Nothing says holiday season like a Gingerbread house sitting on the counter! This recipe includes the recipe for gingerbread, a template to print out the ginger bread house pieces, and how to make the royal icing. This is the perfect recipe for the whole family to enjoy! I love making desserts together with my family during the colder months. Warming up the house with the oven is my favorite way to spend chilly evenings. I also love the way that the house smells when you have spiced desserts baking. This holiday season you have to try these delicious Pumpkin Pecan Pie Bars, these cute and festive Christmas Tree Sugar Cookies, and this classic Old Fashioned Apple Cobbler.
Gingerbread House Recipe
Ok, this is the most fun I’ve had writing a recipe! There is nothing like getting the family together and putting together the most adorable holiday decor. You can also eat the gingerbread house, which is a big bonus. I will say, this recipe is meant to make firm gingerbread that will hold up to the weight of stacking and decorations, so it is pretty hard and not as sweet as traditional gingerbread. But if you want some gingerbread that is soft and delicious, you can make these cute gingerbread people to go with your houses! This recipe comes with everything you will need to build your houses! First, print off the templates for the houses. Then make the gingerbread dough and cut out the pieces. While the pieces are baking, make your royal icing that will act as the glue. Then you get to decorate! The decorations are up to you, but gum drops, candy canes, and peppermint candies make great additions. So whip up some white hot chocolate or wassail and get to baking!
Ingredients
You are making a cookie dough, so you will need the basic pantry items. You will also need molasses to make these gingerbread houses, which you should be able to find in the baking aisle of your grocery store. Don’t forget to pick up the meringue powder as well, you will need it to get your icing nice and firm! You can find exact measurements below in the recipe card.
Gingerbread
Butter: You will want unsalted butter, and make sure to leave it out so that it is at room temperature when you go to make your dough.Dark Brown Sugar: Dark brown sugar has a deeper flavor and color because it has more molasses in it. It will make a difference in your dough.Granulated Sugar: Your regular pantry sugar will work great.Vanilla: Vanilla extract gives the cookie a little extra vanilla flavor and brings out the other warm flavors in the gingerbread.Molasses Unsulphered: Most molasses is unsulphered. It is the more pure version of molasses and it is what you will want for this dough.Egg: I always use grade A eggs in my recipes.All-Purpose Flour: Your regular pantry flour will work great for this recipe.Ground Cinnamon: Cinnamon is a warm spice that is a MUST in gingerbread!Ground Ginger: Ginger gives a little spice to the cookie, and makes it taste warmer. You will miss this flavor if you leave it out!Cloves: Ground cloves are actually a little sweet, but still have a warm flavor. Salt: Salt brings out all of the flavors in this dough and helps to cut down on sweetness.Baking Powder: Baking powder helps the dough rise while it’s baking in the oven. You don’t want it to rise a lot. Just enough to make a nice looking cookie.Milk: Milk has fat that helps the ingredients come together and adds great flavor.
Royal Icing
Powdered Sugar: Powdered sugar is really fine sugar that makes the perfect royal icing. It melts into the water and becomes really smooth and shiny.Meringue Powder: Meringue powder is a stabilizer that helps the royal frosting get stiff. It will be the perfect consistency to act as your glue for the gingerbread house with this ingredient.Water: You can adjust the consistency of the frosting by adding more or less water. If the frosting gets too runny, then add more powdered sugar until it gets thicker.
How to Make a Homemade Gingerbread House
This is such a fun recipe! The dough is not hard to make, which makes this the perfect recipe to make with kids and friends. It also makes the house smell like the holidays and fills the kitchen with Christmas cheer! I loved making this recipe, and I know you’ll enjoy it too.
Make Dough
Bake and Make Frosting
Assemble The Houses
About this Gingerbread: This recipe isn’t really designed for gingerbread to eat, more so for a stable building gingerbread (also called construction grade gingerbread). It IS edible and it tastes pretty good, but it’s not as sweet as a regular gingerbread cookie. Softer Gingerbread: It can be baked a few minutes less for a softer bite (but not recommended for houses/structures because it won’t withstand the weight of the royal icing) and it can be baked a few minutes longer for an even stronger construction cookie.Using Another Template: If using a different house template, the baking time will vary because of the size. The larger the piece, the longer the bake. When Chilling Before Baking: It can be chilled before cutting or baking, but will need at least an extra minute or two in the oven.
On the Counter: Keep your gingerbread house on your counter to enjoy throughout the holidays. It will last on your counter as long as you want to show it off! If you plan to eat it, keep it in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap. It will last for about a week. After a week it will be too hard to eat!
Grinch Cookies
Brown Sugar Cinnamon Baked Apples
Homemade Apple Fritters
Donut Muffins
All nutritional information is based on third party calculations and is only an estimate. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods and portion sizes per household.
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