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Gingerbread, Olive Oil Baking, Festive Baking, Christmas Cookies, Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Soft Gingerbread Cookies with Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Spiced gingerbread cookies made with Wilson's Extra Virgin Olive Oil instead of butter, for a soft, tender bake that holds its shape for decorating and gifting.
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Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings: 24
Course: Baking, Dessert
Cuisine: Festive, South African
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

For the Dough:
  • 350 g cake flour plus extra for rolling
  • 2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 125 ml Wilson's Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 100 g brown sugar packed
  • 125 ml golden syrup
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
For the Icing: 
  • 200 g icing sugar sifted
  • 2-3 tbsp water or lemon juice
  • Food colouring optional

Method
 

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, bicarbonate of soda and salt.
  2. In a separate bowl, whisk the Wilson's Extra Virgin Olive Oil, brown sugar and golden syrup together until smooth.
  3. Whisk in the egg and vanilla essence until fully combined.
  4. Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until a soft dough forms.
  5. Turn the dough out, shape into a disc, wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or until firm enough to roll.
  6. Preheat the oven to 180°C and line two baking trays with baking paper.
  7. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to an even 5mm thickness.
  8. Cut out shapes with your chosen cutters and place them on the prepared trays, spacing them 2cm apart.
  9. Chill the cut shapes on the trays for 10 minutes to help them hold their edges in the oven.
  10. Bake for 9-10 minutes, until the edges are set but the centres still look slightly soft.
  11. Leave the biscuits to cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
  12. For the icing, whisk the icing sugar with the water or lemon juice until smooth, adding liquid a teaspoon at a time until you reach your desired consistency.
  13. Divide and colour the icing as needed, then pipe or spread onto the completely cooled biscuits.
  14. Leave the icing to set fully, at least 2 hours, before stacking or storing.

Notes

Store undecorated biscuits in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to a week. 
Once iced, biscuits are best eaten within 4-5 days; keep them in a single layer until the icing has fully set. 
The dough can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept wrapped in the fridge, or frozen for up to 3 months. 
Baked, undecorated biscuits freeze well in a sealed container for up to 2 months; thaw fully before icing. 
For gifting, layer biscuits between sheets of baking paper in a tin or glass jar, or wrap stacks in cellophane tied with string. 
Keep soft and crisp biscuits stored separately, as storing them together will soften the crisp ones within a day.