Recipe: All things Gingerbread

Christmas is the time I get obsessed with and love baking my favourite thing in the world; Gingerbread. The spicy flavour of ginger combined with aromatic cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg pepper and star anise is the flavour of Christmas for me.

If you know exactly what I mean, be ready for the Gingerbread overload!

First, we should start with our Gingerbread Spice, versatile as it is, we can use it for baked gingerbread cookies, raw gingerbread date balls, add it to our smoothies, breakfast bowls or cakes.

The best part about home baking is that we know exactly what's in it. We can make sure it's all organic and delicious when we make it with our love.

Organic Gingerbread Spice:
4    tbsp  Cinnamon
2    tbsp  Ginger
2    tbsp  Cloves
1    tbsp  Allspice
1    tbsp  Star Anise
1/2 tbsp  Nutmeg
1/2 tbsp  Pepper

Check out our range of Planet Organic Spices here.

Mix it and we are ready to get the Christmas taste into all our dishes. 
Okay, maybe not all of them...
What are your favorite gingerbread recipes?

I will share with you my all time favourite childhood memory:

My getting over the top excited guilty pleasure number 1 for Christmas:

The Gingerbread House



I know it sounds like a lot of work, especially if you have kids - but this time of the year is all about being peaceful, mindful and enjoying yourself. Get your friends, kids and family together and start creating because there is nothing more fun than decorating this delicious edible house - well, except for eating everything on it!

The Dough:

300g Honey

300g Brown Sugar

125g Butter ( vegan margarine is also an option)

650g Flour ( check out our organic wheat or rye flour here)
1 tbsp DIY: Gingerbread Spice (we might add another tbsp, just to make sure)
1 tbsp Cocoa Powder

 & a pinch of Salt

Method:

Mix everything together and put it in the fridge for at least an hour.
Tip: If the dough is too dry add a little bit of milk.

Then roll it out with approx a 1cm height - sprinkling some flour underneath and on top helps here -  then cut out your house shapes. We need two rectangle parts for the roof, two smaller rectangles for the side walls and two parts with a narrow top for the front and back of the house.

If you want to go all out, try to cut out a door and some windows as well or do little trees for the garden or a chimney! There is no limitation to your creativity.

The Icing:
200g Icing Sugar
1 tsp Lemon Juice or Vanilla Essence
4 tbsp Water (one at a time till the icing is smooth and not too watery)

Now we have to put our house together, the icing is our glue. Take the front first and glue on the sides, be patient, just have fun, it doesn't have to be clean because we are decorating it later anyway. Then comes the back and when the house on its own is put together, glue the two roof plates and put them on the house once they are dry.

If you want to, you can double (or even triple) the recipe and also do a ground plate to put the house on. Then you can add some pine trees, a walkway, even a fence. More room for our creative ideas. 

The Gingerbread House is done - now get the (sugar free) candy!
Whatever you like, you can put it on the house. Chocolate drops, organic nuts or dried fruits as shingles or window frames, Chocolate truffles to decorate the side walls, Coconut Toffee to make the pathway and Salted Caramel Popcorn to form snow or smoke out of the chimney. Add more of that delicious, spicy ginger and put Gin Gins on the roof or decorate the trees with Organic Jelly Beans.

Make sure everything is glued on with your icing and you can also use the icing to put on some decoration details.

Whatever comes to mind, put it on! Do patterns, do it randomly all over the house, be tidy or messy. Let your creativity flow, it will look amazing and taste delicious. 

My ideas are overflowing right now, I have to start my own Gingerbread House soon. What ideas did you come up with for your delicious houses? Show them to me, so I can use some of your great ideas for this years' house.

By now we all know I am obsessed with the gingerbread house and flavour -  keep my gingerbread recipe game going and share your meals, dishes and recipes with us. I will make sure to try them all!

Happy baking and enjoy the fun!!