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Smoking Chimney

Recipes from a working kitchen · Cape Town

Gingerbread Biscuits

By Marna Ross Updated 12 August 2026 4.52 from 44 ratings South African
We all grew up with gingerbread biscuits! Somehow, somewhere, whether it is your aunt or granny, your earliest memory of biscuits dates back to gingerbread biscuits.And boy, make this recipe with the gingerbread biscuit cutters and children will love you! Cookie cutters are frequently everywhere to find so get started if the gingerbread biscuit cutters and not yet part of your kitchen utensils!This recipe is a good one, and very tasty. It is that perfect in-between biscuit - not soft and not too hard to lose a tooth on!I mostly make beautiful gingerbread hearts from this dough at The Garden Room Coffee Shop where I was previously employed. During December months - our summer time, I get quite a lot of orders for baked biscuits. I make up a box consisting of my best flavours such as: Small Shortbread Biscuits, Snickerdoodle biscuits and of course this very trusty gingerbread biscuit recipe!
Holiday gingerbread biscuits cut into festive shapes and decorated with white royal icing.
Prep 20 min
Cook 1 h
Total 1 h 20 m
Serves 40

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Ingredients

  • 2½ cups flour
  • ½ cup golden syrup
  • 2 eggs
  • 100 g butter
  • 1¼ cups sugar, plus extra for rolling
  • 10 ml bicarb of soda
  • 10 ml cream of tartar
  • 25 ml ground ginger
  • 1 pinch of salt

Method

  1. Pre heat the oven to 180° Celsius

  2. Melt the butter and sugar together on low heat until melted and let it cool down

  3. Add the eggs one by one and whisk until it is well incorporated

  4. Add the sugar and mix until it has dissolved

  5. Sift all the dry ingredients and add it to the egg mixture

  6. Once again mix through thoroughly

  7. Place the dough in the fridge for 1 hour to rest or overnight (I strongly recommend this step if you know beforehand you will bake the next day)

  8. Take the dough out of the fridge

  9. Roll down with a rolling pin on a surface sprinkled with sugar and with flour (this step is to prevent the dough to stick to the surface)

  10. Cut into desired shapes eg. hearts, gingerbread men cutters or rounds

  11. Bake for approximately 6-10 minutes until golden brown, depending on your oven strength

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