• Beat the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer until smooth and fluffy.
• Add the molasses, eggs, and spices and beat until smooth.
• Beat in 5 cups (650 g) of the flour. Scrape the dough onto the counter and knead it lightly by hand, adding in the last ¼ cup (30 g) of flour, if needed, to make a soft dough that comes together in a ball, with the consistency of playdough.
• Divide the dough into two balls, flatten them to discs about 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick. Wrap each disc in plastic food wrap or parchment paper and chill them for at least 1 hour or up to 24 hours.

To Bake the Cookies:

• Preheat the oven to 350℉ (180℃).
• Roll out one dough disc between parchment paper sheets to ¼-inch (.6 cm) thick (or roll it on the counter and then transfer it to a sheet of parchment paper). Remove the top layer of parchment paper, if you used it.
• Use a bowl or round platter 11-12 inches (28-30 cm) in diameter. Invert it onto the dough and cut around it to make the outside edge of the cookie wreath base. Find another bowl or plate that is 6-7 inches (15-18 cm) in diameter and use it to cut around to make the inside edge of the wreath. Aim for the wreath to be 4-5 inches (10-12 cm) wide.
• Slide the cookie wreath, with the parchment paper underneath it, onto a rimless baking sheet or onto the back of an upturned cookie sheet and bake it for about 14 minutes, or until it is very lightly browned at the edges.

  Remove the cookie wreath base from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan. Then gently move it to a large baking sheet or tray.
• Roll out the second disc of dough and cut out as many cookies as you can, in whatever shapes you choose for your wreath. You will also have a few extra cookies to enjoy. Reroll the scraps from both discs and keep cutting until you've used up all the dough. Lay the cookies onto ungreased or parchment-lined cookie sheets ½-1-inch (1-2 cm) apart. Try to keep cookies of the same size on each baking sheet, so the baking time is the same for all cookies on that pan.
• Bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on their size, until they are very lightly browned at the edges. Remove to wire racks and allow them to cool completely.

Make the Royal Icing:

• Stir together the icing sugar and egg white until smooth. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, stir again. Keep adding more lemon juice, ¼ teaspoon at a time, until the consistency of the icing is thin enough to flow out through a piping bag nozzle but thick enough to hold its shape and not spread when piped. If you've never worked with royal icing, this may take a bit of juggling until you get the feel of how you need it to be, and you may have to make a few practice lines on parchment paper or a plate. If the icing needs adjusting, scrape it back into the bowl and add more lemon juice or more icing sugar, small amounts at a time.
• Scrape the royal icing into a piping bag fitted with a small round-hole tip or into a squeeze bottle with a fine tip. If you have none of these, you can scoop the icing into a heavy-duty zip-top bag, cut a very tiny tip off one corner, and use that as a piping bag.

Assemble the Cookie Wreath:

• If you plan to hang your cookie wreath and are not sure it's stable enough, you can cut out a cardboard circle slightly smaller than the large cookie circle and 'glue' it to the back of the wreath with dabs of royal icing. This will reinforce it enough to hang, but when you want to consume the wreath, the cardboard can still be easily popped off by sliding a butter knife between the cardboard and the cookie.
• Decorate the cookies by piping the royal icing in fine lines, dots, and squiggles onto the cookies. Add sprinkles, edible glitter, candy beads, sanding sugar, or crushed candy canes. Leave them lying flat until the icing has hardened and dried.
• If using a decorative ribbon, add it first and attach it to the cookie wreath with dabs of royal icing. Then place a few of the larger cookies onto the wreath. When you are happy with their placement, 'glue' them in place with royal icing.
• Play with the remaining cookies, moving them to different places on the wreath to see where they fit best. Once it looks good, lift the cookies and dab the backs with royal icing and place them back into their spots. Leave the cookie wreath flat until the icing is completely hard and dry - overnight is best - before hanging it.