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1
Mix butter, sugar, and molasses thoroughly. Stir in water and mix until incorporated (it will be wet and strangely lumpy, but this goes away when you add the flour).
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2
Sift together the flour and other remaining dry ingredients in a bowl. Stir into the wet mix a little at a time until fully incorporated. The mixture will be extremely thick. Form into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap; let chill for at least two hours.
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3
Heat the oven to 350u00b0F. Roll dough 1/4 inch thick on a (very lightly) floured board. Using a gingerbread man cookie cutter, cut the cookies.
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4
Make slight variations by hand to personalize them for
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5
characters.
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6
Gently shape the legs to be longer and flatter at the end, and stretch the arms a little bit.
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7
Be sure to flatten the fat middle part of the gingerbread men-after all, they are all shapely ladies. For Gingerbread Joan in particular, you might want to add a little beehive hairdo.
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8
If desired, using a knife, cut out shapes for some
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9
-style accessories: martini glasses, collins glasses, hats or briefcases, a cloud shape for a puff of cigarette smoke. Be sure to bake these smaller pieces on a separate tray because they won't need to bake as long.
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10
Bake the large cookies for 10 to 12 minutes or until no imprint remains when touched lightly; bake the small accessory cookies for about 6 to 7 minutes. Let them cool completely before icing them.
