Gingerbread Men…and More

Men are so 1995. At least when it comes to cookie shapes. Why make simple gingerbread men, when you could make GingerDead men, ninjas, or take a cue from Band of Outsiders, and create hipster cookies. (And did you know that Band of Outsiders has a cookie Tumblr, whose tagline is “If you don’t like cookies, you might not have a soul?” I’m inclined to agree—can we get this on a Boy t-shirt?.)

For the best mail-order ginger cookies, my favorite are the Ginger Jump-ups from Zingermans (who also do a great “Bacon of the Month” club.) The cookie is simultaneously chewy, sweet, zesty, and spicy, with huge chunks of crystallized ginger. I hate all ginger, including the pickled ginger that comes on the side of sushi, but I love this cookie (honorable mentions to Blue Bottle’s ginger molasses cookie and Tartine’s chewy gingerbread—both San Franciso favorites, that sadly don’t have mail order options.)

Ninjabread Men Cookie Cutters, $8.28

Band of Outsiders Cookie Cutters, $29.99

Zingerman’s Cookies, prices vary