Step 1

Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a baking tray (or two depending on the size) with parchment paper.

Step 2

Cream your nondairy butter and brown sugar together using an electric mixer.

Step 3

Add in the molasses, vanilla, and egg and beat until combined.

Step 4

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices. Mix it all together.

Step 5

Slowly mix the dry ingredients in to the butter mixture with your mixer on medium low. You don't want to overmix here, or your cookies will be tough.

Step 6

The batter should be thick and not too sticky. If it's still very sticky, try adding it just a teaspoon of flour at a time. Don't add too much because we'll be adding more flour in the next step.

Step 7

Flour a clean surface to roll out the dough. Pat a bit of the flour on your hands, and roll your dough into one big ball.

Step 8

Roll out the dough with a rolling pin to about 1/4 inch thickness. *see notes*

Step 9

Dip your cookie cutters in a little bit of flour so the dough doesn't stick to them. Cut out your cookies, and place them on your parchment lined baking trays.

Step 10

Add more flour to the dough as needed, forming the scraps back in to a ball and rerolling the dough out to cut more cookies. Repeat this as many times as needed until there is not enough dough left to cut out a cookie.

Step 11

Bake your cookies for about 12 minutes. See notes about cooking times.

Step 12

Let the cookies cool completely before decorating.

Step 13

To make the frosting, mix the ingredients in a small bowl. Be sure to add your milk a bit at a time. The frosting needs to be thick, or it will run right off your cookie. If you've added too much milk, add a bit more sugar until it's thick again. I like to let my frosting rest for five minutes before I scoop it into a piping bag for decorating.

Step 14

Decorate your cookies with the frosting, and enjoy!