Add all the cookie ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Mix the ingredients with a spoon and your hands until it comes together. Add more flour or water if needed (the dough should be soft and pliable). Alternatively, mix the ingredients in a food processor or stand mixer.
Set aside the dough in an airtight container in the fridge for 1 hour or in the freezer for 30 minutes until it's firmed up.
To shape the cookies:
When you're ready to roll out the cookies, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface so it is about 8mm (0.3 inch) thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut shapes out of the dough. Carefully place each cookie on a lined baking tray with a little space in between each cookie. You may need to use a flat spatula to transfer them,
Collect the excess dough, roll it out and cut out more shapes from the dough. Repeat until you have no more dough.
Bake the cookies in the oven for 10 minutes (depending on the size of your cookies). The edges of the cookies should be slightly golden brown. Allow the cookies to completely cool on the baking tray.
To decorate the cookies:
First make the frosting. Add all the frosting ingredients to a bowl and mix until it forms a thick paste. Add more coconut butter to thicken and more milk to thin the frosting.
Use a fine tipped piping bag to decorate the gingerbread as desired.
Enjoy immediately! Cookies are best enjoyed on the day of baking. Alternatively, store them in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Notes
If you use all-purpose flour, you'll need less or no water. Start with no water and add a little at a time until the dough comes together.
Molasses will work instead of maple syrup. However, it'll produce soft and chewy cookies rather than crunchy cookies. If you use molasses, I'd recommend slightly underbaking your cookies otherwise they'll be overly chewy.
If you don't mind having a conventional sugar frosting, mix 1 cup (200g) powdered sugar with 1-2 tablespoons plant-based milk until it's just runny. Add more sugar for a thicker frosting and more water for a thinner frosting. Make sure you don't add too much water otherwise the frosting will spread on your cookies. The sugar frosting is much easier to work with than the coconut butter frosting.
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