Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice: 30 Unusual Gingerbread Recipes (2024)

Add a little bit of sugar and spice to your life with this roundup of 30 flavor-packed gingerbread recipes. We travel the world this time around, featuring a combination of traditional and modern gingerbread treats from Germany, Sweden, Brazil and more! This collection will surely warm you up, especially when combined with any of these chill-crushing drinks and a fireplace, even if yours is made of washi tape.

1. Gingerbread House: Be sure to bookmark this guide to making a gingerbread house like a pro! It includes all the recipes and info you need — be sure to click on the “favorite gingerbread tips and tricks” link — along with free, printable templates for two types of home styles: the one pictured above, along with a much-easier-to-manage A-frame. (via Tikkido)

2. Pfeffernüsse: These peppery, German gingerbread cookies are so tasty and quick to prepare. A snowy dusting of powdered sugar provides a lovely finishing touch. (via Technicolor Kitchen)

3. Apple Gingerbread Pancakes with Apple Cider-Maple Syrup: Molasses and spice lend a gingerbread note to these shredded apple-filled buttermilk pancakes. (via Portuguese Girl Cooks)

4. Pain d’épices: This French gingerbread features a generous glug of honey in place of the usual molasses. Across between a cake and bread, it’s quite versatile and keeps well for days, making it an especially nice treat to have on hand. (via David Lebovitz)

5. Gingerbread Trifle: Alternate layers of crumbled gingerbread cake and amaretto-spiked mascarpone whipped cream to create these tasty, personal-size trifles. (via Tasty Trials)

6. Molded Gingerbread Cookies: A nice change of pace from the usual cutouts, these stamped cookies painted with a clear sugar glaze are almost too pretty to eat! (via Cooking Melangery)

7. Gingerbread Granola: Warming spices, molasses and maple syrup combine with oats, nuts, candied ginger and dried cranberries to create a tasty breakfast or snack; this granola is great to have on hand for when you’re pressed for time! (via Cookie and Kate)

8. Gingerbread Spice Dutch Baby: Just the right size for two people to share, this fluffy pancake-crepe fusion is ideal for breakfast in bed! (via Sweetsugarbean)

10. Gingerbread Waffles (Vegan): Tender, spicy, whole wheat waffles make a terrific, hearty breakfast. (via Minimalist Baker)

11. Gingerbread Madelines: Gingerbread madelines need nary a sprinkle of powdered sugar to shine, but for an especially, uh, special treat try them spread with nutella! (via Fortune Goodies)

12. Pepparkakor (Swedish Ginger Thins): Can’t resist picking up a box of Anna’s ginger thins when you’re at IKEA? Now you can make them totally from scratch! (via The Cutlery Chronicles)

13. Cinnamon-Sugar Gingerbread Doughnuts: Any apple cider donut fans out there? Give these gingerbread donuts a whirl for a wintery variation. (via Tracey’s Culinary Adventures)

14. Pumpkin Ice Cream with Beer Caramel Sauce and Gingerbread Croutons: Gingerbread croutons add just enough texture to this delectable, homemade sundae. (via Buttercream Blondie)

15. Gingerbread Caramel Corn: Pretzel sticks add a touch of saltiness to this sweet, molasses- and spice-laced caramel corn. (via Heather Christo)

16. Lebkuchen (Chocolate-Glazed Almond Spice Cookies): Candied citrus peel and cardamom add a terrific fruitiness to these nutty (as in almond!) German gingerbread cookies. (via Saveur)

17. Gingerbread Cheesecake: Featuring a gingerbread crust, filling AND garnish, this triple-threat cheesecake makes a terrifically festive dessert. (via Martha Stewart)

18. Chocolate Gingerbread Cutout Cookies: Cocoa powder lends these cutouts a gorgeous, rich hue and just enough chocolate flavor. (via Crosby Molasses)

19. Lebkuchen Spice Macarons with Quince Jam and Candied Ginger: A homemade, German gingerbread spice blend — made with anise, coriander seed and cardamom along with the usual suspects — lends a bit of oomph to these macaron shells filled with a fragrant, caramelized quince jam and a surpise candied ginger center. (via What’s For Lunch Honey)

20. Gramercy Tavern’s Gingerbread: Not for the faint of heart, this Guinness-laced loaf is full of intense gingerbread flavors. (via Smitten Kitchen)

21. Gingerbread Anise Biscotti: Star anise adds a lovely, licorice-y flavor to these biscotti artfully drizzled with white chocolate. (via A New Bloom)

22. Pumpkin and Gingerbread Ice Cream Sandwiches: Two homemade gingerbread cookies sandwich pumpkin ice cream in this perfect pairing. (via Canelle Et Vanille)

23. The “Sweetest” Village Ever: We created a little gingerbread village complete with candied gingerbread men. So cute! (via Brit + Co.)

24. Parkin: This traditional ginger cake from Northern England is loaded with history. What sets it apart from other types of gingerbread is the inclusion of oats and treacle — an uncrystallized syrup similar to molasses. (via Fisher & Paykel)

25. Ginger Whoopie Pies: Whipped cream cheese frosting pairs nicely with spiced cakey, cookies. (via Deliciously Declassified)

26. Gingerbread Brigadeiros: Rolled in toasted pecans, these gingerbread-flavored Brazilian candies are the perfect blend of crunchy and creamy. (Recipes are also included for peppermint and eggnog flavors!) (via Give Me Flour)

27. Gingerbread Cake: Lemony frosting tops this gingerbread cake, lending it a brightly flavored finish. For even more citrus flavor, add some tangerine zest to the batter as one reviewer did! (via Bon Appetit)

28. Gingerbread Gift Tag Cookies: Use these gingerbread gift tags to add a totally personalized, edible element to your holiday gifts. They also make terrific ornaments for a Christmas tree! (via Erica’s Sweet Tooth)

29. Gingerbread Latte: Homemade gingerbread syrup makes your kitchen smell divine, and helps you skip out on long coffee shop lines! (via theKitchn)

30. Gingerbread Cake with Lingonberries and Vanilla Goat Cheese Frosting (Gluten-free): This cake features a truly unique, intriguing combination of flavors. The vanilla bean-flecked goat cheese frosting sounds like a terrific change of pace from the much more common cream cheese-based icings. (via Dagmar’s Kitchen)

Tell us, what’s your favorite form of gingerbread — cookie, caramel, co*cktail, …? Show off your architecture skills by sharing photos of any gingerbread houses you construct in the comments!

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  • Mini Gingerbread Cheesecake Recipe - Brit + Co ›

Heather Sage

Heather Sage is a gluten-free recipe developer and freelance writer living in Orlando by way of the Silicon Valley. When she isn’t playing around with alternative flours in the kitchen, she can be found tackling DIY projects around the house or exploring her neighborhood. Check out her gluten-free recipe blog, A Sage Amalgam.

Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice: 30 Unusual Gingerbread Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What makes gingerbread so strong? ›

A 1:4 ratio of butter to flour makes the gingerbread strong. Corn syrup keeps freshly baked gingerbread pliable and soft, so it's easy to cut while warm. Rolling the dough directly on parchment makes it easy to transfer to the pan.

Why are spices used in gingerbread? ›

Spices give any gingerbread its delicious aroma and memorable taste. Ginger is the spice you will find in every gingerbread recipe. It comes from the knobby rhizome of a tropical plant and has a peppery zing and spicy scent.

How do you harden gingerbread? ›

To achieve crispy, sturdy gingerbread, Lomas recommends letting the baked gingerbread pieces dry out for a day or two. Don't put the pieces in the refrigerator or keep them in a closed container, as this keeps the moisture in. “The longer it dries out, the easier it is to work with for construction purposes,” she said.

What are the three types of gingerbread? ›

The three distinct types of gingerbread are brown gingerbread, wafer-based gingerbread and honey gingerbread.
  • BROWN GINGERBREAD.
  • WAFER GINGERBREAD.
  • HONEY GINGERBREAD.

What spice smells like gingerbread? ›

As do the addition of nutmeg or allspice and cloves, all very distinct by themselves. All four sweet spices of ginger, cinnamon, allspice and cloves, in descending order of the usual measured portion, come together into an spice amalgam that makes gingerbread smell like gingerbread.

What is a substitute for allspice in gingerbread? ›

Combine cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves thoroughly in a small mixing bowl. Use as a 1:1 substitute for 1 tsp of allspice.

What is the main flavor in gingerbread? ›

Gingerbread refers to a broad category of baked goods, typically flavored with ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon and sweetened with honey, sugar, or molasses.

How do you make a gingerbread house stronger? ›

So to make sure our walls could stand strong, we sandwiched melted marshmallow cement between two graham crackers. The marshmallow adds weight, which helps stabilize the structure. It also acts as a sealant, ensuring that the cracker won't crumble.

What holds gingerbread together? ›

Fit Everything Together with Melted Sugar or Royal Icing

The second way is to use burnt sugar as your glue. Just melt C&H® Pure Granulated Cane Sugar in a pan on the stove, dip the gingerbread parts in and hold them together for a few seconds. Then, presto! You've created a solid house.

What is the raising agent in gingerbread? ›

Bicarbonate of soda, or baking soda, is an alkali which is used to raise soda breads and full-flavoured cakes such as gingerbread, fruit cake, chocolate cake and carrot cake.

Should gingerbread be hard? ›

Gingerbread biscuits can be hard or soft, so if you want to make decorations, you'll need a recipe that will set hard and be very dry. The drier the biscuit is, the longer the icing will keep its original colour and stay hard. If the biscuits are soft, the icing will start to suck up moisture and colour over time.

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