Christmas Fun and Kid-Friendly Gingerbread

Personally I love a spicy, molasses-filled gingerbread cookie.  Delicious and perfect for decorating at Christmas-time!

Click to see the recipe at Allrecipes.com!

Unfortunately, my daughter's palate is a little different than mine.  If I were to make up a batch of "real" gingerbread cookies, I'd get a wrinkled nose and they would all go to waste.  Fortunately, I discovered an awesome KID FRIENDLY gingerbread recipe!  They still have ginger and cinnamon, so I'm happy.  This recipe has butterscotch pudding mix fill in for the molasses, though.  The color is there, the touch of spice is there- they're just missing that very distinctive molasses flavor that might turn some kids off.

I made these cookies for my daughter's class to decorate last year and didn't get a single complaint, so this has definitely become my go-to recipe for gingerbread when kids are involved!

Frosting everywhere!

Around this time last year my good friend and her kids came over to make gingerbread houses with us.  We made them out of graham crackers, which is how I remember making them when I was little.  What I didn't realize was that the assembly was going to be kind of difficult for little hands.  Even though they were adorable (and yummy!) they were a bit of a disaster construction-wise.

I decided to make things a little easier this year by having the kids decorate those awesome gingerbread cookies instead!  I made gingerbread men, Christmas trees, and stars and made sure there were plenty for everyone since several were sure to be eaten along the way.  

I definitely made the right decision!  Decorating was much easier for the little ones this year, but just as delicious!  I provided the cookies and frosting while she supplied loads of cheap candy to snack on to decorate with.

These cookies are delicious no matter how old you are, but sure to go over well with the little ones- give them a try!

Gingerbread Men

From Allrecipes.com

1 (3.5 oz) pkg cook and serve butterscotch pudding mix

1/2 C butter

1/2 C packed brown sugar

1 egg

1 1/2 C all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1. In a medium bowl, cream together pudding, butter, and brown sugar.  Stir in the egg.  Combine the flour, baking soda, ginger, and cinnamon; stir into the pudding mixture.  Cover, and chill dough until firm, about 1 hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease baking sheets.  On a floured board, roll dough out to 1/8" thickness, and cut into shapes using a cookie cutter.  Place cookies 2" apart on the prepared baking sheets. 

3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are golden at the edges.  Cool on wire racks.