How to Make a Homemade Gingerbread House

Have you ever dreamed of making a gingerbread house, but thought it was too difficult? It's not! It requires no more skill than is needed to make sugar cookies. This is a fun project for all ages, and can involve as few or as many people as you like. The end result makes a great centerpiece or side display that lasts through the holidays...IF you can keep busy fingers from snacking on it. Here's all you need to know.

MAKING TEMPLATES
Here's a chance to use some of that cardboard you've stashed away! Sketch on paper the style house you want to build. Determine the size and shape pieces you'll need, then cut your pattern pieces out of cardboard. Choose cardboard that is thick enough to maintain firmness, but thin enough for you to cut with kitchen shears. A small box cutter will also work, as long as you can cut with some a degree of precision.

Remember: If you have two identical side walls or roof sides, you only need one cardboard template to make both. Write the number "2" on the cardboard, though, so you later remember to cut two from the dough.

BAKING WALLS and ROOF
The walls of the house are constructed from a simple dough. Recipes abound. You may already have one. If not, here's the one I used for the project featured in the photos. It mixed quickly and rolled easily. Depending on the size of the house you plan to make, you may need multiple batches. As a guide to your planning, it took two batches for the house in the photo.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup molasses
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) butter
3-2/3 cups sifted flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten

Preparation:
In either a saucepan or the microwave, warm molasses (don't boil it). Remove from heat and stir in butter until melted. Let cool.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt and brown sugar. Add molasses mixture and beaten egg to dry ingredients, and stir until blended. Refrigerate at least one hour until dough becomes stiff enough to roll.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper (makes removing house pieces much easier).

Working with just half the dough at a time (while the rest remains in the refrigerator), roll the dough to a thickness of 1/8 to 1/4-inch thick. It's not a bad idea to have your main supporting walls a bit thicker than your other pieces.

Using your cardboard templates like cookie cutters, set them on the dough and trace the shapes you need with a paring knife, saving scraps for later use. Place pieces on parchment-lined cookie sheets and bake them for 12 to 15 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges.

My instructions say to cool them on wire racks, but I left the baked pieces to cool right there on the cookie sheets overnight. I found them easier to handle without damaging them after they were completely cooled, and the parchment paper removed worries about them sticking.

ASSEMBLING THE HOUSE
With the pieces of the house baked, the real "work" part is over. Now comes the tricky part - putting the thing together and hoping it stands!

First, make the icing, which will be the "glue" that holds it all together. Again, you may need more than one batch, depending on the house you've chosen to make and the amount of decorating you intend to do. The recipe below makes 2 cups of icing. Two batches were more than enough for the sample house.

Icing:
3 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 (16 oz box) confectioners powdered sugar

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Beat until smooth. Store in a tightly sealed container any time you are not using it because it dries quickly.

Cover a board or sturdy tray with foil. This will be the base on which the house is built and will make it easy to move. If you have several unopened cans on hand, they will be a great aid to you in supporting the walls while the icing dries. Choose any two adjacent house walls to start and begin arranging the pieces on the foil-covered board. We're just doing the side walls now, not the roof, so feel free to set cans inside as well as outside to give the support you need.

Once you have the pieces as you like, carefully glue them together with the icing. You can pipe it with a pastry bag, use a Super-Shooter or even "paint" the icing on with a butter knife, if you like. Use plenty to secure those outer corners of the house. Make sure each wall edge is tightly up against the adjoining wall, with plenty of icing between the two.

Allow 30-45 minutes, at least, for the icing to harden before continuing with roof or other pieces you may have.

Remember: remove cans from inside the house before attaching roof. If you forget, don't worry. No harm will come to them inside the house. Just don't throw the house away after the holidays and forget to retrieve them!

Once all pieces of the house are assembled, have fun decorating it. Use your icing as glue to attach pieces. Be creative. You are limited only by your imagination when it comes to decorating materials. Some good ones: gumdrops, M&Ms, Necco wafers, sticks of chewing gum, frosted Mini-wheats, dried beans and peas for landscaping, pretzel sticks, TicTacs, just about anything you can think of. Go through the grocery store and think creatively.

Oh, and don't forget to take a picture! You'll relive the holidays every time you look at it.