the container. The cookies will absorb the bread’s moisture and soften.

Can you freeze gingerbread latte cookies?

Yes, you can freeze gingerbread latte cookies, baked or unbaked. To freeze the cookie dough, portion the cookie dough with the cookie scoop and line the cookie dough balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Pop the sheet tray in the freezer, uncovered, until the cookie dough balls are hard, about 60 minutes. Transfer the cookie dough balls to a zip-top bag and freeze for up to two months. No need to thaw them—just bake as directed, adding a few extra minutes as needed.

To freeze the cookies (iced or uniced), allow them to cool to room temperature, then transfer them to an airtight container, placing parchment between stacks to prevent them from sticking. Freeze for up to two months and thaw at room temperature.

Gingerbread Latte Cookie Tips

Can you make this gingerbread latte cookie recipe gluten-free?

We haven’t tested it, but if you want to make these gingerbread latte cookies gluten-free, use one of the best gluten-free flour blends. I find the King Arthur Flour Measure for Measure Gluten-Free Flour blend to be the most reliable.

Do you have to include the instant espresso powder?

No, you don’t have to include the instant espresso powder. However, it’s what gives these cookies the “latte” flavor. Without it, they may just taste like regular gingerbread cookies.

Which kind of molasses is best?

The best molasses for gingerbread latte cookies is dark molasses, such as the molasses from Grandma’s brand. I wouldn’t use light or blackstrap molasses as the flavors and colors are different, which may throw off the gingerbread latte cookie recipe a bit.

Loading Popular in the Community