DIY Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments: Crafting Lasting Christmas Memories
There’s a special kind of magic that fills the air during the holiday season, and nothing evokes that nostalgic charm quite like homemade Christmas decorations. This recipe for **Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments** isn’t just a craft; it’s an experience that will infuse your home with an intoxicating, festive fragrance and adorn your Christmas tree with unique, seasonal beauty. While these delightful creations are perfect for hanging on your tree year after year, their versatility extends to crafting durable gingerbread houses or any strong structural holiday builds you can imagine. It’s a wonderful way to create lasting memories and beautiful adornments for your home.
This heartwarming project is proudly brought to you exclusively by King of Christmas. They are renowned for providing some of the highest-quality artificial Christmas trees available, offering the perfect canvas for your festive creations and helping you create cherished holiday memories in your home. Be sure to check out my latest collaboration with them, where my nephew and I dive into another fun homemade ornament project!
While this gingerbread salt dough recipe uses all edible ingredients, it’s important to note that the resulting ornaments are crafted for decoration, not consumption. The high salt content, while crucial for preservation and hardening, makes them quite unpalatable. However, this aspect makes it an incredibly safe and enjoyable craft to undertake with children, allowing for creative freedom without worry. The possibilities for cut-out shapes are truly endless, limited only by your imagination and cookie cutter collection!
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Essential Ingredients for Your Gingerbread Salt Dough
One of the many reasons I adore this “recipe” and craft is its simplicity and cost-effectiveness. Utilizing common kitchen staples, you’ll likely find most, if not all, of these ingredients already residing in your pantry. This not only makes the project accessible but also reinforces the charm of traditional, homemade holiday crafts. Each ingredient plays a vital role in creating a dough that is both fragrant and robust, perfect for long-lasting ornaments.
Here’s what you’ll need to gather:
- All-Purpose Flour: The foundational ingredient, providing structure and bulk to your dough.
- Plain Table Salt: Crucial for hardening the dough and acting as a natural preservative, ensuring your ornaments last for seasons to come.
- Ground Ginger: Contributes the classic warm, spicy aroma characteristic of gingerbread.
- Ground Cloves: Adds a rich, pungent, and slightly sweet undertone to the spice blend, deepening the gingerbread fragrance.
- Ground Cinnamon: Essential for both its signature warm scent and its contribution to the beautiful reddish-brown color of gingerbread.
- Water: The binding agent that brings all the dry ingredients together to form a pliable dough.
- Black Cocoa Powder (optional): For those who desire a darker, more dramatic gingerbread look, offering a rich, almost black hue.
For precise measurements and detailed instructions, simply use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top of this post, or scroll down to the bottom to view the full recipe card.
Don’t forget to use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top of the post for quick access, or scroll to the very bottom for the complete recipe card, including exact ingredient measurements and step-by-step instructions!
Crafting Your Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments: A Step-by-Step Guide
Creating these gingerbread salt dough ornaments is a thoroughly enjoyable process, perfect for a cozy afternoon craft session. Follow these steps to ensure your ornaments turn out beautifully sturdy and fragrant.
Step 1: Preparing the Dough Base
Begin by combining all the dry ingredients – that’s the all-purpose flour, plain table salt, ground ginger, ground cloves, and ground cinnamon – in a large mixing bowl. Take your whisk and thoroughly incorporate them until they are uniformly mixed. This ensures an even distribution of flavor and color throughout your dough. If you’re aiming for a deeper, darker dough, this is the perfect moment to whisk in â…“ cup of black cocoa powder along with the other dry ingredients.
Step 2: Mixing and Kneading the Dough
Once your dry ingredients are perfectly blended, gradually add the water to the bowl. At this point, it’s best to switch from a whisk to a sturdy rubber spatula, as the dough will quickly become too thick for a whisk. Work the mixture with your spatula until almost all of the dry ingredients have absorbed the water and are moistened. Then, turn the dough out onto a clean, lightly floured surface or remain in the bowl and use your hands to knead it. Knead the dough vigorously for about 2-3 minutes until it becomes completely uniform, smooth, and supple. This kneading process is vital for developing the gluten slightly, which contributes to the dough’s workability and the ornaments’ final strength.
Step 3: Rolling Out the Dough
Divide your perfectly kneaded dough into three manageable portions. Take one portion and place it onto a piece of parchment paper. Lay a second piece of parchment paper on top, creating a “parchment sandwich.” This technique is a game-changer, preventing the dough from sticking to your rolling pin and making cleanup a breeze. Roll the dough out as thinly as you possibly can, ideally to about â…› inch thickness. If the dough is a bit stiff, aim for ¼ inch, but remember that thinner ornaments will dry out more effectively and quickly. Crackers-thin is the goal!
Step 4: Cutting Shapes and Preparing for Hanging
Now for the fun part! Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut out various shapes. For my Christmas tree this year, I chose an charming assortment of mushroom shapes to create whimsical ornaments. Carefully transfer your cut-outs to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. If you intend to hang these as ornaments, use a toothpick or the end of a skewer to gently create a small hole near the top of each shape. Ensure the hole is large enough for string or ribbon to pass through easily once the ornaments are dry.
Step 5: Baking and Thorough Drying
Preheat your oven to a low temperature of 250°F (120°C). Bake your cut-outs until they are completely crisp and dry, which typically takes about 1.5 to 2 hours. Thinner ornaments will naturally bake faster, some taking as little as an hour and 15 minutes. To ensure even drying and prevent warping, make sure to flip the ornaments halfway through the baking time. After baking, let them cool completely on the baking sheet. For any ornaments that might be a bit thicker or still have soft spots, allow them to air dry uncovered overnight. This extra drying time is crucial for their longevity and structural integrity, ensuring they harden fully and will withstand the test of time on your tree.
Step 6: Decorating Your Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments
Once your gingerbread salt dough creations are thoroughly cooled and dried, they become a blank canvas for decoration! I personally love to use a simple royal icing, made from egg whites and powdered sugar, for a classic, elegant touch. The crisp white against the warm gingerbread hue creates a beautiful contrast that perfectly embodies holiday cheer. While you can certainly color your icing with food gels for a more vibrant look, the traditional white provides a timeless charm. Get creative with piping bags and small tips to add intricate designs, dots, or festive messages. You can also explore other decorating mediums like acrylic paints, glitter, or even affix small beads or sequins for extra sparkle. Let your imagination run wild!
Displaying Your Beautiful Gingerbread Salt Dough Creations
The true joy of crafting these gingerbread salt dough ornaments comes when you see them beautifully strung up and adorning your Christmas display. They look particularly stunning hung on a magnificent 9-foot King of Christmas King Noble Fir tree, where their rustic charm and warm tones truly stand out. Beyond individual ornaments, imagine stringing several together to create a charming gingerbread garland for your tree, mantelpiece, or even intertwined with other festive greenery throughout your home. The possibilities for festive display are abundant!
My inspiration for this year’s Christmas tree theme was “Modern Nordic Nostalgia,” and I truly believe these homemade ornaments perfectly capture that essence. They infuse a delightful blend of sophistication, whimsical charm, and a touch of old-world holiday magic into the overall aesthetic. If you’re looking to recreate a similar cozy yet elegant look, you can shop my AMAZON favorites HERE, and discover many of my other cherished holiday decor finds from a variety of retailers, HERE.
Expert Tips & Troubleshooting for Perfect Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments
Achieving perfect gingerbread salt dough ornaments is easy with a few insider tips. Here’s what I’ve learned from experience to help you create beautiful, long-lasting decorations:
Dough Consistency is Key
When you’re first mixing the dough, don’t be alarmed if it seems a bit challenging to combine the water and dry ingredients. It will take some time and effort to fully incorporate everything. You can certainly tackle this by hand, using a strong spatula initially and then your hands for kneading. Alternatively, a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook makes this process effortless. The most crucial step here is to knead the dough for a good 2-3 minutes. This essential kneading allows the gluten to develop just enough, resulting in a supple, smooth, and easy-to-handle dough that won’t stick excessively.
Troubleshooting Dough Texture: If your dough feels overly tacky and sticks to your hands or the rolling pin, incorporate a small amount of extra flour, a teaspoon at a time, until it reaches the desired non-sticky consistency. Conversely, if the dough is too stiff and resists rolling out smoothly, knead in a tiny bit more water, again, a teaspoon at a time, until it becomes pliable. The ideal dough should be firm but not sticky, and a joy to work with. Rolling between two sheets of parchment paper, as demonstrated, is an excellent technique to keep your work surface clean and prevent the dough from clinging to your rolling pin.
Rolling for Optimal Drying
The thinner you can roll your dough, the better and faster your ornaments will dry. I strive for a thickness of approximately ⅛th inch – almost cracker-thin. While ¼ inch thickness will still work, expect those ornaments to require a longer drying time, both in the oven and potentially overnight for air drying. Uniform thickness is also important for consistent baking and drying results.
Baking & Post-Baking Drying
To ensure your ornaments dry out completely and prevent any warping, it’s a great practice to flip them over halfway through the baking process. This exposes both sides evenly to the heat. After the initial 2 hours in the oven, if you notice any spots that still feel damp or soft, don’t worry! Simply leave the ornaments out, uncovered, overnight. They will continue to air dry and harden. The ultimate goal is to achieve a stiff, durable consistency that can be safely handled and strung up, even if they continue to firm up slightly on your tree.
Decorating Your Dried Ornaments
Once your gingerbread salt dough cookies are perfectly dry and hard, they are ready for their artistic transformation. Treat them just like you would sugar cookies. As mentioned, I love using a simple royal icing made from egg whites and powdered sugar for a classic, clean look. However, feel free to experiment with acrylic craft paints (ensure they are non-toxic if children are involved), glitter, or even glued-on embellishments like buttons or small beads to personalize your ornaments.
Smart Substitutions & Creative Variations
One of the beauties of this salt dough recipe is its forgiving nature, allowing for easy substitutions and creative twists to suit your preferences and what you have on hand.
Flour Alternatives
You can use almost any plain flour for this recipe. If you have an old bag of whole wheat flour tucked away in the back of your pantry, feel free to use it! It will impart a slightly nuttier flavor and a denser texture, but it will still work perfectly for creating durable ornaments.
Salt Choices and Cost-Effectiveness
The salt in this recipe is not for flavor, but purely functional – it acts as a preservative and helps the cookies harden significantly. For this reason, I highly recommend using very inexpensive plain table salt. I once picked up a canister for just $0.67 at Walmart and managed to make two and a half batches of ornaments with it! While you *could* use kosher or iodized salt, I find kosher salt to be too expensive for a non-edible craft, and frankly, a bit of a waste. Save your good kosher salt for your actual cooking!
Spice It Up: The Essence of Gingerbread
While the combination of ginger, cloves, and cinnamon creates the most authentic and rich gingerbread aroma, cinnamon is undeniably the most crucial of the trio for both its distinctive scent and its contribution to the dough’s beautiful color. If your spice cabinet is a bit bare and you only have cinnamon on hand, you can absolutely use it exclusively. Simply replace the specified amounts of ginger and cloves with the same amount of ground cinnamon for a cinnamon-forward gingerbread scent.
Achieving a Darker Gingerbread Hue
If you prefer a dramatic, darker, almost black-looking dough – a look I sometimes favor for its striking contrast with white icing – you can easily achieve this. At the very beginning, when you’re whisking together the dry ingredients, add â…“ cup of black cocoa powder along with the flour mixture. If you decide to add the cocoa *after* combining all the other dry ingredients, you’ll need to adjust the liquid content. In that case, add an additional ½ cup of water, as cocoa powder absorbs a lot of moisture, and without this adjustment, your dough will be too dry and crumbly to work with.
My Enchanting Mushroom Christmas Tree Theme
This year, I fully embraced a whimsical mushroom theme for my holiday decor, extending beyond these delightful gingerbread salt dough ornaments. I even crafted some impressive giant paper mache mushrooms to create a magical “mushroom tree forest” in my home. The undisputed star of this enchanting forest, naturally, is my exquisite King of Christmas King Noble Fir, which serves as the perfect backdrop for all my homemade creations.
More Gingerbread Inspiration for the Holidays
If the warm, spicy aroma of gingerbread is your absolute favorite, or if you’re simply seeking more delectable inspiration for edible gingerbread treats, you’ve come to the right place! Here are a few more gingerbread-infused delights to add to your holiday repertoire:
I developed this recipe for Gingerbread Oatmeal Cream Pies a few years ago, and they have since become an eagerly anticipated and welcome addition to my Christmas cookie trays. They’re a delightful twist on a classic!
Make your holiday breakfasts a little extra special and festive with my Gingerbread Pancakes. Perfectly spiced for the season, they offer a fun and delicious nod to treats from Santa himself!
Elevate any of your holiday bakes with my homemade Gingerbread Spice Mix. From cookies to pancakes, cakes, or anything your culinary imagination can whip up, this versatile blend adds a wonderfully warm and seasonal spice to just about anything.
And if you’re looking for unique inspiration for crafting a gingerbread house, be sure to take a look at my Oreo “Gingerbread” Houses. These are made from scratch but utilize a fun technique that allows them to be sculpted into just about ANY form you can dream up – they’re incredibly fun to make and delicious too!
Did you make this recipe? I would absolutely love to hear about it! Please let me know by leaving a review or comment below. And don’t forget to sign up for my newsletter to stay updated on new recipes and crafts, and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook for daily inspiration!
📖 Recipe
Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments
10 minutes
2 hours
2 hours 10 minutes
Craft beautiful and fragrant homemade Christmas ornaments with this easy Gingerbread Salt Dough recipe. Made with edible ingredients, this craft is inexpensive, durable, and perfect for creating lasting holiday memories and decorations. Ideal for tree ornaments, garlands, or even festive gingerbread houses, these long-lasting pieces fill your home with a wonderful seasonal aroma. While made with edible ingredients, these are intended for decorative purposes due to their high salt content.
Ingredients
- 3 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1 cup Plain Table Salt
- ¼ cup Ground Ginger
- ¼ cup Ground Cloves
- ½ cup Ground Cinnamon
- 1 ½ cups Water
- â…“ cup Black Cocoa Powder, optional
- For Decorating:
- 2 Egg Whites
- 1-1 ½ cups Powdered Sugar
Instructions
Notes
Expert Tips for Perfect Gingerbread Salt Dough Ornaments:
Dough Consistency: When forming the dough, it will take effort to fully incorporate the water and dry ingredients. Knead by hand or use a stand mixer with a dough hook for 2-3 minutes. This develops gluten, making the dough supple and easy to handle. If tacky, add a bit more flour; if too stiff, knead in a bit more water. The dough should be firm but not sticky.
Rolling Thin: The thinner the dough (ideally ⅛ inch, but ¼ inch works), the faster and more evenly the ornaments will dry. Rolling between parchment paper prevents sticking and mess. Flip ornaments halfway through baking to prevent warping and ensure thorough drying on both sides.
Post-Baking Drying: After baking for 2 hours, if any ornaments still have soft spots, leave them uncovered overnight to air dry. They will continue to harden on your tree; the goal is for them to be stiff enough to handle and string.
Decorating: Once dry, the ornaments can be decorated like sugar cookies. A simple royal icing (egg whites and powdered sugar) provides a classic look, but feel free to use acrylic paints or other embellishments.
Smart Substitutions & Creative Variations:
Flour: Any plain flour, including whole wheat, can be used.
Salt: Use inexpensive plain table salt. Its primary role is preservation and hardening, not flavor. Save your kosher salt for cooking.
Spices: Cinnamon is the most important for color and aroma. If you only have cinnamon, you can substitute the ginger and cloves with an equal amount of cinnamon.
Darker Dough: For an almost black gingerbread look, add ⅓ cup of black cocoa powder with the dry ingredients. If added later, remember to also add ½ cup more water to prevent the dough from being too dry, as cocoa absorbs significant moisture.
Recommended Products
As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.
- KING OF CHRISTMAS 9 FT Artificial Christmas Tree Unlit Xmas Trees Noble Fir with Foldable Metal Stand and Hinged Sections, Green Unlit Christmas Tree for Office Home Store Party Holiday Decor
- R&M Mushroom 3.75″ Stainless Steel Cookie Cutter
- Mushroom Cookie Cutter Set Large – 5 Inch, 4 Inch, 3 Inch, 2 Inch – 4 Piece Plant Cookie Cutters Shapes Molds – Stainless Steel
- Foose Cookie Cutters Mushroom 4 Pc Set. USA Tin Plate Steel. 4 in Morel, 3.25 in Chanterelle, 3.25 in Shitake, and 3.25 in Button
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