Combine in a mixing bowl the flour, salt, cinnamon, cocoa powder, and water. Use a fork to mix into a crumbly dough.

The dough will look and feel dry, but it needs to stick together when you press it into a ball. If it is too crumbly, add water a teaspoon at a time until the dough comes together.

Push the dough into a ball and roll out on a flat surface into a disk between ⅛” and ¼” thick.

Use the miniature gingerbread man cookie cutter to cut out 25 gingerbread men.

Place the gingerbread men onto a parchment lined baking sheet and use a straw to cut out holes in each hand of the gingerbread men.

Bake at 275°F for 2 hours. If they are still soft in the middle after cooling down, bake for another 30 minutes or until completely solid.

The gingerbread men will have a white cast when they are done baking. This is the salt settling, but to fix it, brush a small amount of neutral oil (vegetable, avocado, etc.) onto them. Use a paper towel to blot off excess oil to remove the shine.

Use a darning needle to thread the string through the gingerbread men.