Classic Christmas Gingerbread

Never mind the turkey! what about the gingerbread?

It's a sure sign for me that Christmas is getting close when it's time to make gingerbread. I love all kinds of gingerbread and believe me it comes in all shapes, sizes and textures.....probably more than you realised existed.
Here are some of the gingerbread's I have discovered on my travels...
Aberdeen, Ashbourne, Dumfries, Grantham, Grasmere, Kirriemuir, Nottingham, Wrexham, Parkin.....as you can see the British love their gingerbread!

There are numerous styles of gingerbread in cake or biscuit form that originate in Germany, France and Holland, such as the German lebkuchen, very popular here at Christmas in those European economy stores and a firm favourite of my mothers!, The French almond gingerbread which unfortunately is rarely seen outside of France, and the Dutch speculaas which are very interesting as they are made using wooden moulds in the shape of dolls, windmills or religious figures....I found one that looks a bit like our St. Patrick!

Dutch speculaas

Sara Nelsons Grasmere Gingerbread

My all time favourite when it comes to gingerbread, is Grasmere gingerbread. Made from a secret recipe invented over 160 years ago by Sara Nelson, there is nothing like it anywhere else in the world, and on every trip to the English Lake District, where I used to live, we stock up and return to Ireland with boxes of the stuff....chefs tip...it makes an unusual and stunning base for a cheesecake!

German Lebkuchen

Classic ginger sponge cake 

At this time of year it is the tradition in our home to make gingerbread biscuits and hang them on the christmas tree. The biscuits are spicy, crunchy yet chewy, and I never have to worry about them possibly going stale on the tree as they never last that long!.
I like to make star and tree shapes along with the classic gingerbread man, and when I went to make these today I couldn't find the most important item...my star cutter...so no gingerbread stars on my tree this year #devastated! I can't imagine where my star cutter has gone so I'll have to take a trip to my local kitchen equipment store to find replacements...it's a tough job, but someone has to do it 😁

This gingerbread recipe is very simple to make and the dough isn't too sticky. usually golden syrup is used in the making of gingerbread but I like to use treacle. I like a dark cookie, and I find the treacle blends well with all those lovely seasonal spices. You can, if you prefer, use golden syrup in place of the treacle.
When rolling out your dough, all you need is a light dusting of flour on a flat surface and on your rolling pin, then you can cut away at your favourite shapes, and don't worry about a little dusting of flour on top of the cookies as this will fade during baking.

You will need....makes at least 2 dozen cookies or twice that if using small cutters

90g butter at room temperature
120g light soft brown sugar
1 medium egg
140g treacle

330g plain flour
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon all spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 level teaspoon salt

How to..........

• Sieve the flour, spices, salt and baking powder together
• place the soft butter in a mixing bowl, add the sugar and cream together until light and fluffy and very soft
• beat the egg really well and add to the butter and sugar mixture, beat on high speed with your mixer...if it looks like it is curdling, add 2 tablespoons of the flour and continue mixing
• when all the egg has been added and your mixture is smooth, stop your mixer and add the treacle
• slowly mix in the treacle until all is absorbed
• now add half the flour to the bowl and continue to mix slowly until all the flour has been incorporated
• add the remaining flour and mix gently until you have a nice dough...don't expect it to form into a ball because it won't, although it will resemble a shortbread dough
• scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a round ball
• place on a plate and wrap in cling film or place in a plastic bag, chill for a couple of hours or overnight
• dust a surface lightly with flour and roll out your dough
• cut out your shapes and place on a baking tray lined with parchment, if you want to hang these on the christmas tree then you need to make the little holes now which you will pass some string or ribbon through later on. I like to make the holes using a straw...or you could use the end of a chopstick if you have one, just press the straw into the dough and wiggle it around to make a nice large hole.
• bake your gingerbread shapes at 160oC until set

Large gingermen will take around 15 minutes to cook, but little stars may only take 8 - 10 minutes so keep your eye on them, we don't really want them to brown. There would be a tendency for these to burn easily too because of the high sugar content, so keep watch.

• Remove your gingerbread from the oven, if the holes have closed a little then make them a little bigger while the dough is still soft and hot.
• Loosen the biscuits gently away from the parchment and allow to cool for a few moments till they get firm, then lift them onto a wire cooling rack and allow them to cool fully before decorating with icing

Decorate your gingerbread with some piped royal icing, silver balls, gold glitter or anything that says Christmas to you. Loop some red ribbon or natural string through the holes so you can hang them on your tree. Gingerbread make great edible gifts too as they keep for ages.

Lesleyann x