Edible Gingerbread Cookie Dough Recipe - We are not Martha (2024)

If you find yourself eating the cookie dough right out of the bowl when making gingerbread cookies, this Edible Gingerbread Cookie Dough recipe is for you! The delicious holiday flavored dough is so easy to make and is meant to be eaten with a spoon!

'tis the season for ALL the gingerbread. Really though, I'm starting to flavor pretty much everything I can think of with gingerbread flavors.

Of course, ginger is an appropriate flavor all year long, but add in some molasses and additional cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves and you have a true holiday delight!

I already have lots of gingerbread recipes for you, including the 2023 Starbucks drink of the year, the Iced Gingerbread Oatmilk Chai Latte. But I also have gingerbread rice krispies treats, gingerbread energy balls, gingerbread syrup, gingerbread cookies, and so much more!

There's not much that doesn't taste delicious with a gingerbread twist in December. And since gingerbread cookies are one of my very favorite Christmas cookies, I figured it was only right to make an edible gingerbread cookie dough to share with you.

❤️ Why you'll love this recipe

If you love edible cookie doughs and you're a fan of gingerbread cookies during the holiday season, you're going to absolutely love this recipe!

Not only is it super easy to make, but it's the perfect little holiday treat. You can bring it to a holiday party or enjoy it during a night filled with your favorite Christmas movies.

You have to admit the cookie dough is almost always better than the actual cookies anyway!

🗒 Ingredients

The ingredients for this gingerbread cookie dough are pretty simple. You basically need everything you'd use to make gingerbread cookies except for eggs and leavening powder.

Here's everything you need (be sure to check out the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):

• Unsalted butter
• Light brown sugar
• Vanilla extract
• All-purpose flour
• Ground ginger
• Ground cinnamon
• Ground cloves
• Ground nutmeg
• Salt
• Molasses
• Milk
• Sprinkles: optional, but they add so much to the presentation. I used these gingerbread sprinkles.

🥣 How to heat-treat flour

This is technically a no-bake recipe, but I do need to preface that by telling you that you should heat-treat your flour.

Did you know that it's flour and not raw eggs that is often the cause of foodborne illness in raw cookie dough?

Raw flour can have bacteria in it that can lead to illnesses like E. coli (source). To ensure your raw cookie dough is safe to eat, you should always bake your flour before using it.

Don't worry, it's easy! But if you don't want to do this, you can actually purchaseflour that's already been heat treated.

🍪 How to make gingerbread cookie dough

Now that your flour is safe to use, it's so easy to make this gingerbread cookie dough! Just pretend you're making cookies...

Start by creaming your butter and sugar. I recommend doing this on medium speed in either the bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer.

If you have neither, use a large bowl and a silicone spatula or rubber spoon.

Cream together until the mixture is light and fluffy, which should take 3-4 minutes.

Add the vanilla extract and blend until combined.

Add flour to mixture, along with ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.

Blend until just combined.

Keep mixer on low and add molasses and 4 Tbsp milk in until dough comes together.

If cookie dough seems too thick, you can add an additional Tbsp of milk.

Mix in sprinkles, if desired.

And yes, you should desire them because this gingerbread cookie dough won't be the same stunner without them.

You can serve the edible cookie dough in little bowls or just dig in with a spoon while sitting on the couch next to the Christmas tree, watching holiday movies.

It tastes just like the cookie dough you use to make gingerbread cookies and is packed with seasonal spices and holiday flavor.

The only thing is... It's WAY too easy to eat too much of this. You'll definitely want to be sharing it with friends.

⏲️ How to store

And luckily, it's really easy to store any leftovers.

You can store the uneaten gingerbread cookie dough in an airtight container and keep it in the fridge for about 5 days. I think it's extra delicious when chilled!

You can also simply wrap it in plastic wrap if you prefer.

You can also freeze it for later. I recommend scooping the dough into balls and freezing it on a cookie sheet. Then place the frozen scoops in a Ziploc bag and keep it in your freezer for up to 6 months.

You'll want to let frozen cookie dough thaw a bit before enjoying it.

🎉 Variations on recipe

I'm mostly a gingerbread cookie purist, but occasionally I like to include some fun add-ins to my cookies and you can do the same with this edible dough!

Here are some fun ideas:

• Nuts: Nuts like pecans, walnuts, or almonds would all be delicious in the cookie dough.
• Chocolate chips: semisweet chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, cinnamon chips, and butterscotch chips would all make this cookie dough even more awesome.
• Candied ginger: To amp up the ginger flavor, consider adding candied ginger.
• Espresso powder: Adding espresso powder will make this taste like a gingerbread latte.
• Molasses swirls: In addition to adding the molasses in the dough, add some additional in at the end and swirl it for a marbled look.
• Peanut butter: Mix in a little peanut butter for more fun flavor.
• Adjust spices: Of course, once you taste this gingerbread cookie dough, you can adjust the spices as desired or even add additional like, cardamom, black pepper, or allspice.

If you want, you can actually roll the dough out and cut out shapes with cookie cutters making little gingerbread cookie dough bites.

If you're planning to do this, I recommend adding a little less milk to the mixture so your cookie dough is a bit stiffer.

No matter what you add to it, this edible gingerbread dough is simply addictive!

🎄 More gingerbread recipes

I can't think of many desserts that don't taste better with an infusion of gingerbread flavor and I have lots of recipes that feature the popular holiday flavor. Here are some of my favorite gingerbread inspired recipes:

For more holiday cookie dough treats, try my eggnog cookie dough bars or my candy cane cookie dough bars!

If you're looking for a fun and unique sweet treat to bring to all your holiday parties, this edible gingerbread cookie dough couldn't be easier (much easier than making actual cookies!) and will likely become a party favorite.

Do you find yourself eating cookie dough while making cookies?

📖 Recipe