
Here’s My Heart Gingerbread Pals
2013-12-11 21:24:36

Ingredients
- 1/4
- cup light molasses
- 2
- tablespoons water
- 2/3
- cup butter or margarine
- 1/2
- cup packed brown sugar
- 1
- egg
- 2 1/4
- cups Gold Medal® all-purpose flour
- 1
- teaspoon ground ginger
- 1
- teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2
- teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2
- teaspoon salt
- 1/4
- teaspoon ground cloves
- 4
- oz vanilla-flavored candy coating (almond bark)
- 4
- teaspoons red decorating sugar
Instructions
- 1 In 3-quart saucepan, cook and stir molasses and water over medium heat until hot; remove from heat. Stir in butter and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in remaining ingredients except candy coating and decorating sugar. Divide dough in half; shape into 2 disks. Wrap each in plastic wrap; refrigerate 1 hour.
- 2 Heat oven to 350°F. On floured surface, roll 1 disk of dough 1/8 inch thick. Cut with floured 3- to 3 1/2-inch gingerbread boy and girl cookie cutters. With 1-inch heart-shaped cutter, cut out small heart in center of each cookie. On 1 ungreased cookie sheet, place gingerbread cutouts. On second ungreased cookie sheet, place hearts. Repeat with second disk.
- 3 Bake hearts 5 to 7 minutes, gingerbread cookies 7 to 9 minutes, or until set. Remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.
- 4 In small microwavable bowl, microwave candy coating on High 1 minute; stir until smooth. Frost each heart with coating; immediately sprinkle with red sugar. Place dot of melted coating on back of heart; place on hand of each gingerbread cookie or near cutout heart on body of cookie. Decorate as desired.
Notes
- These saucepan cookies are easy to stir up—you don’t need a mixer.
- You could use Betty Crocker® frosting to decorate the hearts and cookies if you prefer. But the frosting doesn’t set up, so store the cookies in a single layer if you do.
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