I’m loving air fryer Christmas cookies this year! They’re super easy.
Just make your favorite gingerbread dough, cut into festive shapes and air fry at 350°F for 8-10 minutes.
You’ll get perfectly crispy edges while saving oven space.
Leave an inch between cookies for proper air circulation, and let them cool completely before decorating.
My family can’t get enough of these quick treats!
Stick around to discover clever substitutions and storage hacks for your holiday baking.
Ingredients for Air Fryer Christmas Cookies
Enjoy these cookies with a warm bowl of Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup for a truly cozy experience on chilly evenings.
Recommended Tools
Making air fryer Christmas cookies is a breeze when you have the right tools on hand. These kitchen essentials will help you mix, roll and bake those festive gingerbread treats without any hassle, giving you perfect cookies that are ready for decorating.
-
- Air Fryer:
The star of the show that cooks your gingerbread cookies to perfection in just 8-10 minutes at 350°F. Additionally, using an air fryer can yield crispy results similar to those of other cooking methods.
- Mixing Bowls:
Necessary for combining your dry ingredients and beating the butter mixture separately before bringing everything together.
- Cookie Cutters:
Essential for cutting fun Christmas shapes from your rolled gingerbread doug
- Rolling Pin:
Helps you roll the chilled dough to an even ¼-inch thickness for consistent cookie baking.
- Parchment Paper:
Prevents cookies from sticking to the air fryer basket and makes cleanup super easy.
- Electric Mixer:
Makes light work of creaming butter with sugar and blending in other wet ingredients.
- Air Fryer:
Instructions
Let’s get baking some amazing gingerbread cookies in your air fryer!
First, grab a medium bowl and mix together 2¾ cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg, and ½ teaspoon salt. Give it a good whisk to make sure everything’s evenly distributed.
In a separate bowl, beat ½ cup softened butter and ¾ cup brown sugar until it’s super creamy and fluffy. This is where the magic begins!
Now add 1 large egg, ⅓ cup molasses, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and mix until it looks like a beautiful holiday dream.
Slowly add your dry ingredients to the wet mixture, a little at a time. Your dough should start coming together nicely—don’t overmix or your cookies might get tough!
Once combined, wrap that delicious dough in plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. (Trust me, this chilling step makes ALL the difference!)
When you’re ready to cook, roll the dough out to about ¼ inch thickness on a floured surface. Grab your favorite cookie cutters—gingerbread people, stars, trees—whatever makes you feel festive!
Cut out your shapes and carefully place them on parchment paper in your air fryer basket.
Air fry these beauties at 350°F for 8-10 minutes until they’re perfectly cooked through. Keep an eye on them—air fryers can vary, and nobody wants burnt gingerbread!
Remember to let your cookies cool completely before decorating. Hot cookies are fragile cookies!
Once cooled, go wild with icing, sprinkles, or whatever your heart desires. Your air fryer Christmas cookies will be the star of any holiday gathering!
Pro Tips
For perfectly crisp gingerbread cookies in the air fryer, leave at least an inch of space between each cookie to allow proper air circulation and even browning throughout the batch.
Substitutions & Variations
These gingerbread cookies are incredibly versatile and can be customized to suit various dietary needs, flavor preferences or holiday themes.
-
-
- Gluten-Free Version: Substitute all-purpose flour with a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend and add 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum if the blend doesn’t include it.
- Vegan Option: Replace butter with coconut oil or vegan butter, use a flax egg (1 tablespoon ground flaxseed mixed with 3 tablespoons water) instead of regular egg.
- Spice It Up: Double the spices and add 1/4 teaspoon cloves and 1/4 teaspoon allspice for more intense gingerbread flavor.
- Chocolate Gingerbread: Add 1/3 cup cocoa powder to the dry ingredients and increase molasses to 1/2 cup for a rich chocolate-ginger combination.
- Orange Spiced: Add 2 teaspoons of orange zest to the wet ingredients and replace vanilla with orange extract for a bright citrusy twist.
- Stuffed Cookies: Make sandwich cookies by adding a thin layer of cream cheese frosting, Nutella or caramel between two cooled cookies.
-
Leftovers & Storage Tips
After exploring all those creative variations, you’ll want to know how to properly store your air fryer gingerbread cookies to keep them fresh and delicious!
Store cooled cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.
Pop a slice of bread in there to keep them soft!
For longer storage, freeze them between layers of parchment for up to three months.
Just thaw at room temperature when you’re ready to enjoy!
Try Tonight!
Air Fryer Gingerbread Cookies
Delicious holiday gingerbread cookies made quickly and easily in the air fryer.
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup softened butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup molasses
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Mix flour, baking soda, spices, and salt in a bowl.
- Beat butter and brown sugar until creamy; add egg, molasses, and vanilla.
- Gradually add dry ingredients, combine into dough.
- Wrap and chill dough for 30 minutes.
- Roll out to ¼ inch, cut shapes, place on parchment in air fryer basket.
- Air fry at 350°F (176°C) for 8-10 minutes until cooked.
- Let cookies cool before decorating to prevent breakage.
