Gingersaurous Rex Cookies

Please vote for my T-Rex Cookies over at Instructables in the holiday treats contest. Only 1 day left - votes ends tomorrow 12.10.08 I am trying to get into the holiday spirit so last night my husband said let make some cookies. Oh what fun - so I went digging through my collections of recipes, ingredients and cookie cutters and thought "no cookie says Christmas more than a gingerbread man cookie - right. All I could find was this T-Rex cookie cutter, so here is my twist on this classic cookie.

Gingersaurous Rex Cookies

We had so much fun decorating and eating the heads off I do have to say I could almost hear bells ringing in the distance and caroling at the front door. Gingersaurous Rex Cookies Recipe INGREDIENTS For the cookies 3 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour 3/4 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter (room temperature, softened) 1/2 cup dark-brown sugar, packed 1 Tbsp ground ginger 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 large egg 1/2 cup unsulfured molasses Royal Icing 1 egg white 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice 1 3/4 cup confectioners sugar (powdered sugar) METHOD 1 In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and spices. Set aside. 2 In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter. Add sugar and beat until fluffy. Mix in eggs and molasses. Gradually add the flour mixture; combine on low speed. (You may need to work it with your hands to incorporate the last bit of flour.) Divide dough in thirds; wrap each third in plastic. Chill for at least 1 hour or overnight. Before rolling out, let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. If after refrigerating the dough feels too soft to roll-out, work in a little more flour. 3 Heat oven to 350°. Place a dough third on a large piece of lightly floured parchment paper or wax paper. Using a rolling pin, roll dough 1/8 inch thick. Refrigerate again for 5-10 minutes to make it easier to cut out the cookies. Use either a cookie cutter or place a stencil over the dough and use a knife to cut into desired shapes. Press raisins, chocolate chips, or candy pieces in the center of each cookie if desired for "buttons". 4 Transfer to ungreased baking sheets. Bake until crisp but not darkened, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Let sit a few minutes and then use a metal spatula to transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Decorate as desired. Makes 16 5-inch long cookies. Royal Icing The traditional way to make Royal Icing is to beat egg whites and lemon juice together, adding the powdered sugar until the mixture holds stiff peaks. With modern concerns about salmonella from raw eggs, you can either use powdered egg whites or heat the egg whites first to kill any bacteria. With the heating method, mix the egg white and lemon juice with a third of the sugar, heat in a microwave until the mixture's temperature is 160°F. Then remove from microwave, and beat in the remaining sugar until stiff peaks form. Using the powdered egg whites method, combine 1 Tbsp egg white powder with 2 Tbsp water. If the icing is too runny, add more powdered sugar until you get the desired consistency. Fill a piping bag with the icing to pipe out into different shapes. Keep the icing covered while you work with it or it will dry out.

Enjoy and I hope you add my Gingersaurous Rex Cookies to your Holiday this year!