As the winter winds chill through winter coats, retreat to the warmth and comfort of your favorite holiday-friends: gingerbread folk! Not only will they fill the entire house with a festive cinnamon scent but they will also warm stomachs and melt hearts with their little raisin-eyes. These fun treats bring a little more spice to family and friends during the holiday season, whether they're in your cookie-jar or hanging from the Christmas tree!
Gingerbread folk
Prep time is about 45 minutes. Cooking time is 10 to 15 minutes. Makes about 30 cookies.
Kitchenware:
- 2 baking sheets
- 1 rolling pin
- 1 large plastic bag
- 1 wooden spoon
- 1 spatula
- 1 knife
- cookie cutters (of gingerbread folk)
- 1 medium mixing bowl
- 2 wire racks
- 1 toothpick
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
Ingredients:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 stick of butter
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
-7/8 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup golden syrup or honey
- 1 beaten egg
- Currants or raisins for decoration
Preparation:1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease baking sheets.
2.Put butter, sugar and syrup in the saucepan and stir them together over low heat until melted.
3.Sift flour, ground ginger and baking soda into the mixing bowl. Add the syrup mixture and the beaten egg.
4.Mix everything together and knead into a ball.
5.Chill the dough in a plastic bag in refrigerator for 30 minutes.
6.Sprinkle flour on the table and the rolling pin. Roll the dough out until it is 1/4 inch thick.
7.Use the cookie cutters to make the desired shapes.
8.Lift the cookies onto the baking sheet. Gather up the leftover dough, roll it out again and repeat until all of the dough is used up.
9.Press the currant eyes and buttons into the people. Make holes with toothpick in top of any cookies you wish to hang up.
10.Bake the cookies for 10 to 15 minutes until golden brown.
11.Transfer the cookies to wire rack and let cool before decorating.
Icing
Prep time is about 10 minutes. Covers about 30 cookies.
Kitchenware:
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- 1 bowl
- 2 small bowls or cups
- 3 pastry bags
- Strainer
- Narrow ribbons
- Food coloring
Ingredients:
- a small splash of water
- several drops of green food coloring
- several drops of red food coloring
- 1-1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
Preparation:1. Sift confectioners' sugar in the bowl. Add a little water at a time to the sugar making it into a thick, smooth paste.
2. Spoon a quarter of the icing into each of the two smaller bowls and add food coloring for the desired colors.
3. Fill pastry bags with green, red and white icing and pipe carefully onto the cookies.
4.Enjoy!