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Gingerbread Oatmeal Cookies a combination of two of my favorite cookies! Gingerbread and oatmeal! Made with homemade gingerbread spice, they’re packed with seasonal spices and delicious oats.

 

I used to have a spice subscription. They would send 3 to 4 packets of spices a month. Small batch, freshly blended, and oh so delicious. I have several of their pouches to go through. If you know anything about me, you will know how much I love fresh spices. And making my own homemade spice blends.

 

In one of the packages, I received gingerbread spice. Oh, my word. How have I not known about this before? This puts pumpkin spice to shame. I’m not even kidding. One whiff of this spice blend and I was in love. I used it for many different recipes. Cakes, cookies, more cakes. It was so delicious. I used it up and ran out. So, of course I had to research and figure out how to make my own.

 

 

Where does gingerbread come from?

 

Since I can’t find anything in history talking about gingerbread spice itself, I figured it probably evolved with the creation of gingerbread itself. I know I’ve talked about it before, but I just thought I’d do a recap of events. The first recipe for gingerbread is from Greece about 2400 BC. That’s a lone time ago! With the explorers and the spice trade, eventually the recipe spread. Since ginger was cultivated mostly in China, they had their own version around the 10th century.

 

Somewhere between the 5th and 15th centuries, aka Middle Ages, these cookies became a popular fair at fairs. This recipe spread throughout Europe. By this time these cookies aren’t decorated. They’re cut into animal shapes, but it’s Queen Elizabeth I that is credited with decorating them. She had them decorated to resemble dignitaries visiting her court.

 

Gingerbread houses surfaced in Germany. They were decorated with foil and gold leaf and became even more popular after the Brothers Grimm wrote Hansel and Gretel. The hag comes out of a gingerbread house.

 

 

What is in gingerbread spice?

 

There are many different recipes for gingerbread spice. Sort of like different versions of curry or masala. It really depends on your flavor profile as to what you put in there. And whether you want a standard gingerbread spice or a more authentic German variety.

 

I find it interesting that McCormick doesn’t have gingerbread spice mix. I guess everyone just wants pumpkin spice. Anyway, there’s 5 basic spices that go into gingerbread spice:

1. Cinnamon
2. Ginger
3. Nutmeg
4. Allspice
5. Cloves

These 5 are also in pumpkin pie spice, but it’s the amount of each that makes them different. Pumpkin spice has predominately cinnamon in there and the rest of the spices are just accompaniment. In gingerbread spice, all 5 of these play a key role and not just supporting the cinnamon.

 

 

For a more authentic German gingerbread spice, there’s 5-6 more spices you add to round out the delicious flavor.

1. Coriander
2. Star anise
3. Mace
4. Cardamom
5. Nutmeg
6. Black pepper (optional)

Coriander, for those that don’t know, are the seeds of the plant that also produces cilantro. It does not taste like cilantro in the slightest. If it did, I wouldn’t use it. Star anise are the seed pods of the Illicium verum which is grown in Vietnam and southwest China. It’s part of the magnolia family. It’s nothing like anise seed. That’s from the parsley family. Nutmeg and mace are related. Mace is the lacy coating, the aril, surrounding the nutmeg seed. They both taste sweet and woody. The mace has a warmer profile and might be too warm for some with sensitive palette. I talked all about cardamom in my post yesterday.

 

 

You don’t have to add in the black pepper. There’s not enough in my recipe to make the mix too warm. It’s a quarter teaspoon against 3 tablespoons of cinnamon in my gingerbread mix. So, you can see it’s not a lot in the grand scheme of things. But it’s there that adds a little warmth when you bite into these cookies. And when it’s super cold outside, maybe that little bit of black pepper will warm you up.

 

There’s a Scandinavian cookie made with black pepper. Piparkokur has black pepper in there in a larger ration than the black pepper in my spice mix. They’re slightly spicy but not too much that you can’t eat them. So, it’s not that uncommon for black pepper to be in cookies. Just saying.

 

 

How do you make Gingerbread Oatmeal Cookies?

 

Just like a regular oatmeal cookie with a few adjustments. You cream the butter and shortening (or use all butter if you want) with both sugars together. Stir in the egg, vanilla, and molasses. No, there’s no molasses in oatmeal cookies. Molasses brings out the richness and flavor of the spices and makes the cookies a rich brown color.

 

I combine all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and stir it with a whisk. That goes into the butter mixture a little at a time. When you add that first bit of the flour mixture that gingerbread spice will waft up from the mixer. It smells like heaven in a bowl. A final stir of the oats finishes the dough. Feel free to stir in some nuts or fruits. I would think golden raisins or currents would be a good addition. Not sure what kind of nuts, though. Maybe pecans or walnuts? Actually, that sounds pretty good.

 

 

What do Gingerbread Oatmeal Cookies taste like?

 

Like an oatmeal cookie on steroids. Oatmeal cookies have some cinnamon and sometimes ginger in there. These Gingerbread Oatmeal Cookies have 11 spices in the gingerbread spice mix. It’s okay if you don’t have gingerbread spice. I’ve provided a list of spices as a substitution. But it won’t taste like cookies made with gingerbread spice. I’ll be sharing that recipe on the blog later. I wasn’t organized enough to share it before I shared these cookies. It’s been a busy month.

 

They are perfectly chewy and delicious. And if you flatten them when they bake, you can easily use them to make a sandwich cookie. A cream cheese buttercream would be delicious or even cinnamon buttercream. Or elevate the ginger flavor and use some of the stem ginger from Monday’s recipe in the buttercream. That would be really good and bring home the ginger part of the gingerbread.

 

 

Just look at that dark brown color. You know before you bite into them that they’re going to be packed with flavor. Those flakes of oats on the surface are nutty and chewy. These cookies are perfectly chewy. I like them chewy. If you want crunchy ones, cook them a little longer. I don’t like crunchy cookies because the crumbs get everywhere. For me, that’s no fun.

 

I am thrilled with how the gingerbread spice mix came out and how these cookies turned out. They had the flavors I really wanted in a mash up cookie between a gingerbread and an oatmeal raisin cookie. I will have to make these again and try some fruit additions. Maybe some citron? There’s an idea. Or crystalized ginger. Yum!

Welcome to #ChristmasCookies Week! That time of year when we soften the butter, fire up the oven, and make cookie trays for family, friends, and neighbors. This year more than 20 top-notch bloggers are sharing their very favorite creations for all to make and enjoy. Join us for a week’s worth of Christmas cookie deliciousness.

• Almond Paste Squares by Shockingly Delicious
• Cherry Vanilla Pinwheels by Jolene’s Recipe Journal
• Cherry Wink Cookies by An Affair from the Heart
• Chewy Frosted Christmas Blondie Cookie Bar by Red Cottage Chronicles
• Chocolate Blossom Cookies by Palatable Pastime
• Chocolate Mint-Filled Cookies by Karen’s Kitchen Stories
• Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies by Art of Natural Living
• Cranberry White Chocolate Chip Cookies by Hostess At Heart
• Eggnog Snickerdoodle Cookies by Best Cookie Recipes
• Elf Style Chocolate Chip Peppermint Cookies by Cheese Curd in Paradise
• Gingerdoodles by Magical Ingredients
• Gingerbread Oatmeal Cookies by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Gluten-Free Chocolate Spritz by Frugal & Fit
• Grinch Cookie Recipe by Kathryn’s Kitchen Blog
• Nut-Free Snowball Cookies by Faith, Hope, Love, and Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice
• Peanut Butter Snickerdoodles by Christmas Tree Lane
• Rosewater Pistachio Snowball Cookies by The Spiffy Cookie
• Sourdough Ginger Cookies by That Recipe
• Toffee Bars by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Whipped Shortbread Cookies by Blogghetti