3D Gingerbread Church: the archived recipe

Condensed from the original account by Daniel Burne, published 2006-11-10. The quantities and method are the contributor’s; this is not a new kitchen test.

Ingredients recorded

6oz butter

6oz light muscovado (brown) sugar

2 eggs

1lb plain flour

2 tbsp baking powder

2 tbsp mixed spice

2 tbsp ground ginger

1 bag coloured boiled sweets

Melted chocolate to assemble

The chocolate for assembly is unmeasured, and the boiled sweets are one bag. Leftover dough made a priest and choirboy and further stained-glass biscuits; no cost is given.

Method recorded

Mix the butter with the sugar until fluffy, then beat the eggs and gradually add them to the mix.

Sieve the baking powder, flour, spice and ginger into the mix.

Mix and knead by hand into a ball with a play-dough-like consistency, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for 30mins.

On the counter, roll the dough into a thinnish sheet, around 0.5cm.

Using carefully drawn templates, cut out 4 walls and 2 roof tiles, and cut window or door shapes from the walls.

Place in a pre-heated oven at 180oC for 15-20mins, or until golden brown.

Meanwhile sort the boiled sweets into colours and smash them into tiny pieces, wrapped in a tea towel and pounded; the tea towel will not survive.

Remove the gingerbread from the oven and fill the gaps with boiled sweets in the pattern you want.

Return to the oven at the same temperature for a further 5-10mins, or until the sweets have fully melted.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

When cool, assemble the church; the maker used melted chocolate, and warns that out of the fridge for any length of time, demolition follows.

The original account

3D Gingerbread Church with Blinged-Up Windows

Ingredients: 6oz butter
6oz light muscovado (brown) sugar
2 eggs
1lb plain flour
2 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp mixed spice
2 tbsp ground ginger
1 bag coloured boiled sweets

Ingredients on the worktop: flour, ground ginger, mixed spice, muscovado sugar, baking powder, butter and boiled sweets

Method:

Step1: Get yourself to the local sainsbury’s or other leading supermarkets and purchase the necessary items.

Step 2: Don your protective clothing, we recommend aprons (preferably polka dot) as these are both efficient and stylish

Step 3: Take your butter and mix it with the sugar until fluffy. Beat the eggs before gradually adding to the mix.

Step 4: Sieve the baking powder, flour, spice and ginger into the mix.

Step 5: Use hands to mix and knead into a ball of play-dough like consistency. Wrap in cling-film and refridgerate…

A ball of gingerbread dough wrapped in cling film, resting on the granite worktop

Step: 6 … 30mins later… on counter use rolling pin to roll dough into thinnish sheet (around 0.5cm).

Gingerbread dough rolled out into a large rough rectangle on the floured worktop, rolling pin alongside

Step 7: Using carefully drawn out templates, cut out 4 walls and 2 roof tiles.

Step 8: From walls cut out window or door shapes.

Two cut wall panels with arched and diamond window holes removed, on baking parchment

Step 9: Place in pre-heated oven at 180oC for 15-20mins (or when golden brown)

Cut gingerbread wall panels on lined trays baking on two shelves of the oven

Step 10: Meanwhile sort boiled sweets into colours, and smash into tiny tiny pieces. We find wrapping in a teatowel and pounding onto desktop most effective. This does cause permanent and irreparable damage to the teatowel.

Red and pink boiled sweets smashed to crumbs on a polka-dot tea towel

Crushed boiled sweets sorted by colour onto five plates: pink, orange, yellow, green and purple

Step 11: Remove gingerbread from the oven and fill gaps with boiled sweets to create your desired pattern.

Baked panels with crushed sweets packed into the window holes, ready to melt into glass

Step 12: Replace into oven at same temperature for a further 5-10mins (or until sweets fully melted)

Step 13: Remove from oven and leave to cool

The same panels after baking, the window sweets melted into translucent red and green glass

Step 14: When cool assemble church, we used melted chocolate, however once assembled if left out of fridge for any length of time demolition will occur.

The finished gingerbread church assembled with its roof on, coloured sweet windows in every wall

By the way, if there’s any dough left over, use to make priest and choirboy (nudge nudge wink wink) or further stained glass biscuits. Enjoy!

3D Gingerbread Church

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