Easy Gingerbread House Recipe To Make With The Kids

IMG_3061How To – Gingerbread House

An excellent recipe for gingerbread, and a simple sweet house. Make christmas a little more special – the kids will love it!

Ingredients

Dough
550 grams Honey
250 grams Sugar
125 grams Butter
3 Eggs
1000 grams Bakers (or bread) Flour
25 grams Mixed Spice
50 ml Water
16 grams Bicarbonate of Soda

Royal Icing
200 grams Egg White
1350 grams Icing Sugar
3 Drops Lemon Juice

Sweets to decorate
Icing sugar to shake over for snow effect.

Method

This recipe makes enough dough for 2 houses. I usually make 1 house and cut gingerbread cookies out of the second piece of dough. My 4y/o loves decorating the biscuits with icing and sweets while I decorate the house!

1. Heat the honey and sugar to 65 degrees Celsius. (Don’t worry if you haven’t got a thermometer. Just heat until the mix is melted and hot but not near boiling).
2. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Add the butter and mix until 35 degrees Celsius. (or is neither hot nor cold when you touch it!)
3. Add flour, eggs and spice and work into a smooth dough.
At this point you can store the dough to mature – or keep going with the recipe.
4. Dissolve bicarb into the water and add to the dough. Mix thoroughly.
5. Roll out the dough to 4mm for base and walls and 2.5 – 3mm for roof.
6. If you wish you can now glaze the dough with a sugar syrup (1 part sugar to 1 part water) and dock well (prick), both to prevent bubbles rising. I have done this in the past and the result is just as good. In my example here I haven’t.

In this example I have rolled all the dough to 4mm and baked the dough in sheets then cut it when cooked as this gives a cleaner edge. The roof pieces will be too thick so I carefully cut them in half (width ways) to make them lighter.

7. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for approx. 15-20 minutes.

To Assemble

1. If you have not already, cut out the pieces. Do this while the dough is warm. Don’t forget to cut a round window and a door. (See pictures) Cut the circle in half to form shutters.
2. Make up the royal icing. (Royal icing dries hard so keep in covered with plastic wrap.)
3. Put the icing into a piping bag with a medium plain nozzle.
4. Assemble in the following order:

Back wall.
Two Side walls.
Front wall.
Now, let icing harden for an hour, then

Roof.
Chimney.
Front door.
Shutters.
Now, pipe on more royal icing to decorate. Decorate with sweets before the royal icing hardens.
Finally, dust with icing sugar for fresh snow effect.

Another hint is to leave the dough to dry overnight. Cover with a clean tea towel and let sit. Cook the next morning. This gives the cooked dough a nice dry crust with a moist interior.

One last note, I once made a gingerbread house twice this size and you can see my hand written measurements on the diagram photo. If you are making this for the first time, please use the typed measurements in the diagram as reference.

Enjoy!

Mamasimx

Don’t forget to enjoy your day.

Top 10 Snowman Treats To Make with Your Kids This Christmas

melting chocolate snowmenMelting Snowman treats – how cute are they!  Recipe here.

choc snowmanSnowmen cake pops.  Of course!  Recipe here.

 

egg cup snowman to make for the kidsEgg-cup snowmen.  Yeah!  Recipe here.

snowmen with scarves to make with the kidsFrosty glass of milk snowman.  How cool is that?  Recipe here.

snowmen cupcakes to make with the kidsSomething a little different…… Recipe here.

snowman eggnog to make with the kidsEggnog snowman (adult or kids version!) Recipe here.

marshmallow snowmenWhat’s not to like with marshmallow snowmen!  Recipe here.

1205_kids_cheeseman_lCheesey snowman anyone?  Recipe here.

snowmen-melting-cookies-1Helllllllllllllpppppppp!  Great.  Recipe here.

The Snowman Ok, not edible.  But after the mayhem of the kitchen fun you will need to relax with your little ones.  and what better way than with this classic tale?  Buy at Amazon here.

 

3 Top Tips To Help Mums Stay Sane These Christmas Holidays – Kids Activities

Keeping the kids entertained and yourself sane these holidays requires some forward planning.  Here are my 3 top tips for kids Activities.

  1. Investigate Free Or Low Cost Kids Activities

    See my list of twenty top free kids activities to entertain the kids here.  Alternatively do some surfing to see what is happening in your area.  Local government and councils, as well as other organisations and charities, often put on free or low cost activities (such as SureStart in the UK).

  2. Snack Drawer

    My kids want snacks all the time and I was getting tired of scrabbling around to satisfy them.  And they never need a snack when I have a minute, they want a snack when I feeding baby or on the phone.  So I decided I needed to get organised.  I emptied out one of the crisper drawers in my fridge and designated it for snacks.  One evening a week after the kids have gone to bed , I peel a bunch of veggies and fruit and put them in individual bags. I throw in some healthy cereal bars, dried fruits and hey presto instant stress relief.  Now when the kids need a snack I tell them to go pick one from the snack drawer.  They feel great getting it themselves and I don’t have to stop all the time to hand out more snacks.

  3. Mealtime Prep Entertainment

    It seems like my kids can happily entertain themselves for hours until I need to make dinner.  Then they suddenly want all my attention.  So I decided to give distraction a go.  One night I handed out a bowl of rice and various cups and other receptacles and the scales.  I told them to fill 5 cups/bowls with rice grains so they all weighed the same. 20 minutes later they were still busily transferring rice and I was able to make dinner. Some nights I throw a handful of straws on the table with sticky tape and they make animals and castles.  Another time I gave them spray bottles of water and cloths and they “cleaned” the glass doors. The kids will have fun and you will get dinner made.

    It takes a little planning but it is worth the extra minimal effort for a calmer, happier household.

    What are you doing to make your life easier?

Mamasimx

Don’t forget to enjoy your day.