Gingerbread House

Makes one house

Ingredients for Gingerbread

600g Plain Flour

250g Unsalted Butter

200g Dark Muscavado Sugar

7tbsp Golden Syrup

3tbsp Stem Ginger Syrup

2tsp Bicarbonate Soda 

4tsp Ground Ginger

1/2tsp Nutmeg

1/2tsp Cinnamon

Ingredients for the icing construction 

500g Icing Sugar

2 Egg Whites

Ingredients to decorate

Icing for dusting

200g Flaked Almonds

125g Chocolate Fingers

1 Bag of Jelly Tots

1 Tube of Jelly Beans

Silver Balls

Mini Marshmallows

Plain Liquorice

Any decorations of your choice

Ingredients for icicles and adhesive

Icing Sugar

2 Egg Whites

Dimension's for the house

Front & Back- Width 19cm Height 10cm Apex 20cm

Sides- Width 15cm Height 11cm

Roof Panels- Width 19cm Height 23cm 

Method

Preheat the oven to 200C.

To a pan add the butter, dark muscavado, golden syrup and stem ginger syrup. Place on the heat until melted.

Meanwhile sift together flour, bicarbonate soda, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon in to a large bowl. Once the butter mixture has melted, pour into the dry ingredients and stir till a thick dark dough has formed. Lightly flour a work surface and roll the dough out to a thickness of two pound coins, once rolled cut out the roof, sides, front and back just keep pressing the dough together and rerolling until you have all the components. Place parts on lined baking sheets then bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden. Place to one side and leave to cool completely. Any spare dough can be baked as decorations.

Mix sugar and egg whites together until you have a thick dough like consistency, this will be used to construct the house. Start with the front, place the icing around the edges bonding each component until you have constructed the house. Leave to set for a few hours.

Mix egg whites and enough icing sugar to make a thick paste that can be piped. Use this icing to decorate the house with icicles the snow on the roof and let it be your adhesive for the sweets you decorate it with.

The chocolate fingers are for the side panels of the house. Flaked almonds are for roof tiles. The sweets and decorations are of your choosing for windows and doors.