Bite-size mini gingerbread men with tiny icing details, made with a 1 1/2-inch cutter for festive treats and cookie-box accents.
Small gingerbread figures work well as cookie-box accents or ready-to-eat toppers. Keep the arms and legs broad, and check them before the centers darken. A fine piping tip or a small parchment cone provides control for tiny faces and buttons.
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Mini Gingerbread Men Cookies Recipe
Per tray: 6–8 minutes · 5 trays of about 18 mini people on 13 × 18-inch pans
Allow 160 minutes: 40 hands-on, 60 chilling, 40 for all baking trays, 20 cooling. Cooling includes the pan rest. Optional decoration, ingredient warm-up and extra trays add time.
Kitchen tools you’ll need
- Rolling pin with 1/4-inch guides
- 1 1/2-inch gingerbread-person cutter
- Two 13 × 18-inch pans and parchment
- Thin cookie spatula and cooling rack
- US measures, digital scale, bowl and whisk
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
Melt & season
- Gently melt butter over low heat. Remove from the heat and stir in sugar, molasses, salt and spices until evenly combined. Let cool until lukewarm before beating in the egg.
Combine
- Whisk flour with baking powder and baking soda, then mix into the wet ingredients until no dry flour remains. Dough will be sticky; do not add more flour.
Firm the dough
- Divide into two flattened rectangles, wrap tightly and refrigerate at least 60 minutes, until cold and firm enough to roll. Chilling firms the butter and lets the flour hydrate.
Shape
- Heat to 350°F (175°C) conventional or 320°F (160°C) fan. Roll chilled dough 1/4 inch thick. Cut 1 1/2-inch-tall gingerbread people; gather scraps gently. Keep unused dough cold.
Check doneness
- Space mini people about 3/4 inch apart on lined pans. Bake one tray at a time for 6–8 minutes until set, checking hands and feet first. Mini cutters vary; yield is approximately 90 with a broad 1 1/2-inch cutter.
Cool before icing
- Rest on the pan 5 minutes until safe to lift, then transfer to a rack for about 15 minutes or until fully cool. Optional prepared cookie icing may be used according to its packaging; it is additional to this dough formula.
Chef’s Science & Pro Tips
Use a broad mini cutter
Thicker arms and legs survive lifting and packing better than narrow shapes.
Separate sizes
Mini people must bake on their own trays so larger cookies do not dictate the timing.
Decorate with dots
Tiny eyes and two buttons are easier to keep readable than elaborate icing patterns.
Storage and make-ahead
| Method | How long | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Room temperature | Up to 5 days | Store fully cooled cookies airtight in a cool, dry place. Let icing dry, then separate layers with parchment; follow any icing storage instructions. |
| Refrigeration | Dough: up to 48 hours | Keep dough tightly wrapped. Let it soften just enough to roll while remaining cool. Plain baked cookies do not need refrigeration. |
| Raw freezing | Up to 2 months at 0°F (−18°C) | Wrap flattened dough portions tightly, then bag. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and roll while cool. |
| Baked freezing | Up to 2 months at 0°F (−18°C) | For best appearance, freeze undecorated, cooled cookies airtight. Thaw covered at room temperature before icing. |
| Restoring | Before decorating | For crisper edges, warm plain cookies at 300°F (150°C) conventional for 3–5 minutes. Cool on a rack. Do not reheat iced cookies. |
Notes
- Mini means 1 1/2 inches tall, not a standard 3-inch person. Their hands and feet bake quickly. Add tiny optional icing faces with a fine piping tip only after cooling; icing and drying are additional.
Nutrition
Estimated nutrition per serving; brands and portion sizes vary.
Frequently Asked Questions
How small are these cookies?
Use a 1 1/2-inch-tall gingerbread-person cutter, with dough rolled 1/4 inch thick.
Why did their feet burn?
Small projections bake quickly. Check at 6 minutes and use light-colored pans.
How many will I get?
About 90, depending on the cutter width, spacing and how much scrap dough is rerolled.
Browse more cookie ideas in the Gingerbread Cookies Ideas collection.
