Anyone interested in doing a gingerbread house thread - Page 5

I am so excited I have no life and decided to hang around on CC on a Saturday night! I've already started my plans for this year's gingerbread "house" and everyone I work with thinks I'm nuts- but then again, they're cake muggles, they just don't get it. I'm in the process of planning out how to do our county courthouse in gingerbread. I think I may have gotten in over my head on this one, but it's going to be SO cool when it's done! I took some pics and am going to start working on the templates...

I made a haunted house version of my house last year- http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-photo_1152553.html http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-photo_1151886.html - I used sugar cookies since gingerbread didn't seem haunty enough. I had super fun, learned lots and it was REALLY tastey.

TO MAKE A TEMPLATE: One of the few good things about living in this area is that our county/township assessors have a website so people can check the assessments of their homes- they also have sketches of the houses- with dimensions. I used that as a footprint to start with- I'm pretty sure I used a 1 foot=1 inch scale, maybe 4 feet= 1 inch, ok so I just used what would fit well on the cake board I wanted to use. So then I went to MSWord, and made a sketch (inserted a square and told it how big I wanted it to be...) There was a bit of math involved when it came to the rooves- but not too bad (just ask your standard 12 year old- they're all good at that stuff!) After I got it all drawn out, I cut out cardboard *use the corrogated stuff- it's about as thick as gingerbread and will help you when you realize your pattern isn't quite going to fit together the way you drew it. My first time, I used poster board and it was beautiful- until I baked the gingerbread and realized that things didn't fit as neatly as the card stock did!!! So you make the notes on the pattern pieces, then use those to cut out your gingerbread (reading the notes as you go) Also, don't forget to write yourself notes about simple things- it's amazing how easily you forget to cut out windows, flip roof pieces, etc!

Any questions on templates, PLEASE ask, I love the fact that I know how to do this stuff and might be able to help!!!


***edited to fix the links***

Hey, Kelly, welcome!

Love your site! Do you have a template for the little green house at the top of your banner?

That is a gorgeous house. Unfortunately, it's out of my league. I think I'll take a few decorating ideas from it. Like the black "wrought iron" fence / railing. Love that. I don't remember which picture, but one had a licorice stick tree. You split the licorice to make the branches.

Does it seem that the haunted GB houses have less candy on them than the Christmas ones? I'm seeing some mostly RI and a just few candy pieces.

Oh my goodness. I've made literally hundreds of gingerbread houses. I was known as the gingerbread lady by one entire generation of school kids. They didn't know my name but they knew who I was. One year all of the kids in my daughters fourth grade class used graph paper and designed their own buildings. Yep..they sent them home to me and I baked hundreds of parts and pieces. We has a saloon, courthouse, church, train station (and a train that ran through the village) and more, more and more. Silly me...not one pidture. Acutally I was just too dog tired by the time they all got them assembled and decorated. That was when my 28 year old daughter was in the fourth grade. My how time flys. I can't wait to see what all of you ladies add to one of my favorite topics. I haven't made one for about four years now..no kids anymore. Maybe grandkids one day!

A question from someone how has only done a graham cracker house

When you "glue the pieces together-does the icing glue show on the outside?

Does anyone have some photos of a gingerbread house being put together? I am a visual learner and need to see something to really understand the directions.


Thanks for your help. I have always wanted to do one of these but have been intimidated by them.

I just found this thread. I'm planning on making the milhouse for the Festival of Trees this year. Any tips or advice on how to do it would be greatly appericated.
Sherri

I've always wanted to do a gingerbread house -- Lord knows I own every gingerbread book ever made! Thanks for posting this topic!!

Pamconn, here's a photo of the icing showing at the seams while building a house: http://www.gingerbread-house-heaven.com/gingerbread-house-construction.html. Usually the icing gets covered with candies and other decorations, but you can also dye the royal icing brown to blend in with the gingerbread for a more sparsely decorated or rustic-looking house.

Since you said you're a visual learner, there's also a link at the bottom of that page to another page with videos of people building gingerbread houses. I highly recommend watching at least the top one if you want to see the whole process before you try it.

Honeydukes, you wrote:


No, I haven't made that template yet, but it will be very easy. I'll try to get that one done very soon as well. If only there were more hours in a day!

Kelly

Should the cake board be covered in foil? I'm wondering if the RI will stick to the foil. How many inches larger than the house should the board be? I printed out my castle and I'm getting my gear together.

Yes, Honeydukes, cover the cake board with foil or something nonporous (Otherwise, most boards will take in the moisture and weaken.) RI sticks just fine to foil.

The board only needs to be an inch or so larger than the pattern (make sure you take into account the drawbridge laying flat) but you might want to give a little extra room for landscaping or other outside details (trees, shrubs, fence for most houses; Maybe an attacking army or a moat outside the castle.)

Good luck and have fun!

Hey krazykat_14

Your gingerbread house is fabulous. I never thought to do my own home, great idea. But I am from NW Indiana, Dyer, Crown Point and Hammond to be exact and I love your house. It's so perfect. I love to drive through Indiana--I enjoy the fields and farmhouses immensely. What area are you from?

Use honey for most of the molasses so it does not yield to the humidity. Make several of the intricate parts so you have back up in case something breaks. I use a lemon zester to file my cookies to fit better. I overbake my stuff too. It just works for me.

It's a relatively easy design. No worries.

<high five>

Is there a reason you can't add the crushed candy halfway through baking? I watched the videos and they said to add it after baking the pieces. Most of them were overly brown on the corners which I don't think looks good. I might just melt the candy in blobs and glue it on the back.

Yes, I add the crushed candy for windows before the gingerbread is completely cooked so that it won't brown too much.

l5pkel
Thank you so much for the terrific link! That helps so much!