Peas on the Plate

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone made it through the holiday with minimal family drama or intervention from an antacid. Alas, we’ve arrived at year 3 of the Uncle John Christmas Cookie-palooza!

For those unfamiliar, my uncle John died in 2023. He used to make a huge variety of Christmas cookies every year and brought them to his friends and family- an act that had a joyous ripple effect we looked forward to every season. It was a Christmastime staple and, when I helped him one year, I was in awe of the process he had set up and the meticulous adherence to the recipes.

I inherited John’s KitchenAid mixer, a lot of his baking supplies, and what I affectionately refer to as The Cookie Bible – a binder of laminated pages with recipes shrunk down to fit on one page, sometimes at great cost to my personal sanity.

I make at least two varieties every year. John made AT LEAST 20 varieties every year. Hopefully my attempts don’t have him rolling in his grave, but I’d like to think he’s just happy someone is carrying on his holly-jolly legacy.

About Lemon Gingerbread Cookies

Candidly, I don’t remember ever eating these even though they were on the yearly roster. I think I made them thinking they were a different thing, and when I tasted them they didn’t jog a memory. I was a picky eater as a kid and then probably just never re-tried them. They are, however, very delicious and very festive.

Though I’ve tried to recreate these recipes as faithfully as possible, the first time I tried to make these, I did not love them. The lemon was way too strong, almost obscuring the other flavors, and they were impossible to roll and cut. I made a few changes to make it a little less confusing.

However, there was one constant between the two variations: before I added the dry ingredients in, the batter looked like mustard:

Do lemon and gingerbread go together?

I was kind of surprised by how well these flavors went together in a cookie, even though lemon and ginger are common in cakes. When I brought them to a Friendsgiving, I asked folks which they preferred – the vanilla glaze I’d made, or the maple one. Maple emerged victorious by one vote, and since I respect democracy, that’s the recipe I’ve included here.

What emerges from the oven after you bake this is a fun, fresh twist on gingerbread cookies. It’s something different and delicious – the classic flavors you expect with a lemony aftertaste. Give it a try and enjoy!

Lemon Gingerbread Cookies

Yield: About 4 dozen

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Chill & Cookie Cutting Time: 5 hours

Total Time: 6 hours 8 minutes

The latest chapter of John's Christmas Cookies is here! Enjoy these festive flavors with a fresh finish.

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Ingredients

• ½ C brown sugar (firmly packed)
• ¾ C unsalted butter (softened)
• ⅔ C molasses
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp grated lemon zest (see note)
• 3 C flour
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• 1 ½ tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 tsp ginger
• ½ tsp nutmeg

Maple Glaze

• 2 tbsp butter melted
• tbsp real maple syrup2
• 3 C powdered sugar
• 4 tbsp milk, adding more as needed

Instructions

Cookies:

1. Using a stand mixer, cream together sugar & butter until fluffy.
2. Add molasses, egg, vanilla and lemon zest.
3. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. The dough will look unsettlingly like mustard.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and spices.
5. Add gradually to the molasses mixture, 1 cup at a time. Mix on low speed until fully combined and smooth.
6. Cut the dough in half, flatten into discs, and wrap individually.
7. Refrigerate for at least two hours.
8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prep cookie sheets by greasing or lining with parchment paper.
9. Roll out half of the dough, keeping the rest in the fridge. Gingerbread dough gets pretty sticky very quickly, so it’s better to keep it cold for as long as possible before handling.
10. On a well-floured surface, roll out the dough to ¼” thickness.
11. Working quickly, cut the rolled out dough with 3-4” cookie cutters or, if you don’t hate yourself, roll into 1” balls and press down with the bottom of a glass or steel spatula.
12. Place 1” apart on prepped cookie sheets.
13. Bake 8-10 minutes or until no indentation remains on the sides when touched lightly (see note).
14. Let cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack. 
15. When the cookies are completely cool, make the glaze:

Maple Glaze:

1. Whisk maple glaze ingredients together until smooth. On the first go, it might come out more like a paste. If that’s the case, just add a teaspoon more milk at a time. You want the glaze to be dippable, but thick enough to set nicely
2. Dip one side of the cookies into the glaze and let excess drip off. (NOTE: if you used cookie cutters, this is where you can decorate to your heart’s content – it should be pipe-able so you can use that approach if you want.)
3. Set on a piece of wax paper to dry. 
4. Add a few fun sprinkles or decorative sugar before the glaze sets.

Notes

• 1 tsp of zest will be about 2/3 of one lemon. If you want these even more lemony, add a 1/2 tsp, but beware it might overpower the cookie.
• The “indentation test” for gingerbread is as follows: gently push the side of the cookie after the designated cooking time. If it bounces back or leaves no noticeable indentation, it's done. If it leaves a dent that stays, it needs some more time.