UNIQUE GINGERBREAD COOKIE CUTTERS & CHOCOLATE GINGERBREAD COOKIE RECIPE

Are you ready for the holidays? Any Gingerbread boys & girls in your cookie mix? I love Gingerbread Boys & Girls, and I these cookie cutters for traditional and not so traditional Gingerbread People are great! Be sure and scroll down for a Recipe for awesome Chocolate Gingerbread Cookies.

Yoga Cookie Cutters Set I: Lotus Group from Patti Paige Baked Ideas

Yoga Cookie Cutters Set 2: Down Dog from Patti Paige Baked Ideas

GingerDead Men Cookie Cutters:

NinjaBread Men:

Fred ABC Cookies Cutters: Which part do you eat first?

And some Vintage Gingerbread Boy Cookie Cutters

Chocolate Gingerbread Cookie Recipe
Recipe from Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito - Food & Wine Magazine

COOKIES

Ingredients
3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/3 cup unsweetened DARK cocoa powder
1 Tbsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground cloves
1 Tbsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
5 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup solid vegetable shortening (Crisco)
1/2 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
1/2 cup molasses
2 ounces dark chocolate (65-85% cacao), melted and cooled

Directions
In medium bowl, whisk flour with cocoa powder, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In bowl of standing electric mixer fitted with paddle, beat softened butter with shortening at medium speed until mixture is smooth, about 30 seconds. Add brown sugar and beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes.
Add egg to cookie batter and beat until incorporated. Beat in molasses and then melted chocolate. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, beating between additions. Divide dough into 3 equal parts. Shape each part into disk, then wrap each one in plastic wrap and refrigerate cookie dough until chilled, about 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 350°. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. On lightly floured work surface, roll out 1 disk of dough 1/4 inch thick. Using 4- to 5-inch cookie cutters, cut dough into shapes and transfer to prepared baking sheets. Reroll dough scraps and cut out more cookies.
Bake cookies for about 7 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking until tops are dry. Let cookies cool in pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Repeat process with remaining dough.

ICING
You can make Royal Icing or try this Recipe for Mascarpone Filling that doubles as Decorating Icing. Put it in a bag and pipe! Or use Wilton Decorating Icing in tubes.

Decorate your cookies. Let stand until icing dries, about 30 minutes.

Make Ahead: Chocolate-gingerbread cookies can be kept in an airtight container for up to 5 days.