Everything you need to make a Homemade Gingerbread House including recipes for dough and icing, as wells as a free printable pattern and decoration ideas.
In a large saucepan combine molasses and shortening. In a small bowl, combine baking soda and water and stir to dissolve, set aside.
Bring the molasses and shortening to a boil, stirring frequently. Once boiling, remove from heat and stir in the soda/water mixture, mixing well to combine.
In a large mixing bowl use an electric mixer or stand mixture to combine the sugar, eggs and vanilla.
Add the molasses mixture to the sugar/egg mixture and mix well to combine.
Add the flour, salt, and spices and mix to combine. Place dough in a large ziplock bag and smash use the palm of your hand to shape it into a large, flat disk inside of the bag.
Chillthe gingerbread for several hours, or make up to 1 week in advance.
Bake the gingerbread house pieces (link to .pdf of my pattern is above in the post):
Preheat your oven to 375. Remove the gingerbread dough from the fridge and allow it to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes. Cut dough into four equal pieces, and use your hands to mold each piece into a thick rectangle, as best as possible.
Place a damp towel on your countertop and place a piece of wax or parchment paper on top of the towel. (The damp towel will keep the parchment paper from sliding as you roll out the dough.)
Lightly dust your hands and one of the pieces of gingerbread with flour. Roll the piece into a large rectangle, no more than ¼ inch thick. Before you bake the gingerbread, make sure the pattern pieces you will cut from that piece of gingerbread fit on top of the dough you’ve rolled out. Watch the corners particularly.
Place the gingerbread (still on the parchment paper) onto a large baking sheet or jelly-roll pan and bake at 375 degrees F for 11-12 minutes. Remove from oven.
Cut your house pattern pieces while the gingerbread is still warm from the oven. (You can cut your own patterns or download and print my pattern. See the download link above in the post!) As each batch comes out of the oven, place pattern pieces on top and use a sharp serrated knife to cut the pattern out, pulling the scraps away from the pieces you cut. Allow gingerbread to cool completely before removing from the parchment paper.
Royal Icing for gingerbread houses:
Place all ingredients in a metal mixing bowl. Beat until smooth and standing peaks (about 4-6 minutes). Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth as you use the frosting (this will help keep the frosting from drying out).
Assemble the Gingerbread House:
Find assembly instructions and step-by-step photos above in the post, or in the printable .pdf.
Notes
Make Ahead Tips:The gingerbread dough can be made days in advance and the baked gingerbread house pieces can be cut and stored in a dry place days in advance.