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Soft Gingerbread Latte Cookies with Brown Butter Icing. A cross between a really great soft, chewy gingerbread cookie and a delicious steaming gingerbread latte made with real espresso. These cookies are made with sweet dark brown sugar, molasses, ginger, and the real secret – espresso powder. They’re generously glazed with a sweet, thick, and creamy brown butter icing that melts in your mouth. You can make them as drop cookies or as Christmas cutouts, there’s really nothing not to love! They’re the perfect holiday cookie to bake, share, and gift this holiday season!
Ingredients
- Salted butter
- Light or dark brown sugar
- Espresso powder or instant coffee powder
- Vanilla extract
- Large egg
- Blackstrap molasses
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Ground ginger
- Ground cinnamon
- Kosher salt
- Granulated sugar
- Powdered sugar
- Milk
- Vanilla bean powder
What you will need in the kitchen:
- Parchment paper
- Mixing bowl
- spatula
- Small bowl
- Tablespoons
- Prepared baking sheets
- Christmas cookie cut outs
- Airtight container
- wire rack
- electric mixer
More cookies!! When I say I have been baking cookies non-stop, I mean it. These took me days. They’re the simplest cookie, but it took a long time to figure out how to get them from just ok to the amazing Christmas cookie I envisioned in my head.
The amount of gingerbread cookies I’ve baked in a week’s time is unreal, but look at these!! Oh, they are so, so yummy! And now I can look at them and truly say I really love these.
These are soft and chewy gingerbread. I did both drop cookies and cutouts, but I think I love the drop style more. Either way, they’re my favorite gingery cookie!
When I set out to make these, I really wanted to achieve a gingerbread that was chewy all around, soft, and not like other gingerbread cookies.
For some reason, the sound of a gingerbread latte cookie really excited me. I thought back to the gingerbread latte I created long ago, and then the mocha-cinnamon rolls I made last year. I love the added depth of flavor the espresso adds, so I knew these cookies needed three things. Lots of ginger, some espresso mixed in, and then, they also needed to be chewy.
Here are details
Step One
Let’s start by preheating the oven to 350 and lining two baking sheets with parchment paper! Easy! Next, In a medium mixing bowl, beat the butter with dark brown sugar and a high-quality espresso or instant coffee powder to create a butter mixture. Then add egg and molasses. Next, add the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt. That’s the dough. It’s perfectly spiced and the espresso only helps to highlight the warming spices.
Step Two
Roll the dough into walnut-size balls. You can use a tablespoon measure for the correct size. This is a sticky dough, but if you’re having trouble, add a couple of tablespoons of additional flour.
Step Three
Then just bake. That’s literally it if you’re making drop cookies. Which are probably my preferred cookie, but only because they’re chewier than the cutouts.
If you want to make the cutouts, add some additional four flour to the dough. Then the key is to roll the dough out onto a piece of parchment paper.
Just as I do with my sugar cookies, I always like to roll out the dough, cut the cookies, and then freeze the cut cookies on a baking sheet for a few minutes. This ensures that the cookies hold their shape. To cut my cookies, I used Christmas tree cutters. But you can use any shapes you have on hand, or that your family loves the most.
On to the icing
This icing is everything. Just a handful of ingredients, but I love the nutty brown butter flavor and creaminess. It’s what makes these cookies really melt in your mouth.
The ingredients: butter, sugar, vanilla, a pinch of cinnamon, and salt.
The key is to brown the salted or unsalted butter (your choice) on the stove in a small or medium saucepan. Add the butter to a pot set over medium heat to brown the butter. Allow the brown butter to brown lightly until it smells toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for five minutes. Once cooled, add everything to the brown butter and thin it out with some milk. This includes whisking in the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, a pinch of cinnamon, and salt. Ice each cookie quickly, the frosting does set up pretty quickly.
This combo of ginger, espresso, and brown butter is unexpected, but I’m finding that everyone LOVES it. You won’t even detect the espresso, it just compliments the ginger and cinnamon so wonderfully. The result is a perfectly chewy, gingery, molasses cookie with rich notes of espresso, vanilla, and ginger.
We couldn’t love these easy gingerbread cookies more. And the frosting really makes them special. Hope you guys love these just as much as I do!
Looking for Christmas cookie recipes? Here are a few ideas:
Chewy Frosted Cinnamon Swirl Snickerdoodles
Easy Slice ‘n’ Bake Vanilla Bean Sugar Cookies
Easy Vanilla Bean Christmas Lights Cookies
Lastly, if you make these Soft Gingerbread Latte Cookies with Brown Butter Icing be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Soft Gingerbread Latte Cookies with Brown Butter Icing
Servings: 22 cookies
Calories Per Serving: 250 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Watch the How-To Reel
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 sticks salted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup light or dark brown sugar
- 2-4 tablespoons espresso powder or instant coffee powder
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 1/3 cup blackstrap molasses
- 2 1/4 cups, plus 1-2 tablespoons, as needed all-purpose flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- granulated sugar, for rolling
Brown Butter Icing
- 1 stick salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 -2 cups powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoos milk
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean powder
- 1 pinch cinnamon
Instructions
- 1. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. 2. In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter, brown sugar, espresso, and vanilla until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Add the egg, mixing to combine. Then, add the molasses and mix to combine. Add the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, and salt, beating until combined. 3. Place the sugar in a small bowl. 3. For drop cookies: Roll the dough into tablespoon-size balls (if the dough is too sticky, add 2-4 additional tablespoons flour), then roll through the sugar. Place on the prepared baking sheet, spacing the cookies 2 inches apart. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until the cookies are just starting to set around the edges, the centers should be a little doughy. Let cool on the pan. 4. For cutouts: Divide the dough in half. Roll out the dough on a floured piece of parchment paper to 1/4 inch thickness. Make sure you're using enough flour or your dough will stick. Cut out the cookies into desired shapes. Transfer the cookies to a parchment-lined baking sheet. I recommend using a floured spatula to lift the cookies. Cover the baking sheet and place in the freezer until firm, 15 minutes. Roll out the leftover scraps, and repeat with the remaining dough. Bake for 8-10 minutes, until just set.5. Meanwhile, make the icing. Add the butter to a pot set over medium heat. Allow the butter to brown lightly until it smells toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Let cool 5 minutes. Whisk in the powdered sugar, milk, vanilla, a pinch of cinnamon, and salt. Immediately spread the icing over the cookies, it will set quickly. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
This post was originally published on December 6, 2022
Icing turned out bad. Confused why adding milk is mentioned in the post but not the actual recipe. Seems like there could be a better technique for the icing
Hi Kate! Are you letting the butter cool before mixing everything in? Sometimes the butter can be too hot and create a different texture xT
I made these this weekend with a plant based butter and flax egg substitute as I have some allergies in my household and wow! This is my new favourite Christmas treat – the coffee flavour is a game changer and even with substitutions they were perfectly chewy. The icing was a bit tricky, could have been the plant butter but it required a bit more icing sugar and some oat milk to make it come together. Not gonna lie I’ll have to make these again before Christmas as the first batch will be gone by then!
Hey Andrea! Awesome, so glad you’re able to make substitutions based on your needs! xT
Delicious cookies! Mine turned out a lot more fluffy and cakey than the photos – any suggestions for making them more flat and chewy with that nice cracked top? I tried also flattening them rather than baking the rolled balls but still puffed up.
Thank you sooo much for giving this recipe a try! Have an awesome week 🙂 xT
Unique taste- almost chocolatey! These were pretty to make and more exciting than traditional gingerbread. TBH I was too lazy to make the icing I just used a powdered sugar glaze. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Thank you sooo much for giving this recipe a try! Have an awesome week 🙂 xT
Wowowow these are to die for. The texture is perfect and the flavor is phenomenal, ESPECIALLY the icing!
I did have to add some milk to make the frosting come together, but other than that I had no issues. Will definitely be making these again!
Thank you sooo much for giving this recipe a try! Have an awesome week 🙂 xT
This cookie recipe is amazing, if it were the cookies alone my rating would be a 5/5, but I really struggled with the icing. I had to make it twice, and I wasn’t happy with the consistency either time (the first time couldn’t even be saved). The second time I let the butter cool before adding in the other ingredients and it seemed to work a bit better. Both times as soon as I added the vanilla it seemed to go to sh*t. Would love to know of an easier way to make it because the flavor is awesome
Hands down sooo delicious 😋
Hey! Thank you so so much! Love to hear that you enjoyed this recipe 🙂 xT
Can regular molasses be substituted here?
I did and they turned out so good
I used regualr molasses and it worked just fine!
Hi! Yes, you can use regular molasses! xT
Haven’t made these yet but could I see ginger paste instead of ground ginger?
Hi Leah! I haven’t ever tried that before! So sorry! xT
I made these today to put in my HBH-inspired cookie boxes this Christmas. They are one of the best cookies I’ve ever had. They are soft and the flavor is perfect for my tastebuds. The icing is divine. Thanks for another yummy treat I now cannot live without.
Wow thank you so much Elizabeth! xT
Yikes the icing does not work at all the way it is written! Chunky buttery mess. Cookies are good but don’t do the icing!
Oh no I’m so sorry about that! Is there anything I can do to help? xT
I made these cookies today. They smell amazing, but I have not tried one yet. The recipe says to use between 2-4 tablespoons of espresso powder. I did not have the nerve to use 4, so I ended up with 3.
The only issue I had was the brown butter icing. Your pictures look more like a drizzled type of icing. Mine turned out more like a paste, which I had to scoop and spread. After reading your posting, I see that there should have been some milk added at the end to help thin the icing. Note: this is not mentioned in the actual recipe.
I am sure they will still taste great, but look as good as yours!
Hey David! I hope that these cookies were delicious for you! xT
How many days in advance can the dough be refrigerated before baking? Hoping to get all my dough made so I can bake fresh on Christmas Eve morning.
Hi there! This should be fine for about a day in the fridge but if it’s longer than that I would probably freeze the dough! xT
In your pictures the icing looks like it’s drizzled. Mine turned out more like a spread and wasn’t quite as smooth. Did I do something wrong? I did it twice with the same results. They taste amazing though!!
I had the same experience and ended up
Adding 1/4 cup 35 %cream. It worked out great 🙂
Hi. How much is 1 stick of butter? In grams if possible?