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So many people have written to me telling me how much they enjoyed my soft sugar cookies {in a cake pan} that I decided to develop another recipe for cake pan cookies! This time, gingerbread! Just in time for Christmas. These are ridiculously easy to make, soft, chewy, and sooooo delicious! Have a tall glass of milk or a mug of coffee or tea ready to enjoy with these yummies!

Add the cayenne pepper if you like your gingerbread with a little kick of spice! Trust me, it’s awesome!

for the cookies:

~ preheat oven to 350 degrees F. ~

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup molasses

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon cinnamon

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cloves

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (optional)

Butter a 9×13 cake pan. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine: softened butter, brown sugar, vanilla extract, and molasses until smooth and creamy. Add egg, beat until smooth.

In another mixing bowl, combine: baking soda, flour and spices. Mix until well combined. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until evenly combined.

Transfer to prepared baking pan. Using a rubber spatula or your fingers, pat cookie batter into an even layer in the pan. Batter will be thick and sticky, so you might want to lightly butter the spatula first.

Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes. No longer! You don’t want these to over-bake or they wont be soft and chewy.

Place pan on cooling rack and cool completely before adding the icing.

for the icing:

1/4 cup butter, softened to room temperature

4 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature

1 and 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

4 to 6 teaspoons cream or whole milk

Place all icing ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, mix until smooth. Transfer to squirt bottle and decorate the tops of completely cooled cookies in pan. If you’re in a hurry you can just spread the icing on top of the cookies and skip the squeeze bottle. I think the extra step makes them look so pretty though!

Cut into 8 to 12 cookies.

Enjoy!

~Melissa