Thursday, December 24, 2009

Daring Bakers December 2009 - Gingerbread House

This month's challenge seemed like a really hard one. So like me and my procrastinating ways - i left it till the last minute.. CHRISTMAS DAY! I had Richard's help assembling and decorating, and it was really easy actually (and FUN!)


I love how our house turned out and we're going to make it a yearly tradition :D How cute is the santa i got him from breadtop for $4 along with two mushrooms stools hee hee.

For the decorations i used:

Starburst chews for the roof
a raspberry tartlette for a window
large marshmallows for the bush
a timtam for the door
skittles for the door knob + the sides

everything i already had at home.


'miaow! mewwy xmas!'


The December 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to you by Anna of Very Small Anna and Y of Lemonpi. They chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ everywhere to bake and assemble a gingerbread house from scratch. They chose recipes from Good Housekeeping and from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book as the challenge recipes.

Anna's Recipe:
Spicy Gingerbread Dough (from Good Housekeeping)

http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/recipefinder/spicy-gingerbread-dough-157...

2 1/2 cups (500g) packed dark brown sugar
1 1/2 cups (360mL) heavy cream or whipping cream
1 1/4 cups (425g) molasses
9 1/2 cups (1663g) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoon(s) baking soda
1 tablespoon(s) ground ginger

Directions

7. Use chilled rolled dough, floured poster board patterns, and sharp paring knife to cut all house pieces on cookie sheet, making sure to leave at least 1 1/4 inches between pieces because dough will expand slightly during baking. Wrap and reserve trimmings in refrigerator. Combine and use trimmings as necessary to complete house and other decorative pieces. Cut and bake large pieces and small pieces separately.

8. Chill for 10 minutes before baking if the dough seems really soft after you cut it. This will discourage too much spreading/warping of the shapes you cut.

9. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until pieces are firm to the touch. Do not overbake; pieces will be too crisp to trim to proper size.


10. Remove cookie sheet from oven. While house pieces are still warm, place poster-board patterns on top and use them as guides to trim shapes to match if necessary. Cool pieces completely before attempting to assemble the house.



Royal Icing:

1 large egg white
3 cups (330g) powdered sugar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon almond extract

Beat all ingredients until smooth, adding the powdered sugar gradually to get the desired consistency. Pipe on pieces and allow to dry before assembling. If you aren't using it all at once you can keep it in a small bowl, loosely covered with a damp towel for a few hours until ready to use. You may have to beat it slightly to get it an even consistency if the top sets up a bit. Piped on the house, this will set up hard over time

14 comments:

Sandra said...

that is such a cute house:)

Rita (mademoiselle délicieuse) said...

Merry Christmas, Betty! So cute that you guys built a house together on Christmas Day =)

Two fit and fun gals said...

thanks Sandra! but i think it wouldn't be the same or as nice without the santa out front hehe

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

It's gorgeous Betty and OMG, the raspberry tartlette is a brilliant window! I wish I'd thought of that rather than crushing those lollies and making stained glass ones lol. Hope you're having an amazing Christmas break! :D

OohLookBel said...

I went 'awwww' when I saw your adorable gingerbread house, and 'awww' when I saw the Santa. And 'awww' again when I saw the kitten and dog. Hope you had a brilliant Christmas!

pierre said...

Hello
I am amazed by your masterpiece congratulations !!
I am Pierre from Paris my foodblog is dedicated to creative french food so you are welcome to pop in !! cheers from France
Pierre

joey@forkingaroundsydney said...

What a beautiful creation! I LOVED the line about the sweets you used (Tim Tams, Skittles, Styarburst Chews, etc.): "Everything I already had at home"!!! Made me laugh!

I was a bit worried about the first photo, as your cat looked ready to pounce from behind the house! LOL
What a gorgeous cat! (and dog too!)

A shame all such wonderful creations have to be eaten eventually huh? ;-)

Anonymous said...

very well done. love the jam tart and the tim tam door :)

Anonymous said...

ahhh your tabby cat is so cute!
ive one like that.. without the white nose and its much fatter. something like garfield.
hahaha. i love how simple and pretty your gingerbread house is. good job!

A cupcake or two said...

Great job Betty. Its so darn cute. The Santa is adorable. I'm glad that a daring bakers challege has started a tradition for you and Richard.:)

panda said...

this gingerbread house is so cute!!! tops!
i got around to making gingerbread men and had planned to do a house but just didn't get round to it, and now it's after x'mas so i'll need to wait till next year! merry christmas chick!

Julia @ Mélanger said...

Such a gorgeous house. I was hoping the cat wasn't going in for a little taste! ;)

laire @ therawnoodle said...

Adorable! I'm not much of a cat person, but how cute is that cat in the first picture - about to paw that gingerbread house! Great gb pad! :)

Ravenous Couple said...

thanks for visiting our blog! You're right about sometimes taking vietnamese food for granted especially if you have parents making it for you. Since we both live away from our parents, we cook alot. This gingerbread house looks so cute! Nice job!