25 Days of Christmas Cookies: Crisp Gingerbread Cutouts

The recipe today is the first of several ginger cookies I'll be sharing with you this month. These are light and crispy.

Crisp Gingerbread Cutouts
2 1/2 cups white flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp salt
1 cup Earth Balance margarine
3/4 cup sugar, plus some for sprinkling
3 tbsp plain soy yogurt
1/4 cup molasses
1 tbsp lemon juice

In a medium sized bowl, whisk or sift together the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, cream the margarine and sugar. Add in the yogurt, molasses and lemon juice and beat until combined. This mixture will be grainy looking. Add the dry ingredients and beat until all ingredients are well blended. Chill dough at least 4 hours or overnight.

When you're ready to bake, preheat the over to 350 degrees and line your baking sheets with parchment paper. Roll out 1/4 of the dough on a floured surface. Dough should be about 1/8-1/4 inch thick. Brush off excess flour and cut into desired shapes. Sprinkle each cookie with a little bit of sugar. I used natural, unbleached sugar, but you could use white sugar or colored decorating sugars. Bake 6-8 minutes, or until the edges are lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.

Store cookies in an airtight container, when completely cooled. They will last a week at room temperature or up to 3 months in the freezer.
This recipe is adapted from the Gingerbread Trees with Lemon Icing recipe found in Everyday Food December 2010. 

What, your family's cookie cutter collection
doesn't include a bust of Abraham Lincoln?
Or a unicorn? Or the Space Needle?