Holiday Open House Countdown Part Two: Gingerbread Cookies

 Holiday Pop Quiz:

Gingerbread originated in which country?

a.  Sweden

  b.  Armenia

c.  France

If you’re anything like me, random facts, stats, historical footnotes and unusual bits of information intrigue and stick with me. For some reason, I can conveniently forget to pay the phone bill but miraculously remember that the name Wendy was made up for the play Peter Pan, or that Canadians eat more Kraft Dinner per capita than any other country in the world.

I especially love knowing those random and fascinating facts about food. Why mint with lamb? Is Greek yogurt really of Greek origin? And, as I baked more than 17 dozen gingerbread cookies this past weekend for our holiday Open House, I wondered - just where does gingerbread come from?

You’ll have plenty of time to decide if it’s Sweden, Armenia or France while you bake up a batch of my favourite, go-to gingerbread cookies. I’ll admit I’ve tweaked the recipe quite a bit over the years, adding more spices and heightening the ginger-to-molasses ratio. Before you do your own tinkering, try the original version below, from LCBO’s Food and Drink magazine.  And if you really need to know the answer about where gingerbread comes from before you break your first egg, scroll to the end of the post.

Gingerbread Cookies

from LCBO Food and Drink magazine

yields approximately four dozen*

*NB: The yield is entirely dependant on the size of the cookie cutters used.  Naturally, the smaller the cutter the greater the yield, but you are also limiting your ability to later personalise the cookies.

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt
1 tbsp powdered ginger
4 tsp cinnamon
6 c unsifted all purpose flour
1 c vegetable shortening

1¾ c brown sugar

1¼ c white sugar

4 tsp molasses

3 large eggs, room temperature

½ c milk

1. Preheat oven to 325°F.

2.  Sift together the baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and flour.  Set aside. 

3. In a stand mixer, cream together the shortening, the two sugars and molasses until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.  Add the eggs one at a time and continue to cream until incorporated.

4.  Add a little of the flour mixture to the creamed ingredients, incorporating fully before adding more.  When the dough begins to stiffen, begin alternating flour mixture with milk, until both are incorporated.  Mix until a dough is formed.  Cover the dough and refrigerate for at least one hour.

5.  Roll out the dough on a floured surface, about a ¼ inch thick.  Cut out gingerbread with cookie cutters.  If you intend to use the cookies as ornaments, form a hole at the top of the cookie using a straw or chopstick, about a ¼ inch from the top. 

6.  Bake cookies until golden brown at the edges, about 20-25 minutes.  Cool on racks and store until ready to decorate.

Five Tips for Baking Gingerbread Cookies

1.  Start early.  Gingerbread is hardy.  If well cooled and stored in an airtight container, the cookies can be baked weeks in advance.

2.  Sift dry ingredients ahead of time.  If you`re making lots of cookies, sift the dry ingredients for each batch ahead of time and store in Ziplock bags.  It`s an extra step done and makes the work go much more quickly.

3.  Make the dough and prepare the cookies sheets in batches too.  Because the dough has to rest for at least an hour, I spend one evening making the dough and store it in the fridge and then do a massive baking the next night.  Instead of popping every tray in the oven as they're full, I do five full sheets at a time, eliminating the need to constantly open the oven door.

4.  Use chopsticks to form the holes...both before and after baking.  The holes tend to lose their shape during baking; a quick turn in each cookie ensures you`ll be able to thread ribbon through much more easily.

Reinforce ribbon holes in still-warm cookies

5.  Buy extra oven racks and use the convection setting.  I only really bake en masse once a year, but even so that one time made it worth it for me to buy three extra oven racks from my oven manufacturer for mass baking.  Plus, I`m able to use those extra racks for reheating hors d'oeuvres during the Open House.  I also started using the convection setting on my oven, shaving about 10 minutes from the baking time of each batch.

Click here for a super Royal Icing recipe that`s perfect to decorate these brown beauties.

*******

So, where did gingerbread originate?  According to Wikipedia, gingerbread was brought to France via Pompeii in 992 by the Armenian monk Gregory of Nicopolis.  The recipe later spread to Sweden and to the nether regions of Europe, every country adding a twist to make it their own.  The constant is the spicy heat from ginger and the abundance of spices in general, reflecting the tendency to use the most rare and coveted ingredients for the Christmas feast.

Opening the Doors Wide: Our Annual Open House Extravanganza

Fifteen years and counting.  With the exception of 2008, when we had just finished the kitchen reno and were still covered in plaster dust and debris, every year at this time we host our annual Open House. It started in our tiny apartment with a kitchen barely the size of a closet, and an idea that it would be nice to have a few friends over to celebrate the season.    

 Apartment sized fridge to the right, where the kitchen ended; to the left a window and no more counter space.  Truly a closet sized kitchen!

Since then, it’s mushroomed into a gathering of close to a 100 people, and it gives us the perfect opportunity to cook up a storm.  Yes, we cook all of the food, served buffet style – all savoury apps, no dessert, please and thank you – ranging from house-cured gravalax to mini tourtieres; the three-cheese fondue that caused an uproar the year it didn’t appear on the table, and the always new entrees, some successful, some not.

 

Mini toutieres, with the best pastry dough

 

Carmelized tomato tatins

 

Cutting the rosemary-garlic infused grilled leg of lamb

 

It’s the time of year we dip into my cache of cookbooks, the back issues of Donna Hay, Bon Appetit, Gourmet and the countless other food magazines that I’ve accumulated over the years.    Do-ahead is a big factor; “able to freeze” moves a recipe high up on the consideration list.

We think we have it down to a science, and yet every year there’s that moment when panic sets in – at least for me.  Will we have enough food? Will there be a snowstorm that day?   Did we order enough plates and glasses?  And – of course – what should I wear?

Reconnections are made with friends old and dear.  We see the kids growing older, and then stop coming altogether; we witness the friendships that have been formed at our house and get renewed at this once a year gathering.  And more than once throughout the day we’re told that this is the party of the season, the one they wouldn’t miss for the world.

 

Tools of the trade

And while there’s no doubt that every morsel is savoured – guests know to come hungry – the one thing that is the “icing” is the party favour everyone leaves with: homemade personalised gingerbread cookies.  It’s the one bit of baking I do, and I have to say I love the smell of those cookies baking and spending the better part of a Sunday slowly rolling out dough and decorating each cookie.

 

Letting your cookie dough rest for an hour in the fridge makes for easier rolling

 

Several of the dozens of cookies made 

 

Having an assortment of ribbons and dragees on hand makes for easy decorating

 

Rolled wax paper subs in for a proper icing bag - Santa, are you listening?

 

Nothing more magical than seeing your own name...

 Bagged and ready for giving

Everyone has a favourite holiday cookie recipe, and not all are fans of gingerbread.  So, instead of sharing that recipe (which is a bit of a closely guarded secret) instead I’ll share my foolproof recipe for Royal Icing, which can be use to decorate not just your Christmas baking but really any cookie or sweet treat you wish.

As you bake and decorate, be sure to add a sprinkle of love on top - I guarantee you it's the one ingredient your family and friends won't be able to identify but won't be able to do without.

Royal Icing

makes 2 cups

The icing hardens as it dries, so it’s perfect for decorating cookies or baked goods that will be stored. 

2 lg egg whites, at room temperature

1 lb icing sugar, sifted, and more as needed

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp water, or more as needed

1.      Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl.  Beat at high speed with a hand-held mixer until the icing is fluffy, thick and shiny, about 3 minutes.

 2.      Test the consistency of the icing by holding up the beaters.  If the icing drips off the beaters in a slow steady stream, it's the right consistency for piping.  If too thick, beat in a little water; for a stiffer icing that holds its shape, add more confectioners’ sugar.  The icing can be coloured with food colouring, which can be beaten in at this point.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap.

The icing can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.