This Hanging Gingerbread Cookie recipe is a unique spin on the classic. Just add a small candy cane to the back and hang the cookies from a cup of cocoa!
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My 5-year-old daughter LOVES helping me in the kitchen, and she’s becoming quite the little sous chef! We often make treats while my 2-year-old is napping. I like when we can make a recipe from start to finish while he’s sleeping like this Hanging Gingerbread Cookie Recipe.
My daughter has been helping me in the kitchen since she was 2, and I’ve been slowly building her recipe know-how and confidence. Today she learned that sometimes the best tool in the kitchen is your hands! Mia loved squishing the gingerbread dough between her fingers! She also loved cutting out the dough with our snowflake cookie cutter.
She also learned the many uses of Reynolds Cookie Baking Sheets parchment paper! They’re so convenient because they’re already cut to the size of our cookie sheets! She also learned you can use parchment paper for:
- Wrapping cookie dough while it chills.
- Lining cookie sheets for perfectly baked cookies.
- For using under cookies while decorating for quick cleanup (I’m all about the quick cleanup!).
This Hanging Gingerbread Cookie recipe is easily one of my favorite Christmas cookies recipes! They’re different from other Christmas cutout cookies with a simple twist. All it takes is a small candy cane adhered to the back of these gingerbread cookies to make them hang!
My family loves hanging these off of mugs of warm cocoa, they make them cozier that way. I also like making them for gifts and cookie exchanges. And trust me, if you make these for a cookie exchange you’ll be the most popular person in the room!
This Hanging Gingerbread Cookie recipe is SO easy to make, let me show you how!
How to Make Hanging Gingerbread Cookies:
- Make, roll out, and cut cookie dough.
- Add cut dough to parchment lined cookie sheets.
- Bake until edges are set.
- Decorate with royal icing and dry.
- Attach a candy cane to the back of each cookie using royal icing.
- Allow icing to dry completely, then hang cookies from cups of hot cocoa!
Cook’s Note – Hanging Gingerbread Cookie Recipe:
- Use your favorite gingerbread recipe, pouch mix, or refrigerated dough for this recipe.
- You can use the method of decorating and attaching the candy canes to this cutout sugar cookie recipe.
- The royal icing recipe below made about 1 ½-2 cups. It was the perfect amount for decorating 24, 3-inch snowflake gingerbread cookies.
- The Royal Icing recipe can be doubled, tripled, etc.
- The cookies will keep, in an air-tight container at room temperature between layers of parchment paper, for up to 5 days.
- I do not recommend freezing these cookies once the candy canes are attached. For some reason, candy canes “melt” in the freezer.
- To speed up the icing drying time I like to pop decorated cookies in the refrigerator.
Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links.
Cook’s Tools and Ingredients:
Hanging Gingerbread Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
ROYAL ICING:
- ¾ cups powdered sugar
- ½ Tablespoon meringue powder or 1 Tablespoon egg white
- 1 teaspoons lemon juice
- ***2 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon water
GARNISH:
- Edible glitter or sprinkles
- Mini candy canes
Instructions
- Line baking sheets with Reynolds Parchment Paper. Make, roll out, cut and bake gingerbread cookie dough according to your recipe. Cool cookies completely before decorating.
MAKE ROYAL ICING:
- Add powdered sugar, meringue powder (or egg whites), lemon juice and 2 tablespoons ***water to bowl of a stand mixer. Mix on low until combined. Increase speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes.
DECORATE COOKIES:
- Place icing in a small, resealable plastic bag. Cut a small portion of one corner off. Squeeze icing onto cutout cookies and sprinkle with edible glitter or sprinkles. Dry completely on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
FINISH COOKIES:
- Flip cookies over, apply a small amount of royal icing to each cookie, and lightly press candy canes into the icing. Dry completely before hanging cookies from mugs.
Notes
Nutrition
If you love Gingerbread, then you must try my Gingerbread Cheesecake Dip recipe. You can make it in just 5 minutes and it’s my most popular Christmas recipe!
Jillian
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Alicia Gonzalez
These look amazing! i’m going to have to try that. My kids will love it and I’ve never seen this before. Thanks so much for sharing! #client
Jillian
These hanging gingerbread cookies are a favorite around my house. You can also do the same thing with sugar cookies. Enjoy!
Auntiepatch
What a good idea!
Jillian
Thanks, Karen!
Diane
Thank You I’m a terrible stay at home mom too! I’m also creative and love new ideas to work my 3.5 year old. Clever idea! Thanks for sharing!
Jillian
You’re 3.5 year old will love making these with you, enjoy!
reesa
These look so amazing! I love the snowflake cookie cutter shape too!
Jillian
Thanks, Reesa!
Melanie
This really is just the cutest idea!
Megan
Cute idea to use the candy cane as a hook! My daughter would love making these!
Matt @ Plating Pixels
Those are super cute! But pretty sure they wouldn’t last long on my cup before I eat them 😉
jamie
Love this, looks like you had fun!
Michelle
This is a great project to do with my own 5 year old, if she doesn’t eat all the fixings first.
rocky
Looks yummy! thanks for sharing your recipe!
Debra
This is the cutest idea ever! My kids would love it!
Claudia Lamascolo
This is great, the best holiday memories are those made with the family and this is perfect!