One December during my middle school years, my aunt flew out from Arizona to visit us for the holidays. On her first full day at our house, she suggested that we made gingerbread cookies as an afternoon project, and since Mom usually lacked the patience for baking anything besides boxed mix brownies, my brother and I immediately agreed.
We found a recipe in one of our faded old cookbooks and quickly set to work measuring and mixing together the ingredients. After rolling out the dough and slicing it into fun shapes with our eclectic collection of cookie cutters, everything from candy canes and Santa’s sleigh to Mickey Mouse and the Pillsbury Dough Boy, we popped the trays into the oven to bake.
A couple of hours later, we sat down at the kitchen table to decorate our treats. Instead of mixing up traditional royal icing, we just stirred together milk and powdered sugar in a handful of small bowls, then squirted in a few drops of food coloring to dye them pastel shades of pink, green, yellow, and blue.
When we finished icing the cookies, we arranged them on large dinner plates and safely tucked those away on top of the refrigerator. Our golden retriever could easily jump up on the counters and eat anything in sight!
That evening, I slipped into the kitchen to sneak a cookie before dinner when Mom wasn’t looking. After grabbing a small star, I hastily slid the plate back on top of the fridge and brushed the crumbs off my fingertips, but when Mom opened the refrigerator door a few minutes later to pull out some vegetables…
That plate tumbled down and shattered on the kitchen floor, sending broken pieces of stoneware and cookies into every nook and cranny. Whoops!
Ever since then, I’ve thought of my aunt and that little refrigerator incident whenever I’ve eaten gingerbread cookies… But since she passed away six years ago, I haven’t actually baked any homemade ones. However, I decided to change that this year, so I set out to create this recipe for the Ultimate Healthy Gingerbread Cookies. They’re full of the same cozy flavors as traditional recipes, but without any butter, refined flour or sugar, they come with none of the guilt. And I know my aunt would’ve loved these!
(And I stashed the leftover cookies on a shelf in the pantry this time, not the top of the fridge!)
KEY INGREDIENTS TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY GINGERBREAD COOKIES
To make these healthier gingerbread cookies, you’ll start with white whole wheat flour. That sounds a little contradictory, doesn’t it? Normally white flour and whole wheat flour are two totally different things! However, white whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of white wheat, whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. This gives white whole wheat flour a lighter taste and texture, similar to all-purpose flour, but it still has the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour (like extra fiber!).
The gingerbread flavor comes from two main sources: ground ginger and molasses. I’m sure you guessed the first of those ingredients! The molasses provides the deep, rich, cozy undertones, and it’s absolutely crucial when making gingerbread cookies. Don’t skip it! Molasses is inexpensive, shelf-stable, and keeps for ages. This is the kind that I buy, and you can find it at most grocery stores near the honey or maple syrup.
In addition to the molasses, you’ll sweeten these cookies with one of my favorite ingredients: vanilla crème stevia. Stevia is a plant-based, no-calorie sweetener that’s clean eating friendly, and it’s very concentrated. A little goes a long way — you just need 1 teaspoon for this entire batch of cookies! This is the kind that I buy because I love its warm vanilla flavor and don’t notice any strange aftertastes like with some other stevia products. You can find it at many health-oriented grocery stores, but I usually buy mine online here because that’s the cheapest price I’ve found. (And you’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!)
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST HEALTHY GINGERBREAD COOKIES
I have a special trick to share with you about how to easily roll out cookie dough with absolutely NO mess… You’ll roll it out between two large sheets of plastic wrap! With this trick, you don’t need to flour your work surface OR the cookie dough OR the rolling pin. It works like a charm for pie crusts and my sugar cookies, too! (Bonus: Your rolling pin won’t get dirty, so you don’t have to wash it!)
Here’s another pro tip for how to create perfectly shaped cut-out cookies… After pressing down the cookie cutters into the dough, peel the extra dough away from those shapes. (If you pull the cut-out cookie dough away from the extra dough, it usually stretches and turns misshapen!) Then slide a knife underneath the cut-out cookie dough to loosen it from the plastic wrap, and transfer it to your baking sheet. Ta da! Perfectly shaped cookies!
Then after a quick trip to the oven…
Time to pour a glass of milk and enjoy your cookies! Although with how much my family loved these, you may need to bake a second batch to make sure you have enough for Santa on Christmas Eve… 😉
And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your ultimate healthy gingerbread cookies!
The Ultimate Healthy Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
FOR THE COOKIES
- 1 cup + 6 tbsp (165g) white whole wheat flour (measured like this)
- ¾ tsp cornstarch
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- 1 ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
- ⅛ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp (28g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup (60mL) molasses (not blackstrap!)
- 1 tsp vanilla crème stevia (see Notes!)
FOR THE ICING (optional)
- 10 tsp confectioners' style erythritol (see Notes!)
- 2 tsp nonfat milk (or adjusted to achieve your desired consistency)
Instructions
- To prepare the cookies, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt in a medium bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, egg, and vanilla extract. Stir in the molasses and vanilla stevia. Add in the flour mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Transfer the dough to the center of a large sheet of plastic wrap, and shape into a 1”-tall rectangle. Cover the top with another large sheet of plastic wrap. Chill the dough for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 325°F, and line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Leaving the cookie dough between the sheets of plastic wrap, roll it out until ⅛” thick. Lightly flour your cookie cutter, and press it into the dough, making sure each shape lies as close to its neighbors as possible to minimize unused dough. Peel the unused dough away from the shapes, and place them onto the prepared baking sheets. Reroll the unused dough, and repeat.
- Bake the cut out cookie dough at 325°F for 8-10 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
- To prepare the icing, stir together the confectioner’s style erythritol and milk in a small bowl. Spoon into a zip-topped bag, and snip off the corner. Pipe onto the cooled cookies.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also enjoy Amy’s other recipes…
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Sugar Cookies
♡ Soft-Baked Ginger Cookies
♡ Gingerbread Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Gingerbread Breakfast Cookies
♡ Classic Gingerbread with Maple Glaze
♡ Gingerbread Muffins
♡ Gingerbread Protein Overnight Oats
♡ Baked Gingerbread Donuts with Maple Glaze
♡ …and the rest of Amy’s healthy cookie recipes and healthy holiday recipes!
Note: The recipe video was sponsored by SweetLeaf®. As always, all thoughts, text, photos, videos, and recipes are my own.
Thanks so much
You’re welcome Michelle! 🙂
Hi Amy, we are going to make cookies to hang on the tree and eat one each night as part of advent, do you think these would hold up to that?
Thanks!
I’m so honored that you’d want to make these cookies to hang on your tree Chelsea! That really means a lot to me! 🙂 I’m assuming you’d like them to last on the tree for the full four Sundays of advent, correct? (I just want to double check before making any recommendations!)
Yes, ideally the 4 weeks is how I would like to do it.
I see! As this recipe is written, I’m afraid that won’t work because the cookies would turn moldy or spoil if left hanging on the tree for 4 weeks. However, if you bake them until they’re completely dry and crunchy, then they won’t be able to grow mold (mold grows where there’s moisture, so 100% dry cookies = no mold!).
If you’d like to do that, then I’d recommend poking a hole in the top of each one before baking so you can thread some string or twine through it to hang the cookies on the tree. Try baking them for 18 minutes. It may take longer for them to completely dry out, but it’s better to check on them sooner so they don’t burn! They’ll be done when they feel completely hard and crisp. I’d definitely recommend dipping them in hot chocolate, coffee, tea, or milk before trying to eat them though, just like biscotti! 🙂
I’d love to hear how these turn out as Christmas ornaments if you end up trying these modifications!
Thanks Amy! We’re going to try it!!
I can’t wait to hear how it goes! 🙂
Hi Amy,
Can this dough be frozen and then baked at a later time? I made a few batches this morning but I didn’t realize they’d only keep for a week! I need them for Christmas Day
I’m so honored that you’d want to bake these cookies for Christmas Day Clare! I haven’t had good luck freezing the raw cookie dough, but the fully baked cookies do freeze (and thaw!) really well, as long as they’re plain and undecorated! So I’d recommend baking all of the cookies that you’d like to have on Christmas ahead of time and then freezing them once they’ve completely cooled. 🙂 I really hope you enjoyed these gingerbread cookies!
Please help! 🙂 We (3 and 5 year old kiddos) are so excited to try these healthy gingerbread cookies and decorate them, but we are living outside the US right now and can’t find the vanilla stevia anywhere. What else might we use? Thank you so much!!
I’m so honored that you and your kids want to try making these gingerbread cookies Lyn! That means a lot to me! 🙂 Do you have any stevia products available to you? If so, what are the exact brand and product names? We can probably make it work with what you have in stores; I just need to know the exact brand and product name so I can figure out whether you’ll need to make any other modifications to the recipe!
Thank you so very much!
We will be getting together with another family to make these, so I’m hoping they turn out great. (I’m sure they will – you have super recipes! ) By the way, we used to live in California too!
So we can get powdered Stevia here. What shall we do to give it the full flavor? The brand is Wholesome “mindfully delicious” …comes in a box with little packs. (Like those you would add to coffee) “organic stevia- zero calorie sweetener blend”
Thank you!
It’s my pleasure! I’m always happy to help Lyn! 🙂 Does the box of Wholesome stevia happen to say that 1 packet is the equivalent of 2 teaspoons of sugar? If so, then you’ll need 12 packets! If you have the spoonable jar instead, where ¼ teaspoon of stevia is the equivalent of 2 teaspoons of sugar, then you’ll need 3 teaspoons. Does that make sense? 🙂 I’m really excited to hear what you think of these gingerbread cookies!!
I’m making these in a couple days, but using the stevia isn’t an option for me. Is there a way that I can sub only the Creme Stevia and not both the stevia and the molasses together?
P.S I just made your orange cranberry bread today, It’s absolutely fantastic!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the cranberry orange bread Dane! That means a lot to me! 🙂 Unfortunately, the only way to use molasses and have the cookies turn out with the correct texture is to use stevia as the other sweetener. I’d love to hear what you think of these cookies if you try making them!
Hi Amy!!
Can we use just the regular NOW brand liquid stevia in place of the vanilla creme?
So thankful for your healthy recipes!!
Yes!! The NOW liquid stevia is completely interchangeable for the SweetLeaf vanilla creme stevia. I’ve actually switched to the NOW brand because it’s cheaper and I’ve found it has a slightly cleaner flavor, so I currently use it in every recipe that I call for liquid vanilla creme stevia. 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of these gingerbread cookies Stacey!
Hi! It’s lyn again about the stevia … I just found “truvia” – loose stevia in a 270g plastic jar. Any ideas?? How much and how to get the vanilla flavor replaced …. thanks a million!
Hi Lyn! I’ve found that Truvia is a 1-for-1 sweetness equivalent for granulated sugar in my recipes. However, because it’s mostly erythritol (with some stevia mixed in!), it does absorb liquid differently than granulated or coconut sugar. If you can still find the Wholesome stevia that you mentioned earlier, that will be a much better option for this gingerbread cookie recipe! (And thank you so much for your patience with my responses! I’ve been sick, so I’m just now getting back into the swing of things. I hope these responses don’t come too late and you’re still able to make these cookies!!)
Thank you and really hope you are feeling better!! Sorry to hear. I’ve been sick too, so we are baking these this weekend. Perfect!
So, how much should I use then of the Wholesome packets and how shall I get that vanilla cream flavor and brought in? Suggestions? Thanks again!! Really terrific getting to connect with you to make this properly :-).
Also, going forward, should we avoid using Truvia (in your opinion) since it’s not just stevia?
Happy Holidays!
Thank you so much for your kind wishes Lyn! I hope you start feeling better again really soon too! 🙂 You don’t necessarily have to avoid using Truvia as a sweetener! it’s just not one that I typically use in my baking anymore because it upsets my stomach, so I can’t provide as much assistance with those conversions as I can with pure stevia products. If you scroll up, you’ll actually see that I responded to your other question about the Wholesome stevia and included the number of packets you should use! I know it can be easy to miss that detail in all of the excitement of baking gingerbread cookies. 😉 Don’t worry about the vanilla creme flavor — with how much molasses and vanilla extract is already in these cookies, you won’t notice it’s missing at all! I can’t wait to hear what you think of these!!
Oh gosh – thanks again, and I’m sorry; I was following the email that I received and didn’t realize something preceded it! And sorry for my last question- but will this stevia work for the icing too or what should I do to make that? Thanks!! You are so thoughtful.
It’s my pleasure Lyn! I’m always happy to help! I haven’t tried using Wholesome’s stevia to make icing before. If it doesn’t work, then use the alternative provided at the bottom of the Notes section instead! 🙂 I’m really excited to hear what you think of these cookies!