Recipe: Gingerbread Build-A-Thon

In my family, no holiday season is complete without the photo montage of our annual gingerbread house build-a-thon.

Every year, my little cousins gather around the island in the kitchen to help mix me ingredients for the frosting/mortar. We build gingerbread houses, and then my aunts snap photos of us, holding our homes. Later on in the evening, when the wine is poured, cell phones and cameras get passed around the living room, so everyone can see the pictures of our creations.

Usually, we use store-bought graham crackers to make the walls. But this year, I wanted to try something different. A friend of mine shared his aunt's gingerbread recipe with me, and the results were pretty spectacular, as you can see in the photos to the right of these words.

And here's my challenge to you. Try the recipe below, make a gingerbread house, and upload photos of you holding it to this article. 

The Recipe

Ingredients:

For the exterior surfaces such as walls and roof parts:

6 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 heaping teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 heaping teaspoon ground cloves 
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 cup shortening, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup molasses
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the mortar:

A 2 lb bag of confectioners sugar
A cup of butter in stick form
2 Tbsp of almond milk

The decorations: 

Anything colorful

Directions:

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and cinnamon; set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the shortening, molasses, brown sugar, water, egg, and vanilla until smooth. Gradually stir in the dry ingredients, until they are completely absorbed. Divide dough into 3 pieces, pat down to 1 1/2 inch thickness, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters. Place cookies 1 inch apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. 
4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven.
5. While the cookies are baking, mix the confectioners sugar, butter and almond milk together in a medium sized bowl with a spoon until creamy.
6. When the cookies are done, they will look dry, but still be soft to the touch. Remove from the baking sheet to cool on wire racks. Let them cool until they to a temperature that will not melt the frosting.
7. Lay out the plans for your dream home.
8. Decorate.
9. Nom Nom Nom (That's the sound of eating.)
10. Take a picture of you with your house and upload it to this article.

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