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Gingerbread Cookies Recipe - Royal
Icing Recipe
Peggy says,
"I made the three cookie cutters for these
little guys. They are about 5 1/2-inches tall. The gingerbread houses are about 4 x
4 inches. My husband says that these cookies are the modern version of the Gingerbread
Man."
Gingerbread Cookies
Recipe Type:
Cookies,
Christmas Cookie,
Molded Cookies
Yields:
makes many
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 12 min
Ingredients:
4 ounces butter
4 ounces Crisco vegetable shortening
3/4 cup lightly-packed brown sugar
1/2 cup unsulphured molasses*
1 large egg
3 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon brown food coloring **
Royal Icing (see recipe below)
*
NOTE: You can substitute Kings Syrup or Treacle for the unsulphured molasses in the
Gingerbread Cookie Recipe if you want a lighter colored cookie.
** Can be purchased at most craft stores.
Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350° F. Line two
cookie
sheets with
parchment paper and spray lightly
with pan coating.
Cream the butter with flat paddle attachment of electric mixer on high speed about 3
minutes or until soft. Beat in sugar; continue beating for about 2 minutes until light and
fluffy. Beat in molasses and then beat in egg, scraping down bowl once or twice.
Sift together flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, cloves, and salt. Add the
dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three batches, mixing just until each batch is
blended. Shape into a large flat ball by hand, kneading a few times until smooth. Shape
into two disks (6-inch by 9-inch). Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours
or until firm enough to roll out. Overnight is best.
Using a
rolling
pin, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to 3/16" thickness. Cut out shapes as
desired using either a gingerbread person shape or any other
cookie
cutter of your choice. Transfer to
cookie sheets using a broad-angled spatula, leaving at least 1 inch between cookies. Place
similar sized cookies on the same cookie sheets. To make hanging ornaments, punch holes in the
tops of the shapes with a straw.
Bake approximately 9 1/2 to 12 minutes depending on size, rotating pans front to back once during
baking. They should just begin to brown around the edges and feel firm to the touch.
Remove from oven and cool pans on wire racks for a few minutes; transfer cookies to racks
to cool completely.
Let
cookie sheets cool completely before proceeding with next batch; you may
reuse the parchment. Store in airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks
or freeze for up to one month. Decorate as you desire with Royal Icing.
Royal Icing
I chose this recipe because I can get Just Whites
at my market. I had problems getting the Meringue Powder that is recommended in
many recipes. Raw Egg Whites is not advised to use these days.
- Peggy
Warning:
Any grease will break down icing. Remember if the icing is too dry, add
water a few drops at a time. If icing is too moist, add more powdered sugar. It's as
simple as that.
Ingredients:
1 pound fondant or powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter
5 1/4 teaspoons
Egg White/Meringue Powder
6 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Preparation:
In a large mixing bowl, stir together powdered sugar, cream of tartar, and
Egg White Powder. Add water and vanilla extract; beat at low speed until
sugar is dissolved, then at high speed about 10 minutes or until mixture is
light and fluffy (icing
must hold its shape before using).
Keep bowl covered with a damp
cloth to prevent drying.
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I spooned 1/2 of this Royal Icing mixture into a 10-inch piping bag fitted with a #2 tip. I
liked putting a "Chip Clip" on the top of the bag to keep it closed and twisting
the bag to get the icing to flow. By twisting, I used a lot less hand pressure and didn't
tire out so easily. Put the piping bag tip side down in a glass that has a damp paper
towel in the bottom. This will keep the icing hardening up like cement while you attend to
other life duties.
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To the second 1/2 of the
Royal Icing, I added water, a teaspoon at a
time, and mixed well until the consistency of heavy whipping cream. Then I poured it into a
squeezable bottle with a cap and stored the bottle upside down in a glass. I outlined the
cookie with the pastry bag and let them sit for a few minutes, Then flood the icing from
the squeeze bottle, with a back and forth motion over the whole area. If necessary use a
knife to smooth all over the cookie and a toothpick comes in handy for getting rid of tiny
bubbles and filling little holes. Set aside and let dry overnight.
Next day, pipe your designs. I had eight drawings of patterns
that I made up, so I taped them on my dish closet door right in front of my face for fast
reference. The drawing were the basic idea and every cookie ended up with different
points, curls, swirls and dots. Let dry overnight then package.
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