Want to make the perfect gingerbread house? Take these pointers from Centre County bakers
Maybe the kids saw a boxed kit in the grocery store and begged to make it their weekend project. Maybe you received a jolt of inspiration from one of the many holiday baking competitions airing on television this time of year. Whatever started it, don’t allow your foray into gingerbread and gingerbread house construction end in frustration or even tears. Building a sturdy, beautiful, social media sharing-worthy gingerbread house isn’t as difficult as you might think, as long as you take a few pointers from the pros.
The first thing you’ll want to do? Bypass the gingerbread kits at the grocery store and make your own. Overall, you’ll end up with a superior product. According to Mary Hilliard and her team at Dolce Vita Desserts, “Making gingerbread from scratch is a labor of love. Sure, you can run to the store and grab a box that is already made, but I have yet to hear someone bite into a boxed kit and just melt from its flavor.”
Plan ahead for baking
However, check your recipe carefully. Not all gingerbread is the same. If you want to make a gingerbread house from scratch, versus plain gingerbread for cookies or snacking, there’s a big difference.
“Definitely use a gingerbread house recipe, not a gingerbread cookie recipe,” said Heather Luse, executive pastry chef for the Penn State Bakery. “The recipes to make house pieces do not normally contain eggs. (The gingerbread) is very stiff and will not move during baking. You can also use tools to shave the gingerbread after it’s (baked) to make sure the pieces are even, that’s how stiff it is.”
Then, make sure you set aside enough time for your baking project.
“Like any good recipe, (making gingerbread) takes time and precise measurement, being careful not to over mix. The chilling of the dough does allow for clean-up time and mapping out the measurements for the shape of your house,” Hilliard said.
Don’t rush the process, Luse said.
“If your recipe says to bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, do that. Don’t turn the oven up to get it done faster,” she said.
Anne Yorks, owner of Flour Box Bakery, a cookie decorating and baking supplies and education provider based in Centre Hall, said she likes to plan ahead when making gingerbread.
“I like to break up the gingerbread process by making dough, baking and making the icing the day before I decorate the cookies,” she said.
Royal icing works best
When it comes to decorating, there seems to be an unanimous opinion on what type of icing works best: royal icing.
“It dries hard like a candy and is great for the ‘glue’ in the house seams and as decorations,” Yorks said. “I generously pipe the royal icing in the seams of the house allow icing to set-up for at least 30 minutes before adding candy and other decorations. If decorating with kids, you may want to assemble the house the day before you decorate so it is sturdy.”
“Royal icing is the only icing you should use to attach anything to your gingerbread house,” seconds Luse. “It hardens, which allows it to last.”
Hilliard calls royal icing the “cement for this construction project.”
“It is a very versatile recipe and can be made thicker for the structural part of the project, or thinned down to complete ornate details,” she said.
Get creative at decorating time
Once it’s time to decorate, the more creative fun begins and, where you might not want to deviate away from a tried-and-true gingerbread house recipe, the decorations are creators’ choice.
“Mini Oreos make great roof shingles,” Yorks said. “Trim a stick of gum for easy house shutters. Don’t forget the candy canes, gumdrops and peppermint swirls for a cheerful pop of color and texture!”
Of course, it is the holidays and you likely already have enough to stress over, so if your gingerbread house does end up a little less than Food Network-ready, don’t sweat it.
“If you are decorating with children avoid the need to make it ‘perfect.’ Every gingerbread house is perfect in its own way — let them decorate! It’s their canvas and they will be so proud,” Luse said. “Most importantly, have fun!”
Heather Luse’s royal icing recipe
- 12 oz egg whites
- 1 tbsp cream of tartar
- 4 pounds powdered sugar
Place the powdered sugar and cream of tartar in the bowl, then the egg whites. Mix with a paddle on low speed for about 8-10 minutes until the consistency of thick toothpaste.
Take off the mixer and place plastic wrap directly onto the icing.
Notes: When working with the icing, make sure you always keep the plastic wrap directly on top of the icing when you are not using it, otherwise the icing will dry.
This recipe can be doubled, tripled, etc.
When you are mixing, mix on low. You will put too much air into the icing if you want to get done faster and go higher.
Don’t make it until you need it — two nights max.
Heather Luse’s gingerbread house pieces recipe
- Cake flour: 2 lbs., 8 oz.
- Bread flour: 3 lbs.
- Brown sugar: 1 lb., 8 oz.
- Butter: 1 lb., 8 oz.
- Molasses: 2 lbs., 4 oz.
- Baking soda: 1 oz.
- Ginger: ½ oz
- Cinnamon: ¼ oz
- Nutmeg: ¼ oz
- Cloves: ¼ oz
Cream together the butter and brown sugar until well creamed.
Add the molasses, mix well.
Combine all the dry and add on low to the creamed mixture. Mix until well mixed and at a consistency for rolling out. The dough will be a bit dry.
Make sure to keep the extra dough covered while rolling out.
Have stencil pieces or measurements cut for pieces.
Roll dough to 1/8” to ¼” thickness. The dough will not move when baking so exact measurements are good.
Bake pieces on flat sheet pans at 350’ for about 10-12 minutes or until when pressing onto dough lightly you do not leave an impression.
Allow the pieces to cool before assembling.