Mix 1 tablespoon ground flax seed into 3 tablespoon of water and let sit for 10 minutes to create a flax egg.
Mix cookies
In one bowl, mix dry ingredients.
Melt the butter to liquid in a sauce pan, turn off heat. Stir in sugar until dissolved.
Add in vanilla and flax egg and molasses. Stir to combine as much as possible, especially the molasses although it will never truly mix in with the butter - you will have a mixture with a darker swirl in the center and that's okay.
Pour this mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients, and use a hand mixer until you have a creamy smooth batter.
Knead the dough into a flat disc, wrap in parchment, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Remove the dough from refrigerator, cover with another sheet of parchment and roll the dough to about ¼ to ½ inch thick.
Use cookie cutters to cut shapes, and place each cookie on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.
Bake for 6-8 minutes, no longer.
Let cool on the baking sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to a cooling rack. After they are cool, about 30 minutes, I decorate with icing, icing bag and a writing tip.