I know: when you think of gingerbread houses, you think of lollipops and gumdrops with sugar coated rooftops. My sister and I were at a fabric store when I came across a pre-baked cookie house kit with none other than black and orange frosting, candy corn, and a little sugar ghost, so I had to get it! This, I suspect, is when I declared myself officially bitten by the "sweet treats" bug.
This is the kit, with packets of ready-to-make icing and gingerbread walls already done. I know I can admit that making a gingerbread house is no easy task, but I was determined.
Unfortunately (in this case) detail is important to me, so in the beginning I was frustrated and concentrating intensely to make sure the icing would first of all just come out, and secondly not fall off as soon as it did!
A few tips for those who would like to know:
- Keep the bags of icing under a damp cloth when they're not in use
- Have a cup nearby with some water to use when the icing has dried up, but remember! a little goes a long way
- As you're holding the bag of icing for piping, keep it warm with your hands and "massage" it as you squeeze the icing out: this keeps the icing warm and lets it flow smoothly out the end for easier decorating
Finally I finished the Haunted Cookie House! It was definitely worth the time because in the end I felt so accomplished. Now I feel like I could make a legitimate gingerbread house when Christmas rolls around!
Tomorrow, my sister and I will be baking some little treats we found on Bakerella.com , the site that I will mostly gather some ideas from to try over the course of these next few weeks.
Now I must get back to nursing my Biochemistry notes - I have a test in one week and still there are two chapters to cover in class, yikes!
