Gingerbread Men

At Christmas time my house smells of gingerbread.  For weeks we are either making, cutting, baking or building with gingerbread.  We make two kinds:  one dense, sturdy dough for making houses and another softer variety with just the right blend of sweet and spice, for eating and sharing.  We've made these every year for the annual Cookie Walk at church and every year they ask for more.  Some say its the best they've ever eaten.  This recipe comes from the pages of Gourmet magazine and the Food Network.

- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup molasses
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
-  1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Sugar icing, optional, recipe follows

In a large bowl, with an electric mixer cream the butter, add the sugar, and beat the mixture until fluffy. Beat in the egg, the molasses, and the vinegar.
Into another bowl, sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt and stir the mixture into the butter mixture, a little at a time. The dough will be soft. Divide the dough into fourths, dust it with flour, and wrap each piece in waxed paper. Flatten the dough slightly and chill it for at least 3 hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Roll out the dough, 1 piece at a time, 1/4-inch thick on a floured surface and cut out cookies with a 4-inch gingerbread man cutter dipped in flour. Transfer the cookies with a spatula to buttered baking sheets, arranging them 2-inches apart, and bake them in the oven for 6 to 8 minutes or until no imprint remains when they are touched lightly with the fingertip. Transfer the cookies with the spatula to racks and let them cool. Make cookies with the dough scraps in the same manner. If desired, pipe the sugar icing decoratively on the cookie using a pastry bag fitted with a small decorative tip. Let the cookies stand for 20 minutes, or until the icing is set.

Sugar Icing:
- 2 large egg whites
- 1 pinch cream of tartar
- 3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- Food coloring, optional

In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar, a pinch of salt, and 2 teaspoons water until the mixture is frothy, beat in the sugar, a little at a time, and beat the mixture until it holds stiff peaks. Beat in the food coloring, if desired.

Decorate baked cookies with the icing using a spatula or a pastry bag fitted with s small decorative tip and let the cookies stand for 20 minutes, or until the icing is set.

Yield: enough icing for about 50 (4-inch) cookies