WATCH: Today is Gingerbread House Day In Pottstown

By ALEXIS TARRAZI

Today is National Gingerbread House Day!

It is celebrated annually on December 12.

History

A favorite food of an Armenian monk, Gregory of Nicopolis, brought gingerbread to Europe around 992 AD and taught French Christians to bake it. Gingerbread was often used in religious ceremonies and was baked to be sturdy as it was often molded into images of saints.

Celebrate

Families and friends are encourages to gather around and build a gingerbread house. You can pick up a kit at a local store or try making one from scratch.

• Gingerbread dough (Our gingerbread dough recipe: http://youtu.be/kCduKbOlHKI)
• Royal icing (Our royal icing recipe: http://youtu.be/RnxHBne-uVo)
• Various candies for decorating

Cookie Cutter Measurements (centimeters and, inches):

• roof 18cm x 13.5cm, 7” x 5.5” (cut two of these)
• side wall 15cm x 8cm, 6” x 3” (cut two of these)
• front wall 17.5cm x 13cm, 7” x 5” (cut two of these)
• chimney rear 6cm x 2.5cm, 2.36” x 1”
• chimney front 10cm x 2.5cm, 4” x 1”
• chimney side10cm x 2.5cm, 4” x 1” (cut two of these)
• window 2.5cm x 3cm, 1” x 1” (cut as many of these as you want)
• door 6cm x 3cm, 2.36” x 1.18”

Procedure:

Roll out gingerbread dough and cut out house pieces as listed above. Bake cookies for 14 minutes at 350F.
Assemble the bottom part of the house first by attaching the back and side with royal icing to a plate or cake board. Attach the front and opposite side. Allow to dry for around 20 minutes. Next assemble the chimney so it has time to dry. Attach the roof to the house base. When the chimney is set, attach it to the roof on either side. Decorate the house with the remaining royal icing and candies.

Share

Use #GingerbreadHouseDay to post your finished house on social media.