can you use butter instead of shortening in gingerbread cookies

These are the most Perfect Gingerbread Cookies ever! Incredibly easy to make and so much fun to decorate any way you want. Soft in the middle and crispy on the outside, these spiced Gingerbread cookies are loaded with lots of great flavors!

can you use butter instead of shortening in gingerbread cookies

How To Make Gingerbread Cookies

can you use butter instead of shortening in gingerbread cookies

Roll And Cut The Dough

Unwrap the dough and place it on a floured work surface. Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough until it’s about ⅛-¼ inch thickness. Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut the dough into cookies. Then transfer the cut cookies onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough and re-roll any leftover dough until finished.

Transfer the baking sheet to the preheated oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. The cookies are done when they no longer look dry but still soft to the touch.

Baking Without Butter: Gingerbread Cookies with Fresh Ginger

FAQ

Can I use butter instead of shortening in gingerbread?

Butter. My family’s recipe originally used shortening, and you can feel free to use an equal amount of shortening in this recipe instead. However, after lots of taste-testing I decided I much preferred the flavor of real butter.

What can I use instead of shortening in ginger cookies?

Baking with butter rather than shortening is the obvious change-up if you want your gingerbread boy cookies to be more natural. Butter is a natural food made from cow’s milk. Traditional vegetable shortening requires a process to turn it into a solid for baking since vegetable oils are liquid at room temperature.

Can butter be substituted for shortening in cookies?

Cookies made with butter are usually crispier than chewy cookies made with shortening, but the flavor is richer with butter. So a one-to-one butter swap will work great if you need a shortening substitute for cookies. In cakes and breads, the substitution is rarely noticeable when using shortening vs. butter.

What can I use instead of vegetable shortening for gingerbread house?

Coconut oil is another great shortening substitute. It has a similar texture and is also vegan, too. You can swap it in one-for-one, but just remember that it will likely give your baked goods a very slight coconut flavor.

Can you make gingerbread cookies without shortening?

If you don’t have shortening on hand or prefer not to use it, you can make all-butter gingerbread cookies instead. They will be very delicious, though a bit on the flatter, crispier side. Similarly, you can also use all shortening, though the results won’t have as much flavor as a mix incorporating butter.

What are the best substitutes for butter?

The substitute that you might want to use depends on what you are using butter for. In baking you can use any fat such as olive oil, nut butters, or even avocados. In baking you can also substitute non-fats for butter such as Greek yogurt, mashed bananas, pumpkin puree, or even applesauce. For replacing butter as a spread, you can use any fat, hummus, avocado, nut butter, or cheese. For cooking, canola oil can be a great sub, or avocado oil is also good because it has a high smoke point.

What kind of shortening do you use for gingerbread cookies?

We like to use a mixture of half butter and half shortening, which will give you the best of both worlds. Using this ratio, we get soft, tender gingerbread cookies that have the depth of flavor only butter can provide. If you don’t have shortening on hand or prefer not to use it, you can make all-butter gingerbread cookies instead.

How do you make gingerbread cookies taste better?

Baking Powder – Baking powder is used to increase the volume and lighten the texture of these cookies. Spices – Ground ginger, ground allspice, ground cloves and ground cinnamon are the amazing spices used to create that famous gingerbread taste. Feel free to play around with the amounts of the spices to suit your taste buds.

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