How to Make Homemade Gingerbread Ornaments

During Christmas many families have holiday traditions and making homemade gingerbread ornaments has always been one of my personal favorites. My mother started this cute and kid-friendly project when my siblings and I were young. Now as a mother, I have passed the tradition to my son. This is a homemade craft that you can give as a gift to family members, teachers, neighbors, etc.

Ingredients

The list of ingredients is very simple and they are common household items. You will need a ½ C. applesauce, ½ C. cinnamon, and 2 T. Glue. Other items you will need for preparation is a mixing bowl, spoon, measuring utensils, rolling pin, wax paper, and a straw. You will also need cookie cutters. You can use any cookie cutter shape, but I recommend that you use a gingerbread man, candy cane, star, or Christmas trees. Since, this is a craft with the intention of decorating for Christmas, I highly recommend Christmas themed shapes.

Preparation

Once you have all of your ingredients and utensils together the fun can begin. First you need to measure the applesauce, cinnamon, and glue and combine them in your mixing bowl. Once ingredients are mixed together you roll the dough out on wax paper. You want the dough to be ¼-inch thick. Next, using your desired cookie cutter shape, cut out the shapes of the intended ornaments. Once all shapes are cut out, you can use the left over dough to roll out more ornaments. Expect for this to make five to seven ornaments. Discard any remaining dough and you are ready for the next step. In order to hang the ornament you must poke a hole through the top using your straw. Once this step has been completed place the ornaments on the wax paper and let stand on a counter or hard surface. Allow them to air dry until they are hard and stiff. This usually takes one to three days to complete.

Decoration

Once your gingerbread shapes are completely dry and ready, you can decorate them. For most this is the best part, especially for children. You can decorate them using royal icing, an assortment of candies, glitter, nuts, or buttons. For a finishing touch, use red or green ribbon to hang your ornaments.

Making homemade gingerbread ornaments has always been a favorite past time of mine and will always put you in the Christmas spirit. This is an easy way to get family together and create many wonderful memories. Note that this recipe is not edible.