Serve it with hot cocoa.
Gingerbread House (Gingerbread and Royal Icing)
Baking
Cookies bars
Medium
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A sturdy, spicy gingerbread dough rolled and cut into walls and roof panels, then glued with royal icing and decorated with candy. The dough is made firm so the house stands, not for eating soft. Makes 1 house in about 5 hr.
Prep
60 min
Cook
60 min
Cooling
3 hr
Total
5 hr
Yield
1 house
Ingredients
Adjust yield
house
Scales from a half to a double batch; give a bigger batch a little more time.
- 3 ⅔ cups (450 g)all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp (8 g)ground ginger
- 2 ½ tsp (6 g)ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp (1 g)ground cloves
- ½ tsp (2 g)baking soda
- ½ tsp (3 g)fine sea salt
- ½ cup (115 g)unsalted butter, softened
- ⅔ cup (150 g)dark brown sugar
- ½ cup (120 ml)molasses
- 1 (50 g)egg
- 3 ¾ cups (450 g)powdered sugar
- 3 ½ tbsp (30 g)meringue powder
- ⅓ cup (75 ml)water
- 10 ½ oz (300 g)assorted hard candies and gumdrops
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Instructions
- Whisk the flour, spices, baking soda and salt together.
- Beat the butter and brown sugar until smooth, then beat in the molasses and egg. Mix in the dry ingredients until a stiff dough forms.
- Divide in 2, flatten into disks and chill 3 hours or overnight.
- Cut paper templates: two 6 x 4-inch (15 x 10 cm) walls with a flat bottom, two gable ends with a peak (4 inches / 10 cm wide, 6 inches / 15 cm at the peak), and two 6 x 5-inch (15 x 12 cm) roof panels.
- Heat the oven to 350 F (175 C). Roll the dough 1/4 inch (6 mm) thick between parchment, cut around the templates and place on parchment-lined sheets.
- Bake 12 to 15 minutes until the edges are dark and the centers firm; trim edges to straighten while hot, then cool completely on racks.
- Beat the powdered sugar, meringue powder and water 5 minutes until stiff and glossy; keep the bowl covered with a damp towel.
- Pipe icing along the base and sides, join the walls and hold or prop them for 10 minutes, then fix the roof and let set 1 hour.
- Decorate with icing and candy and leave to dry fully.
Tips
- Cut and bake all the pieces a day ahead so they are dry and rigid before assembly.
- Use thick royal icing for glue and a thinner version for decorating.
- Build on a sturdy cake board and use cans to prop the walls while the icing sets.
- Royal icing is made with meringue powder, so no raw egg white is used. A house left on display for weeks should be treated as decoration, not food.
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Recipe FAQ
How long does it take to make gingerbread house (gingerbread and royal icing)?
Plan on 60 minutes of prep and 1 hour of cooking, plus 3 hours to chill. The recipe makes 1 house.
How should I store gingerbread house (gingerbread and royal icing)?
Display in a dry room for up to 2 weeks; it is meant for decoration and gets very hard.
Can I make gingerbread house (gingerbread and royal icing) ahead?
Yes. It needs time to chill and set, so it is a good one to make the day before you serve it.
Estimated · per serving
Nutrition
Per serving = 1 of 1 serving this recipe makes.
549
Calories / serving
8.6g
Fat
114.3g
Carbs
4.8g
Protein
75.5g
Sugar
Whole recipe (1 serving): ~549 cal · 9g fat · 114g carbs · 5g protein · 76g sugar
Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.
Made with VanillaGoods
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