Low in fat and calories so you can still indulge this holiday season without any guilt!
Gingerbread men run away from me as fast as their legs can carry them.
Five years ago, I drove to my best friendâs house for an afternoon of holiday baking. I brought a healthy fool-proof gingerbread cookie recipe, and we measured out the ingredients at her kitchen island. After mixing up the dough and wrapping it in plastic to chill, we headed out to a local deep-dish pizza place for dinner.
As we politely dug in with forks and knives, I blurted out, âOhmygoshâwe forgot the baking powder!â We stared at each other with wide eyes and dropped jaws before bursting into laughter.
Leftovers in hand, we returned to the kitchen where we gently kneaded baking powder into half of the dough and sprinkled some on top of the boys, stars, and candy canes we cut out of the rest. After pulling them out of the oven, we dissolved into giggles all over again.
They were flatter than paper with the occasional random raised bump from rubbing in the baking powder. (We still iced and ate themânothing wrong with their taste!)
But following my spiced pumpkin muffins, regular loaves of gingerbread (or mini gingerbread muffins) are one of my favorite cold-weather comfort foods. The strong molasses⌠The spicy ginger⌠The soft texture⌠Iâll devour all 16 servings in a day if left alone with the pan!
This year, I decided to give gingerbread cookies another try. But to ensure success, I made one tiny modificationâŚ
I turned them into Gingerbread Cookie Dough Bites!
At least half of you must be Cookie Monsters… My chocolate chip cookie dough bites are one of the most popular and most pinned recipes on my blog, closely followed by the double chocolate, pumpkin, and peanut butter ones.
Just like the others, these Gingerbread Cookie Dough Bites are safe to eat raw. They contain no eggs and are held together by applesauce and molasses instead. If you melt margarine instead of butter, these bites are also vegan.
Right after mixing all of the ingredients together, the dough will be very sticky and practically impossible to shape. Chilling is mandatory if you want to roll it into bite-sized balls. (But I wonât judge if youâd rather sneak it straight from the bowl with a spoon!)
Because of the applesauce, I recommend storing the cookie dough bites in the refrigerator if you have the self-restraint to save some for the next few days. The flavors also intensify as they chill; the ginger really pops after a night of sitting in the fridge!
My favorite part? These Gingerbread Cookie Dough Bites donât contain an ounce of baking powder, so itâs almost impossible for me to mess them up!
Which means Iâll have a very happy holiday baking season this year. âĽ
These taste just like gingerbread: spicy from the ginger with hints of molasses. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.
- Whisk together the flour, ginger, and salt in a small bowl. In a medium bowl, stir together the butter, molasses, applesauce, and vanilla until thoroughly combined. Mix in the brown sugar, smearing any clumps along the side of the bowl. Add in the dry flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Cover the cookie dough with plastic wrap, and chill for at least 1 hour.
- Line a baking sheet or large plate with wax paper. Roll the cookie dough into 32 little balls, using between 1 â 1½ teaspoons of dough in each ball. Place on the wax paper and refrigerate until ready to serve.
Note: Do NOT try to bake these as cookies! Theyâll turn out dense and flat because the recipe doesnât use any baking powder.
This is perfect for gingerbread. Do you have a pumpkin or snickerdoodle recipe for eggless cookie dough balls?
Yes, I do! You can find the pumpkin version here. In the future, the best way to find a specific recipe is to click on the “Recipes” tab at the top of my blog or use the Search Bar (located at the top of my blog, if youâre viewing on a computer, or the bottom of my blog, if youâre viewing on a mobile device). That will give you an answer much faster than waiting on a response from me! đ I’d love to hear what you think if you try them Marla!