How to Make a Gingerbread House That’s as Tasty as it Is Beautiful

Make the gingerbread

1. Heat butter, sugar, corn syrup, and molasses in a large pot over medium; cook until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Remove the pan from the heat and cool for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add flour, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and cloves; stir using a wooden spoon until a stiff dough forms. Add egg yolk; stir until combined and dough is shiny.

2. Roll out the dough. Divide dough, while still warm and pliable, into two equal 2 [1 1/2-pound] portions. Roll each portion between parchment paper into 14- x 11-inch slabs about 1/4 inch thick. Sprinkle with flour if needed. Stack slabs on a baking sheet, cover well, and chill until cold and firm to ensure cleanly cut house pieces, 2 to 48 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 350°F. Transfer 1 cold slab of dough to a baking sheet, peel off top layer of parchment paper. Spacing cutouts about 1 inch apart, cut out two triangles and two rectangles per house using a small sharp knife and a ruler as a guide. When cutting, lay template directly on cold dough set on a baking sheet. (Cutting out and baking pieces right on the pan avoids moving and potentially distorting shapes.) Peel away scraps, leaving cutout pieces on parchment paper; re-roll and chill scraps before cutting out more house pieces. Cut out windows and doors before baking.

4. Bake gingerbread in preheated oven until browned and firm to the touch, 18 to 20 minutes. If adding window panes, at 16 minutes, fill windows (and/or skylights) of partially baked house pieces with crushed hard candy; finish baking until the candy melts and cookies are done, 4 minutes more. (Melted clear mints become translucent, light-refracting panes. You can also include bits of crushed colored candy for a stained-glass effect. Or skip this step, and attach gelatin sheets to the interior side of baked pieces — or leave windows pane-free, if you prefer.) Cool baked gingerbread on baking sheet for 10 minutes; then transfer pieces to a wire rack to cool completely, about 1 hour. Repeat process with remaining dough slab. Roll out scraps, chill, re-roll, and cut out and bake pieces as needed.

Make the royal icing

1. Beat egg whites in a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Gradually add powdered sugar, beating on medium speed until sugar is completely incorporated, about 3 minutes. Add lemon juice; beat on high speed until icing is fluffy and holds its shape, 3 to 5 minutes. If desired, stir in food coloring, 1 drop at a time, until icing is 1 shade lighter than desired color, stirring using a rubber spatula until no streaks remain.

2. Use icing as is for gingerbread house mortar. For decorative piping, beat in 1/2 teaspoon water, and for fine-line piping, beat in up to 1 teaspoon water.

Shingle the roof and pipe accents

1. Set up an icing area. Fill a disposable piping bag(s) with royal icing, and snip a small opening from the tip to neatly attach decorations or pipe onto baked cookie pieces. The royal icing stays neatly contained in a piping bag. Twist the bag and hold it closed with your hand while piping, or cinch with a twist tie or rubber band. A wide-mouth jar with a piece of damp paper towel tucked into the bottom is a perfect stand for the filled bag and will keep icing from hardening at the tip. Keep a damp towel and cotton swabs handy to wipe away stray drips.

2. Prepare cookie pieces. Match up adjoining house pieces to check that they’ll fit together nicely. If anything is off, use a Microplane (or another rasp-style grater) to shave down and straighten bumpy edges. Work over a piece of parchment paper, away from icings and decorations, to easily collect and dispose of shavings. Brush cookie pieces with a dry pastry brush to sweep off residual dust.

3. Decorate the house front with royal icing with sanding sugar. Simple outlines piped around windows and doors add pretty trim and require no special equipment — just a snip off the tip of the piping bag. You can also sprinkle sanding sugar over the icing while it is still wet to add sparkly or colorful accents. Or brush the entire surface of the cookie very lightly with royal icing and sprinkle with white sanding sugar for an icy, snowy effect.

4. Lay roof shingles. You can shingle with an array of items, including vintage Necco wafers, candy canes, sliced almonds, cereal, and pretzels. If needed, trim shingles to fit roof width. Place a small dollop of icing on each shingle to attach to roof pieces. Let shingled roof pieces stand until icing is set, 20 to 30 minutes. Leave about 1 inch of the rooftop bare for easier handling during assembly. Finish installing shingles once the house is erected. You can lay shingles in overlapping rows, starting from the roof bottom, or you can stagger them or line them up in a perfectly vertical pattern — designer’s choice!

Build the gingerbread house

1. After completing preliminary decorations on the house’s front and roof pieces, you’re ready to build! Set up house front. Fill a piping bag with royal icing, and keep a bowl of icing and an offset spatula on hand for applying additional icing as needed. Stand the triangular front façade of the house on a platter or cardboard cake board using a heavy can to support the piece. Pipe a thick line of icing down one edge of the triangle.

2. Attach first roof piece: Leaving the can in place, line up the interior edge of a roof piece against the piped edge of the house front. Hold the roof at the top, unfinished area to position and align the joints. Check that pieces are level, and adjust as needed. Press pieces together, and hold for a couple of minutes to ensure the connection is secure. Pipe additional icing along the inside joint, and smooth with an offset spatula.

3. Attach house back: Pipe along the edge of the house back piece, and attach the house back piece to the back of the roof piece. Pipe along the inside joint, and smooth with an offset spatula. Hold for a couple of minutes to ensure piece is secure. Place a heavy can behind the back piece for support while icing sets.

4. Add the final roof piece: Remove the heavy can from inside the house. Pipe along the edges of the front and back house pieces. Attach the second roof piece. If needed, apply more icing along the house joints. Attach remaining shingles to the top portion of the gingerbread house roof. Allow royal icing to set before moving, 1 to 2 hours for large houses and 30 to 45 minutes for smaller ones.

5. Add finishing touches: Continue to decorate the house exterior, adding embellishments to match your house design. Use royal icing for snowy icicles along the roof and eaves. Slightly thicken icing to help control the flow; apply with a piping bag or small spoon. Adding trim along the eaves and rooftop helps hide house joints. Here, pretzel rods do the job, but other snacks, candies, or herbs also work. Pile shredded coconut along the base of the house to create snowy drifts. For an extra-icy sparkle, sprinkle white sanding sugar over top of the coconut. Window sills with drips of royal icing and small round candies or sprinkles are a quick and simple way to embellish the house’s front. (Check out more decorating ideas here).