Go Back
–+ servings
Mini gingerbread houses with white icing sit among pine branches, wooden beads, and a lit candle, creating a festive holiday scene. A blurred background of greenery and ornaments adds to the cozy atmosphere.
Print Recipe
5 from 1 vote

Gingerbread Houses

Displayed together, these mini gingerbread houses make a festive holiday village scene! This a definitely a more involved (yet still very fun) holiday project but the results are worth it! This royal icing is made with meringue powder so there is no worries of little mouths eating raw egg whites. It's the perfect *glue* for gingerbread houses and can be thinned out for decorating cookies.
Prep Time2 hours
Cook Time40 minutes
Course: Cookies
Cuisine: American
Keyword: gingerbread, gingerbread houses, royal icing
Servings: 8 mini houses (approx.)
Author: Kaity Farrell

Ingredients

Gingerbread:

  • 1 stick 1/2 cup or 90g shortening
  • 1/2 cup 115g dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup 194g molasses
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger optional
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 cups 300g all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon powdered ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon grated whole nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

Royal icing:

  • 2 lbs 907g confectioner's sugar (powdered sugar)
  • 6 tablespoons 56g meringue powder
  • 1/2 cup + warm water

Instructions

Prepare Gingerbread:

  • Cream together shortening, dark brown sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer with a beater attachment or in a mixing bowl with a hand mixer until fluffy, about 1 minute.
  • Beat in molasses, egg, fresh ginger if using, and vanilla extract until combined, about 30 seconds.
  • In a separate mixing bowl whisk together dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt and dry spices, until combined, about 30 seconds.
  • With mixer running on low speed, add dry mixture slowly and mix until evenly incorporated, stopping to scrape sides when needed, about 1-2 minutes.
  • Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and shape into 2 rectangles about 1 inch thick. Wrap each tightly with plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour or overnight. You can also freeze dough at this stage to use at a later date. Defrost in the fridge for 24 hours before continuing.
  • Preheat oven to 350˚F and line 4 half sheet pans with parchment paper
  • Take 1 rectangle of dough out of fridge, unwrap and roll to 1/4" thickness on a floured work surface. turning and re-flouring as needed to keep dough from sticking to surface or rolling pin.
  • Place house templates over dough and cut out shapes using a small sharp knife or an x-acto knife/razor blade.
  • Transfer cut outs to baking sheets spacing them about 1" apart. When first sheet is full, place it in the freezer for 10 minutes while you continue rolling and cutting out more shapes.
  • After 10 minutes in the freezer bake the first sheet at 350˚F for about 10 minutes until cookies are cooked well done. They will still be slightly soft to the touch when warm and will harden and crisp up as they cool down.
  • Pop the second sheet of cookies in the freezer while the first sheet is baking. Continue this process with the remaining dough and trays until all of the pieces are baked.
  • Transfer cookies to cooling racks and cool to room temperature before assembling houses. Once cool, cookies can be kept at room temperature in a covered container overnight to assemble the following day.

Prepare Royal Icing:

  • Wipe down the bowl and balloon whisk attachment of a stand mixer or a mixing bowl and beaters of a hand-held mixer with a paper towel dampened with white vinegar or apple cider vinegar. This ensures there is no oil or fat particles in the bowl, which will deflate the meringue.
  • Add all of the ingredients to the bowl and whisk on low speed, increasing to high speed as sugar incorporates until glossy stiff peaks form in the icing, about 10 minutes. Stop and scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
  • This recipe should produce a thick icing which is good to use as *glue* for holding together gingerbread houses. For decorating cookies, thin out a portion of the icing with more warm water, stirring in 1 teaspoon at a time until a desired consistency is reached. Add even more water to thin icing to flood or fill in designs on cookies.
  • To store icing: fill 3-4 pastry bags with the royal icing, leaving the tips of the bags uncut. Keep at room  temp to use that day or refrigerate or freeze to use a later time. Thaw to room temp before using.

Decorate & Assemble Gingerbread Houses:

  • To decorate cookies, fill a pastry bag fitted with a #1 round writing tip with royal icing. To do this place the pastry bag in a tall quart-sized jar and fold down the ends over the outside of the jar. Add royal icing to the bag filling it 1/2 way. Then pull up the sides of bag and push down the icing with your hands. Twist the pastry bag so there is no air left in the bag.
  • Working with one cookie at a time pipe icing in decorative patterns. I like to outline the shape then make doors and windows and decorative designs on each section of the house.
  • Let icing set until it is hard and firm to the touch, about 1-2 hours or overnight, before proceeding to assemble houses.
  • To assemble house fill a pastry bag fitted with a #12 round tip with royal icing as detailed in step 13 above. You can also use the #1 tip for this (as I did in the video) but will need to add a few layers of icing with it.
  • Gather sections to complete a house and pipe royal icing on edges then stick sides together and hold in place with your hands for about 30 seconds. Continue piping on royal icing where needed to act as glue to hold the pieces of each house together.
  • Pipe royal icing over the seam of the roof pieces and along the trim of the roof line to create a snowy effect. Attach chimneys with royal icing. Pipe icicles with the #1 tip by piping a little mound of royal icing onto the roof trim and pulling down. See video for detail.
  • Allow houses to air dry overnight so royal icing hardens. Royal icing becomes brittle when dry so be extra careful when moving the completed houses. Icicles will break off easily just by touching them.

Video

Notes

  • If eating the houses or just making cookies, use them up within 1 week. Keep assembled cookies in a covered container at room temp for up to 1 week.
  • I do not recommend eating houses that will be set out as holiday decor. And if holiday decor is your end goal, then use cheap ingredients and skip the fresh ginger and vanilla.
  • Shortening can be swapped with butter or vegan butter. Use 1 stick/1/2 cup/115g of butter.