December 10, 2007
Today is Gingerbread day! The
weather is cold and snowy. Good day to stay inside and work
close to an oven to keep warm.
Each year we have a gingerbread
house party. When my kids were younger we would make about 15
houses and invite all of the neighborhood families to come and
have their children decorate the houses. Now that my kids are
older, we still decorate houses...but just on a smaller scale.
First, I want to show you the
hornbooks and sheep that I made from the left over dough. These
molds are from a company called House on the Hill. They
reproduce old cookie molds. www.houseonthehill.net
I have three hornbook cookie molds.
The finished cookies are pictured on the right. Great way for
children to learn their letters as they eat them one by
one.
Check out the following web-site for
more information about hornbooks.
www.cedu.niu.edu/blackwell/books.html
The sheep mold offers a left and
right version of the sheep. Bake them and then glue the sides
together with frosting. A bit of string and a sprig of lavender
and this sheep is ready. These were so fun to do. I spray each
mold with cooking oil and the dough is easy to remove from the
mold. The animals are then placed on the cookie sheet to bake.
Now for the gingerbread houses. Today
I made enough dough for two houses. (the extra made the
hornbooks and sheep) I don’t try to make all of the
houses in one day.
Mix up the dough....the recipe
will follow and then press the dough into the mold. My favorite
house molds are from Hartstone Pottery.
www.hartstonepottery.com
Sadly, this company no longer makes
the molds. They released a series of historical home molds and
the whimsical detail is outstanding. They can now be found on
e-bay. Do a search for cookie molds. My husband wants me to
call them and see if they would produce these molds again.
Removing gingerbread pieces from the
mold and placing them on the cookie sheet for baking. Spraying
the mold with cooking oil makes this an easy task. I can get
all the pieces for one house on a cookie sheet.
After baking I remove the pieces
from the cookie sheet and allow them to cool. I sometimes box
the pieces up and freeze them until it’s “building
day.”
On building day, I get out the glue
gun and have my husband begin putting all of the houses
together. I know you are shocked....but really the glue gun
works great. It’s quick and the houses will be hurricane
proof. I just tell the kids not to eat the glue. If you
don’t like this method or if you are worried that your
kids will eat the glue, not to worry, I will give the frosting
recipe too. But remember, if you want to make 15 houses you
might have to start in August if you are putting them together
with frosting.
Molasses Gingerbread
8 cups unsifted flour
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 tsp. ground ginger
2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup butter
In the mixing bowl, combine the dry
ingredients.
In a sauce pan, stir together the molasses,
brown sugar and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring until
the butter is melted. Pour the liquid mixture into the
flour mixture and stir until well blended. I used the hook or
bread attachment on my mixer and let the machine do the work
for me. Gingerbread dough is heavy.
Take pieces of the dough and press into a
well oiled mold. Remove excess dough away from the mold.
It’s best if the dough is even on the back side. A sharp
knife works great to cut away the excess. With knife tip gently
pull the gingerbread away from the mold.
Place the cookie pieces on a cookie sheet
and bake at 350 degrees 12 to 15 minutes or until the cookies
are firm and lightly browned.
Carefully remove the cookies from the
cookie sheet and allow to cool. I use parchement paper, but
foil works well too.
This makes enough for 2 of the houses from
a hartstone mold and some left over.
Royal Icing
Combine 1 pound of confectioners sugar, 3
egg whites, and 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar in a mixing bowl. Beat
with the mixer ahd low speen until blended. Then beat at hight
speed for about 10 minutes. The icing is ready to use when a
knife drawn throught it leaves a clear path which holds its
shape.
This makes about 2 cups of icing. If you
need more do not double the recipe. Make another batch.
Next time we will complete the houses. Get
your glue guns ready!