These teddy bear gingerbread cookies are as delicious as they are cute! Soft and full of holiday spices, these cookies are fun to make with kids.
You might also like my soft gingerbread cookie bars, iced gingerbread man cookies, or chubby gingerbread man cookies.
Gingerbread men are cute, but these teddy bears take things up a notch on the holiday cookie scale. They are easy to make and quick, too! One batch makes 18 teddy bear cookies, and the recipe can easily be doubled to make more.
Why I Like This Recipe
- Flavorful. Loaded with spices, molasses, and a red hots belly button, they are full of holiday spice flavor.
- Fun for kids to make. These are simple cookies for kids to help make — just roll the dough into various sizes (see my size chart) and bake!
- Easy to decorate. If you want to ice them and add more details, you can, but I kept things super simple by only using cinnamon candies.
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Tips and Tricks
- Chill the dough. This is a slightly sticky dough, so giving it a quick 25-30 minutes makes the dough easier to scoop and roll. I also lightly flour my hands when rolling the dough into balls. While one batch is baking, place the second baking sheet of teddy bear cookies into the refrigerator. That 10-minute chill helps the nose keep its shape when baked.
- Let cool on baking sheets. The cookies are quite soft when warm, and gingerbread cookies are best eaten cold anyway — the flavors are much stronger! Allow the cookies to cool completely on the baking sheet when they come out of the oven.
- Store in an airtight container. These chubby cookies are soft and will stay soft for several days if stored in an airtight container.
Ingredients
- Sugar: I typically use a combination of brown sugar and white sugar in my cookies, but for gingerbread cookies it's white sugar all the way.
- Molasses: regular molassses, nothing fancy.
- Butter: I always bake with salted butter, but you can use unsalted if you prefer. The original recipe calls for lard or shortening. I like butter for these, but you can use whatever you'd like. If using shortening, you may not need to freeze the cookies on baking sheets before baking.
- Water: you'll need hot water for this recipe. Hot tap water works fine, no need to use boiling water.
- Egg: for richness and texture.
- Baking Soda and Salt: for leavening and flavor.
- Ground Ginger, Ground Cinnamon and Ground Cloves: my favorite blend of spices for gingerbread cookies.
- Flour
- Candy or sprinkles: I use cinnamon candies for the belly button. You can use a mini M&M, frosting, or sprinkles.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How To Make Gingerbread Teddy Bears
Step 1: Combine sugar, molasses, and softened butter. Mix until smooth. Add hot water and mix.
Step 2: Mix in the egg. Add dry ingredients and mix until dough forms. Cover the dough with plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
Step 3: Roll a tablespoon-sized scoop of dough into a ball. Use this for the teddy bear bodies.
Step 4: Roll a tablespoon-sized scoop of dough into a ball. Break in half and roll each piece into a ball. Use the smaller ball for the teddy bear heads.
Step 5: Roll a tablespoon-sized scoop of dough into a ball. Break into 8 small sections. Roll each section into balls. Use these small balls for the ears and feet.
Step 6: Roll a tablespoon-sized scoop of dough into a ball. Break into 16 tiny sections. Roll each section into balls. Use these tiny balls for the noses. Press down slightly on the nose so that it sticks in place.
Let's Review
1 ball = body. ½ ball = head. ⅛ ball = ears, feet. 1/16 ball = nose.
Step 7: GENTLY press a red hot candy into the center of the teddy bear's body before baking. You don't need to press down far, just enough so that it sticks. You can also add the red hot after the cookie comes out of the oven with a dab of icing.
Step 8: Chill cookies on a baking sheet for 10 minutes. While one batch is baking, place the second batch in the refrigerator so it's ready to go.
Step 9: Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. Let cookies cool completely on the baking sheet. Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Teddy Bear Gingerbread FAQs
I bake on aluminum baking sheets. The light colored sheet (vs. dark metal sheets) bake more evenly. I like these ones (with almost 40K reviews) as well as the ones sold at Sam’s Club. The darker the cookie sheet, the faster the cookies will brown on the bottoms. It’s all personal preference, but light colored baking sheets have always given me great results.
I use regular molasses, which is a great all-around choice for baking. The brand I usually grab at the store is Grandma’s. You don’t want blackstrap molasses, which has a bitter flavor.
More Holiday Cookies To Make
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Teddy Bear Gingerbread Cookies
Ingredients
- ¾ cup butter softened
- ½ cup molasses
- ½ cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp. hot water
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- red hot candies
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Combine sugar, molasses, and softened butter. Mix until smooth. Add hot water and mix.
- Mix in the egg. Add dry ingredients and mix until dough forms. Chill the dough for 25-30 minutes.
- Roll a tablespoon-sized scoop of dough into a ball. Use this for the teddy bear bodies. If the dough is still a little sticky, add a bit of flour to your hands.
- Roll a tablespoon sized scoop of dough into a ball. Break in half and roll each piece into a ball. Use the smaller balls for the teddy bear heads.
- Roll a tablespoon sized scoop of dough into a ball. Break into 8 small sections. Roll each section into balls. Use these small balls for the ears and feet.
- Roll a tablespoon sized scoop of dough into a ball. Break into 16 tiny sections. Roll each section into balls. Use these tiny balls for the noses.
- GENTLY press a red-hot candy into the center of the teddy bear's body before baking. You don't need to press down far, just enough so that it sticks.Chill cookies on baking sheets for 10 minutes. While one batch is baking, place the second batch in the refrigerator so that it's ready to go.
- Bake cookies at 350 degrees for 12 minutes. If the nose is slightly off-center, you can gently push it into place while the cookie is still hot.Let cookies cool completely on the baking sheet to set up.
Brandy says
Hi everyone! Brandy here, I hope you try these cookies. They are fun to make, and I like that the dough doesn't need to chill. Truly, it's a no-chill recipe, and the shapes turn out great. Enjoy!