Gingerbread Sandwich Cookies with Lemon Filling

When shorter days and cool weather roll around, there’s nothing like a chewy gingerbread flavored with molasses and warm spices. Well, maybe there is: two chewy gingerbread cookies with fluffy lemon glaze. Now that’s a treat!

I’ve been making a version of these pretty cookies for a long time, especially around the holidays. It was inspired by a dark, gooey gingerbread with a warm lemon frosting – something my mom bakes for Christmas.

Tips for making neat sandwich cookies

The key to a professional-looking sandwich cookie is consistency. This cookie dough tends to spread evenly, especially after cooling, and makes thin, round cookies that are still soft. For a dessert worthy of a bake sale or cookie swap, follow these tips:

• Weigh flour: For a cookie dough that spreads just enough and stays chewy, weigh out the flour. If you don’t have a kitchen scale, make sure you measure it accurately – fluff the flour in its container, spoon it into the measuring cup, and then gently sweep away the excess flour by running the flat edge of a knife across it scratch measuring cup.
• Cool dough: The dough is soft, so it makes soft cookies. It’s hard to work with if you don’t cool it first. For uniformly sized cookies, refrigerate the batter for at least an hour (more is even better).
• Measure dough: You could stare at the servings for most cookie recipes. For this recipe, it is important to measure each portion of dough. This way you get evenly sized cookies that make evenly sized sandwiches. A cookie scoop or measuring spoon with a tablespoon will ensure you get even portions. Another alternative: Scoop and weigh the cookie dough – it should weigh 22 grams each.
• Grease cookie scoop: A light spritz of cooking spray will help the slightly sticky cookie dough come out of the cookie scoop in one piece. Reapply every few scoops or as needed.
• Inject filling: For ultra-thin sandwich cookies, place the lemon filling in a piping bag or ziplock bag with the corner cut off and pipe onto the cookies.

Tasty variations

I wouldn’t suggest tweaking these cookies too much as any change will affect texture and baking time. However, here are some variations that work well:

• Make them dairy free: The texture and cleanliness aren’t the same, but the cookies and filling can be made with vegan butter.
• Make it with Lime or Orange: Swap lemon zest and juice for lime or orange.
• Just the cookies: These cookies are flavorful and delicious enough to enjoy on their own. After portioning the cookie dough into balls, roll them halfway in coarse sugar such as cane sugar or turbinado sugar and place sugar-side up on the baking sheet. This gives them a pretty shine and a little crunch.

Make-ahead tips

Assembling the cookies is quicker and easier than frosting cupcakes. If you prepare the dough in advance, it’s even possible to bake a whole batch of cookies in a weekday. You can make the dough up to a day in advance and store it in the fridge. The filling should be made fresh as it can dry out, but it only takes a few minutes to whip up.

Storage Instructions

These gingerbread sandwich cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. They keep even better if they are individually wrapped.

The lemon filling is best used immediately as it can dry out. Sandwiched between the biscuits, it stays moist and keeps better than on its own. Once baked, the cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to four days.

To freeze the unbaked cookie dough: Make the dough, chill and roll into portioned balls. Instead of baking them, freeze them on a parchment-lined baking sheet for at least an hour. Place the frozen cookie dough in a ziplock bag and freeze for up to three months.

To bake the cookies from frozen: Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and preheat the oven—no defrosting necessary. Once the oven is hot, bake as directed, adding about a minute to the cooking time.

Pretty cookies to give away

• Holiday Pinwheel Cookies
• Brookies (chocolate chip cookies)
• Slice and bake pistachio butter cookies
• Lofthouse style soft frosted sugar cookies
• Florentine chocolate chip cookies