Golden honey gingerbread hearts made with mild honey, a little molasses and warm spices, with optional delicate icing outlines.
Honey sweetens the dough in this cut-out version, which is shaped into simple hearts. The rolled sheet and shaped pieces both receive short freezer rests before baking. Keep the batch evenly thick and check early as the edges take on color.
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Gingerbread Cookies with Honey Recipe
Per tray: 12–14 minutes · 3 trays of 12 three-inch hearts
Allow 192 minutes: 35 hands-on, 90 chilling, 42 for all baking trays, 25 cooling. Cooling includes the pan rest. Optional decoration, ingredient warm-up and extra trays add time.
Kitchen tools you’ll need
- Electric mixer and mixing bowls
- Rolling pin, parchment and 1/4-inch guides
- 3-inch heart cutter
- Two 13 × 18-inch pans
- Freezer space for a lined pan
- Cooling rack and US measures/scale
Ingredients
Cookie dough
Spice blend
Scale ingredients and US equivalents, including eggs. Keep cookie size, thickness, oven temperature and baking time per tray unchanged. More trays add time; weigh beaten egg for fractional batches.
Instructions
Cream and combine
- Whisk flour, soda, salt and spices. Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg, honey and molasses. Mix in dry ingredients just until combined.
Firm the honey dough
- Divide into two wrapped flat portions and refrigerate 1 hour. Roll one between lightly floured parchment to a scant 1/4 inch and freeze the sheet 15 minutes.
Cut hearts and firm again
- Cut simple 3-inch hearts and transfer to lined pans 1 inch apart. Freeze shaped hearts another 15 minutes. Repeat with the remaining dough; keep it cool.
Keep the color golden
- Heat to 350°F (175°C) conventional or 325°F (165°C) fan. Bake 12–14 minutes until edges are golden and centers feel set. Check at 12 minutes; honey browns readily. Cool the pan between batches.
Finish lightly if desired
- Cool about 10 minutes on the pan, then 15 minutes on a rack. Optional thin white icing heart outlines add decorating time and at least 2 hours drying, or longer before stacking.
Chef’s Science & Pro Tips
Keep both shape chills
Honey dough can be sticky; the two short freezer rests help tidy hearts.
Watch the early bake
Honey browns readily, so remove when set and golden rather than very dark.
Choose mild honey
A strong floral honey changes flavor; a mild liquid honey gives a gentler finish.
Storage and make-ahead
| Method | How long | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Room temperature | Up to 1 week | Cool completely, then store airtight in a cool room. |
| Refrigeration | Raw dough: up to 2 days | Wrap dough tightly. Plain baked cookies do not need refrigeration. |
| Raw freezing | Up to 2 months | Freeze wrapped plain dough disks, then thaw covered in the refrigerator before rolling. |
| Baked freezing | Up to 2 months | Freeze cooled cookies airtight. Thaw covered at room temperature. |
| Restoring | Before serving | Warm undecorated cookies briefly at 300°F for 3–5 minutes if desired; cool before decorating. |
Notes
- Honey supplies sweetness and moisture alongside a smaller amount of molasses; this is not a molasses-free recipe. Chilling the dough, rolled sheet and cut shapes helps manage honey stickiness. The thin optional icing outlines in the image are additional and excluded from nutrition. It contains egg, milk and wheat.
Nutrition
Estimated nutrition per serving; brands and portion sizes vary.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this replace all the molasses?
No. Honey is combined with 1/4 cup molasses in this batch.
Why are there two freezer rests?
One firms the rolled sheet for cutting and the second firms the cut shapes for baking.
Can I use crystallized honey?
Warm it gently until fluid, then cool before mixing with the butter and egg.
Browse more cookie ideas in the Gingerbread Cookies Ideas collection.
