Gingerbread house (aka How to Host a Gingerbread House making party)

In previous years we went to a wonderful inn for a gingerbread house making workshop.  Last year, we felt rushed and limited by the fast-dwindling supply of candy so this year we made our own.  In short, it was amazing.  It was a ton of effort but so worth it!  I'll post my recipes and tips below.  The gingerbread makes a full flavored and spicy gingerbread.  Reduce the ginger by half if you are concerned, especially if you're using a better brand (we love Penzey's Spices!).

Tips: 

Start a few days to a week ahead and depending on the number of houses, ask a friend to make a few.

Cover your table with a tablecloth for construction for super easy cleanup.

Shop with a few kids for candy.  How often do kids get to buy $50 of candy?!  And dont just shop in the candy aisle.  You'll want ice cream cones for trees and pretzel sticks too.  A gumdrop assortment (with red and green candy corn) is really popular.  Dont forget sprinkles.

Assemble your houses the day before so the "glue" has time to set firm.

Make lemon curd with all the leftover egg yolks (from the glue).

Buy 12 inch white cardboard rounds

Spicy Gingerbread

This gingerbread house recipe is enough to make 2-3 reasonably sized houses plus a few gingerpeople.  I made my own templates so the houses would fit nicely on a 12 inch round with room to spare for front walkways and trees (I stored my templates in with my holiday items so I can easily find them for next year).  We made 8 houses out of a triple recipe plus a few extra sides for any mistakes.  WARNING: this recipe makes a monster amount.  You might want to split it in half to avoid stressing your machine but I never do.

6 3/4 cups all purpose flour

2-3 tablespoons ground ginger

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon cardamom

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups butter (3 sticks)

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

3/4 cup molasses (blackstrap really is best, but any kind works)

1 roll kitchen parchment and/or silicone mats

Using electric mixer (or food processor), beat butter and sugar in large bowl.  Beat in eggs. Add molasses and beat on high speed until well blended. Add dry ingredients in a few additions, beating at low speed until dough forms. Divide dough into 3-6 equal pieces. Wrap each in plastic and refrigerate until firm, at least 6 hours. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Roll out 1 dough piece (keep remaining dough refrigerated) between two 15-inch-long sheets of parchment to scant 1/4-inch rectangle (or use your silicone mat for the bottom and parchment for the top), turning over dough and parchment occasionally. If parchment wrinkles, peel off, smooth wrinkle and reposition parchment over dough; continue to roll out dough to required thickness.

Remove the top layer of parchment.  Put your template on the rolled out parchment paper and cut around it.  Peel away the excess dough.  If it moves easily, then move it to a cookie sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat and continue adding shapes to the cookie sheet.  If it doesnt move easily then leave it on the parchment or silicone mat and slide it onto the baking sheet to bake.  Gather the scraps to chill again while you work on another section of dough.

Bake for about 13 minutes until dry looking and just beginning to darken around the edges  Keep the shape on the parchment and slide it onto a cooking rack to cool completely.  Let the baking sheet cool before using it again or run it under water to cool it faster.

Make 2 sides, a front and back, and 2 roof sections for each house.  Make one or two extra of each in case you break one.  Make a few other shapes with the scraps.

All gingerbread can be prepared 2-5 days ahead.  Just keep it in a safe place away from hungry kids (or dogs!).  Assemble the houses the day before so the glue has time to set before decorating.  Assemble all 4 walls first and wait a few minutes before adding on the roof.

ROYAL ICING

This is the "glue" recipe.  One batch makes enough for gluing together 8 houses.  Be prepared to make at least 3 more batches on the day of decorating (we used 5 total for 8 houses).  This is a raw egg icing.  There are options out there for pasteurizing the icing if you prefer.

2 egg whites

4 generous cups of confectioners sugar

a few splashes of lemon juice

a few splashes of water

vanilla, optional

a big pinch of salt

In a large bowl, whip the egg whites until they are frothy.  Add in sugar and liquid plus salt.  Mix.  Check for consistency and add more of the liquids.  Mix again.  You're looking for a fairly thick icing for most of the decorating.  You might need a super thick icing for some tricky things (like adding a chimney).  Scoop a little into a small bowl to thicken up with more sugar.  Spoon the rest into ziplock bags for decorating.  You can make it ahead of time by just a few hours.

DECORATING

Have the assembled houses and one batch of "glue" ready to go.  Start making another batch right away.  You can re-fill the bags as you go... and you can use a bench scraper to push down the glue inside for the bags.