27. prosinca 2009.

Daring Bakers Challenge, December 2009: Gingerbread House


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.


I'm a big kid. I am. And I'm not afraid to admit it. :) I am instantly drawn to anything colorful, shiny, loud or just plain useless. Maybe it's because I work with children and am constantly surrounded by them, or maybe I'm just a bit slow at growing up. I don't know. But I do know I'm happy that way and I don't really consider growing up as being an option for me. So building a gingerbread house was the right kind of challenge for me. :) I was thrilled and couldn't wait to start building it. So, here it is... My very first gingerbread house! :)


I used Martha Stewart's Swedish gingerbread cottage template as the blueprint for my house. I made some minor adjustments and I'm really happy with how it turned out. The main idea was to keep everything simple and make it look as realistic as possible. I used the Scandinavian Gingerbread recipe and didn't have any major difficulties. I anticipated that the dough might be too dry, so I prepared more water than the recipe asked for and ended up using the whole cup. After the dough was chilled everything else went surprisingly smooth.



Since I wanted my cottage to be realistic, I decided to make the glass for the windows. I crushed some hard candy and made a few piles on the baking sheet. I popped it in the oven and after 10 minutes I got beautiful stained glass for my house. When it cooled down, I glued it on the windows from the inside before gluing the walls together. As a final touch, I put some gingerbread bushes and a tree in front of the house and a few cinnamon sticks to represent firewood. In the end I spread some leftover royal icing all around the house and sprinkled everything with some powdered sugar to create the illusion of snow.


Oh, I almost forgot... Happy holidays and best wishes to all of you! :)

Scandinavian Gingerbread (Pepparkakstuga)
from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book by Beatrice Ojakangas

1 cup butter, room temperature [226g]
1 cup brown sugar, well packed [220g]
2 tablespoons cinnamon
4 teaspoons ground ginger
3 teaspoons ground cloves
2 teaspoons baking soda
½ cup boiling water [120ml]
5 cups all-purpose flour [875g]

1. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until blended. Add the cinnamon, ginger and cloves. Mix the baking soda with the boiling water and add to the dough along with the flour. Mix to make a stiff dough. If necessary add more water, a tablespoon at a time. Chill 2 hours or overnight.

2. Cut patterns for the house, making patterns for the roof, front walls, gabled walls, chimney and door out of cardboard.

3. Roll the dough out on a large, ungreased baking sheet and place the patterns on the dough. Mark off the various pieces with a knife, but leave the pieces in place.

4. Cut required shapes and transfer these to the baking sheet. Save any scraps I rerolled at the end.

5. Preheat the oven to 375'F (190'C). Bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the cookie dough feels firm. After baking, again place the pattern on top of the gingerbread and trim the shapes, cutting the edges with a straight-edged knife. Leave to cool on the baking sheet. Cool the 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.
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Broj komentara: 45:

  1. What a pretty house! It looks gorgeous!

    Happy Holidays and best wishes for 2010!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  2. Stvarno si uložila truda i kućica je savršena!
    Sve do zadnjeg detalja. Ničeg previše, vrlo decentna, oduševljena sam!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  3. Your house is stunning! The details are impeccable - fantastic job on this challenge!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  4. Beautiful house! I love the windows and shutters and especially the cinnamon sticks for wood on the outside. Very well done! :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  5. I love your house and all the details, especially the shutters, and the stack of "wood." Great job!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  6. Very pretty gingerbread house. I love all those little details and yes the cinnamon sticks look realistic as logs, very nice :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  7. Preslatko je, kao iz bajke. Prava kućica iz Ivice i Marice.

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  8. Svaka čast! Prekrasna kućica!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  9. kako sam se obradovala kad sam vidjela novi post na blogu! kolibica je ispala savršeno i mislim da realističnija nije mogla biti... štapići cimeta su mi odlična ideja! :)prošle godine sam i ja napravila gingerbread kućicu, ove godine nažalost nisam stigla :( sretan božić i sve najbolje! nadam se da će sad češće biti novih postova :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  10. Monika draga sve najbolje.
    Kućica je predivna.
    Good to see you again :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  11. Wow how pretty and cute gingerbread house! I love it! Compliments for the best work! Kisses!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  12. Joj covece pa gde si ti nama...Bas mi falis...
    Kucica je totalno carobna... predivna, prelepa, savrsena...
    Svako dobro tebi, i tebi dragim ljudima, zelim za praznike...

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  13. ajmeee oduševljena sam..preslatko, predivno napravljeno do zadnjeg detalja, ovo sa staklima si se super sjetila! i jaako mi se sviđa što se baš radi o švedskoj tradicionalnoj kućici..za pravi blagdanski ugođaj..sve najbolje ti želim za ove blagdane! :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  14. Oh, your house is adorable! I love the roof and the tiny little door. Well done!

    Happy New Year to you too. :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  15. What a beautiful gingerbread house! I love all the little details you've created---the logpile is a fantastic touch! Well done!!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  16. This is such a pretty looking gingerbread house. Great job and happy holidays.

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  17. Kuća izgleda senzacionalno, pogotovo mi se sviđaju one rolice cimeta koje pretpostavljam glume drva ;)
    Dobila sam jednu slatku nagradu pa je prosljeđujem dalje. Provjeri na mom blogu kada stigneš.

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  18. Lijepo je vidjet da si malo ponekad i aktivna, nedostaju mi tvoji krasni radovi, a sličice posebno !
    Kućica je fantastična, kako si samo svaki detalj tako precizno planirala i napravila, svaka čast!
    Sve najbolje u Novoj godini !!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  19. i love your house. it looks like martha stewart herself made it. i especially adore the cinnamon stick logs and the open shutters. great job!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  20. Draga Monchi,prvo sve najbolje za praznike!Kućica je vrhunski uradjena,mnogo nedostajes!Svidja mi se ideja sa cimet stapićima!

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  21. Hej!
    Znaš da sam se baš zabrinula što je s tobom. Nadam se da si dobro i da je sve ok! :)
    Želim ti sve najbolje za ove blagdane i nadam se da si Božić lijepo provela u krugu najbližih. :)

    Kućica je prekrasna, a sve je savršeno prezentirano kroz divne fotke kao i uvijek. :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  22. Aww, your house is so cute! I really love the cinnamon stick logs outside, and the fact that it's kind of minimally decorated - it looks so cozy!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  23. Happy Holidays to you! For your first effort, that's a pretty darn amazing house! I love the lighting in the photos too :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  24. Your house is simply perfect! Love the detail work. Well done!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  25. Thank you all for your comments! :)

    Hvala svima na komentarima i na čestitkama! Obećajem da ću biti nešto aktivnija ubuduće :) Čitamo se!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  26. preslatka je, jedna od meni najljepsih koje sam vidjela, bas zbog svoje jednostavnosti, bas si me odusevila!!! sve najbolje draga moja, tebi i Darku, sretan vam Bozic i sve najbolje u Novoj, a pusu ti dam uzivo:))) Fotke su prelijepe!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  27. Absolutely stunning and clean GB house. An example of simplicityb at it's best. Have a wonderful New Year!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  28. prekrasna i jednostavna kućica - sve ti najbolje u 2010! :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  29. Ostadoh bez teksta. Kucica je preslatka. Kao iz bajke o Ivici i Marici.

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  30. Nemam ti što reći što već ostali bloggeri nisu rekli (da ne kažem napisali). Kućica je divna. Ja bih je stavila na neko jako vidljivo mjesto i gledala je do sljedećeg Božića koliko je lijepa! Sretnu Novu 2010. Godinu ti želim, svako dobro tebi i tvojoj obitelji!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  31. Most excellent Gingerbread house! I love the cinnamon sticks as logs, instead of pretzels. The Pepparkakstuga sounds delicious, I will have to try it

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  32. Prvi put ovde komentarisem, Moniko, Tvoja kuća je pre-kras-na! Najlepsa od onjih koje sam videla :)
    Sve najbolje u 2010 :)))
    Puno pozdrava :)))

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  33. Savršenstvo... samo to ću napisati

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  34. Wow, what a fabulous gingerbread house!
    Great shape and lovely decorations!
    Wtg for the fabulous job!
    Inbal
    (also a DB)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  35. Draga moja, sve najlepse u Novoj godini, kucica je premedena, kao sa stranica neke bajke...jako me raduje da te ponovo vidim ovde!;))) puse...

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  36. Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  37. thanks for your lovely comments! i wish you all a happy and successful new year and all the best :)

    hvala vam svima na divnim komentarima! želim vam svima sretnu i uspješnu novu godinu :)

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  38. Predivna je i prelepa!

    Meni se razrusila moja i onda sam batalila. Pravila onaj recept od Y. Bilo je suvise prhko.

    OdgovoriIzbriši
  39. Svake godine djeca vjeroučiteljica organizira božićno darivanje između djece u razredu. Svako djete napiše svoje ime na papirić, papirići se ubace u jednu limenku, malo izmješaju i onda svako od djece izvlači nečije ime. Zadnji sat vjeronauka je djeljenje poklona među djecom s tim da pokloni trebaju biti više simbolični- nikakve skupe stvari. Do sad su moja djeca tako kupovala neke sitnice prijateljima iz razreda, a ove godine smo odlučili napraviti kućice- i njih poklonoti. E sad me zanima onaj dio o sastavljanju kućice- jesi li je sastavljala karamelom kako je kod Marthe S. ili smjesom royal icinga? Da li bi bilo zgodnije najprije iscrtati šare po zidovima te kad se osuše spajati kućicu ili ipak najprije sastavit kućicu pa iscrtavati?
    Puno hvala!

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