Gingerbread Recipe

Gingerbread Recipe 

Right so as promised in my previous post here is my gingerbread recipe that I use for all of my house construction and cookies.  Christmas time or not as it happens. 


So here is my recipe that I created by combining a few from the BBC and Delia Smith. I sometimes use molasses instead of Golden Syrup for certain batches if I know its for people who prefer it a little darker with a richer taste. Personally though, I am a golden syrup all the way, sort of girl.


Ingredients:

• 350g plain flour (plus lots more for kneading and covering surfaces)
• 5 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda
• 175g light brown soft sugar
• 100g butter
• 4 tablespoons golden syrup
• 1 medium egg
• 1 cup of water, perhaps more if it is misbehaving. 

So the first thing most recipes tell you to do is pre-heat your oven, but I actually would advice against this if you are doing a house or anything complicated, you don't want to rush this. If you are making cookies then go ahead and set your oven to 180 C, if you are going to do it later I advice doing it after you have made your dough and before you start to play with it. 

Right add in all of your dry ingredients, starting with the big one, the flour. 

 Ignore the fact that the scales say 700, I made a double batch for those two big houses. 

And your bicarbonate of soda 

Next off add in your spices. I'm using ginger and Cinnamon. 

Nice big ol' spoon of the stuff! 

Next part add in your sugar, I use light brown because I think it tastes that bit better (and more Christmas-y) but if you don't have it you can use dark or plain sugar. It wont self destruct, not the end of the world :)

Mix it all together so you end up with a crumbly dry mix, like the picture above. Then its time to measure out your butter. Butter improves almost everything with the exception of your heart and cholesterol. 

Butter <3 

Once again remember this is me making a double batch so you may not want quite as much butter in the picture :)

I know lots of recipes advice against this but in this case I cheat and melt my butter when I add it in, it helps with the kneading and heck the smell is so good when you add it in


After your butter in goes your egg. Funny thing, the 6 eggs in the box  I used that week were all double yolks. They were just a normal pack of eggs but every one I used turned out like this. Maybe I should have tried my luck at the lottery that week.......

Then add in about a cup of water, keep some on hand when kneading if it needs more.
Now for all the syrupy goodness. Golden syrup going in time. There is always the trick of heating your spoon when you measure it out as it makes it less viscous and more runny which helps a bit. If you are going to do that then keep a mug of boiled water next to you to leave the spoon in to warm it, thats the easiest way I have found. Or you could be bad and just stick the syrupy spoon in your mouth. Just saying he he. 

Two- two yolk eggs there. You only need one for a single batch. 


Then the kneading! After a wash get your hands in there and smush everything together, and mix it until you get a nice ball of mix that can hold its own shape. 

Like this. 

After that it is all up to you. If you are going to make a house make sure you use a template even it is just one you drew earlier, I have tried to draw them by eye before, bad idea with a capital B. 

Once they are in the oven check after 10 minutes if you are baking large panels  maybe 5 to 8 minutes if you are baking something smaller. 

Good luck and happy baking 

and as always thanks for reading x