Alma Bax 
This gingerbread house recipe is a classic holiday favorite. The gingerbread houses are made with molasses, which gives them their color and helps to keep the dough from sticking to your hands.
This tutorial will show you how to build a gingerbread home from scratch, complete with a gingerbread house recipe, frosting, and a free printable gingerbread house design!
Gingerbread House from Scratch
Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year, and building a gingerbread house from scratch is one of my favorite Christmas traditions.
I understand that they may seem frightening and overpowering, but if you approach them step by step, they become less daunting. I’d go so far as to say that this is a gingerbread home recipe that is equally suitable for beginners and those with more advanced abilities.
It’s a fun activity that everyone can participate in! Start by watching a Christmas movie or listening to Christmas music.
This is a fun dish to make in the run up to Christmas that you can eat or use as a decoration.
What’s in this Recipe for a Homemade Gingerbread House?
Recipe for Gingerbread
Don’t attempt to use your favorite gingerbread recipe to create gingerbread men since gingerbread for a home is quite different from gingerbread for gingerbread men. It must be sturdy enough to support the weight of the home while still maintaining its form during baking.
Template for a Gingerbread House
To help you build your gingerbread home, I’ve created a free printable gingerbread template. A printer and A4 paper are all that is required. If you don’t have access to a printer, I’ve provided the dimensions so you may draw it with a pen and ruler on your own paper.
Icing for Gingerbread Houses
The frosting is used to both adorn and bind the gingerbread house together. The finest frosting to use here is royal icing, which hardens like concrete and ensures that your gingerbread home will not break apart after it has set.
Decorating Ideas for Gingerbread Houses
There are so many ways to decorate your gingerbread home, whether you want it to appear like snow or you want to cover it with sweets! I’ll show you how I decorated this gingerbread home step by step.
How to Assemble a Gingerbread House
I’ve got all the insider secrets for putting up a gingerbread home that won’t fall apart in the middle! It will take some time, but it will be well worth it.
What’s the best way to prevent a gingerbread home from crumbling?
- Before putting the home together, decorate the gingerbread house panels. Because the panels are flat, it is much simpler to decorate, and it also prevents any mishaps from occurring by putting pressure to the home.
- Use the appropriate frosting. Because royal icing sets like concrete, it is required to bind gingerbread buildings together. There’s no way your home will break apart after the icing has dried.
- Assemble the home in phases. Start with the four walls and let them cure fully before attempting to add the roof’s weight.
- As much as feasible, use supports. Glasses, cups, and food containers all work well here. Ensure that the home is fully supported until the royal icing has dried.
Ideas for Gingerbread Houses
To get you started, here are a few more gingerbread home ideas.
Ingredients for a Gingerbread House
Dough for Gingerbread
1 stick (113g) butter, room temperature or chilled from the refrigerator
Syrup (34 cup | 250 g) — corn syrup, dark corn syrup, golden syrup, or molasses may all be used. The darker syrups will give the gingerbread more color.
4 tsp Ginger Powder
Cinnamon, 4 tsp
112 Cups / 250g Brown Sugar — Brown sugar gives the gingerbread more color and taste, but white sugar may be used instead if you don’t have any on hand.
612 Cups / 810g Flour — This recipe calls for regular all-purpose flour, not self-rising flour. This is a lot of flour, but we’ll need a lot of gingerbread to finish the home.
112 Cups / 310ml Milk — Whole milk is ideal, although skim milk or milk substitutes may also be used.
Gingerbread House Icing Royale
2 beaten egg whites – Recipes for using the egg yolks may be found here.
Powdered sugar (500g) – Powdered sugar, icing sugar, and confectioners sugar are all the same item with various names throughout the globe.
Decorations for Gingerbread Houses
Powdered sugar — For creating ‘snow’ on the gingerbread house, use this.
Sticks of Cinnamon — Placed in front of the gingerbread home, they appear like logs.
Lollies / Candy – Any colors and designs you choose!
Making a Gingerbread House from the Ground Up
Dough for Gingerbread House
Melt the butter in a small pot with the syrup (golden syrup, corn syrup, or molasses).
Ground ginger and cinnamon should be measured out. Spices like ginger and cinnamon are used for taste as well as color and fragrance. There’s nothing quite like the aroma of freshly baked gingerbread!
Measure out the brown sugar and melt the ingredients together in a skillet over medium heat, stirring periodically.
Measure the flour into a large mixing basin.
Because we don’t want baking powder or baking soda to cause the gingerbread to bubble up and alter form in the oven, the only dry ingredient in this gingerbread house recipe is flour.
Remove the pot from the heat after the butter has completely melted.
Pour the butter mixture and milk into the flour-filled mixing bowl.
Fold the gingerbread dough together with a wooden spoon or a stand mixer if you don’t have one.
It will be extremely firm, yet sticky in texture. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the gingerbread dough for 3-4 hours or overnight to firm up.
The Gingerbread House in the Oven
Take the bowl out of the fridge when you’re ready to bake the gingerbread house pieces.
Scoop approximately a cup of gingerbread dough onto a nonstick baking sheet and top with another sheet. The gingerbread will not cling to the rolling pin if you do this.
Roll out the gingerbread dough to a thickness of 1–1 1/2 cm (1/2–1/4′′).
Print the Gingerbread House template and use scissors to cut out the parts.
Cut the gingerbread into the desired shape using a knife. Carry on in this manner until all of the gingerbread pieces have been collected.
Refrigerate the gingerbread house pieces for 30 minutes to harden up. This will prevent them from spreading and altering form during baking.
Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F and bake the gingerbread pieces for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown. Because all of the parts may not fit in the oven at the same time, this may have to be done in stages.
Frosting for Gingerbread Houses
While the gingerbread bakes and cools, prepare the royal icing that will be used to decorate and adhere the gingerbread house together.
Add the egg whites and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer or a medium sized mixing bowl if using a hand mixer. For approximately 5-8 minutes on medium speed, beat until it is thick and brilliant white.
To keep it from drying out, place it in a small dish and cover it.
Decorations for Gingerbread Houses
Fill a piping bag with royal icing and a tiny round nozzle. Complete the gingerbread home by decorating all of the parts. Instead of constructing the gingerbread home beforehand, this is much simpler to accomplish now when the parts are flat.
There are many various decorating designs for gingerbread homes, so you can either replicate what I did or conduct a fast internet search for inspiration.
Before constructing the home, let the decorated gingerbread pieces to set for approximately 6 hours. This enables the frosting to fully solidify and avoid being smeared.
Putting Together the Gingerbread House
Begin by constructing the four walls of your gingerbread home. Pipe lines of royal icing along each side and use cups, mugs, cans, or anything you can find to hold the home together until the frosting dries.
Allow for the icing to set and dry for approximately four hours before adding the roof. The entire video can be seen here, and it will show you in much more detail.
Finish the chimney by piping royal icing along the sides and putting them together on the roof.
When putting the home together, be as cautious as possible since nothing is more terrible than it coming apart. This is why it’s critical to let the walls dry before adding the roof’s weight.
Put the finishing touches on the Gingerbread House.
Add the leftover royal icing as snow to the foundation of the gingerbread home and a few additional decorations, such as cinnamon sticks as logs of wood, to complete the gingerbread house.
This is where you can be very creative and make it your own. To create the appearance of new snow, I usually finish with a sprinkling of powdered sugar.
Frequently Asked Questions about Gingerbread Houses
Is it okay to eat gingerbread houses?
Because gingerbread homes are constructed of edible ingredients, there’s no reason why you can’t eat them!
One thing to keep in mind is that gingerbread house recipes typically call for a different kind of gingerbread than that used to create gingerbread men. To sustain the weight of the home, the gingerbread is stronger and tougher.
Yes, but I wouldn’t build a gingerbread house simply to eat it; instead, I’d make one to enjoy the process of making it and to display as a Christmas ornament.
When it comes to Gingerbread Houses, how long do they last?
You can preserve gingerbread homes for the whole month of November and December depending on how you store them, but if you’re creating them for eating, I’d recommend eating them within a few days.
If you want to eat your Gingerbread House, bear in mind that it will gather dust from the air, so the sooner you do it, the better. If you’re simply using it as Christmas decor, like me, it’ll easily survive till the end of the year, perhaps even into January.
How do you keep a gingerbread home safe?
A gingerbread home may be kept for a long time. Get some craft varnish or polyurethane if you want to do this. Allow the Gingerbread House to dry completely before applying several coats of paint to the interior and exterior.
After you’ve made a gingerbread home, what do you do with it?
Find a place in your house where you can proudly exhibit all of your hard work! The spices in the gingerbread will fill your house with a lovely Christmas fragrance!
What caused my gingerbread house to collapse?
This is most likely due to the fact that the royal icing hasn’t dried and hasn’t been well supported. Ensure that the home is supported with glasses, cups, or anything else you can find until the royal icing has dried. Putting too much pressure on the home before this may cause it to collapse.
To print the gingerbread house template or use the dimensions to draw it out yourself, click the image below.
Recipes for the Holidays
Ingredients
Dough for Gingerbread House
- 1 pound butter (1 stick / 1/2 cup / 113g)
- Syrup, 3/4 cup (190 mL) (golden syrup, glucose syrup, molasses, corn syrup)
- 4 tsp Ginger Powder
- 4 tsp Cinnamon (Ground)
- Brown Sugar, 1 1/4 Cup (250g)
- Flour, 6 1/2 Cups / 810g
- 310ml/1 1/4 cup milk
Royal Icing
- 2 Egg Whites
- 500g powdered sugar / icing sugar (4 cups)
Gingerbread House Decorations
- Icing sugar / powdered sugar
- Cinnamon Sticks
- Lollies / Candy
Instructions
Dough for Gingerbread House
- Combine the butter, syrup (golden syrup/corn syrup/molasses), ground ginger, ground cinnamon, and brown sugar in a small pot.
- Place the pot over medium heat and, stirring periodically, let the ingredients to melt together.
- Remove the pot from the heat after the butter has completely melted.
- Combine the flour, butter mixture, and milk in a large mixing basin.
- Fold the gingerbread dough together with a wooden spoon or a stand mixer if you don’t have one. It will be extremely firm, yet sticky in texture.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill the gingerbread dough for 3-4 hours or overnight to firm up.
The Gingerbread House in the Oven
- Take the bowl out of the fridge when you’re ready to bake the gingerbread house pieces.
- Scoop approximately a cup of gingerbread dough onto a nonstick baking sheet and top with another sheet. The gingerbread will not cling to the rolling pin if you do this.
- Roll out the gingerbread dough to a thickness of 1–1 1/2 cm (1/2–1/4′′).
- Print the Gingerbread House template and use scissors to cut out the parts.
- Cut the gingerbread into the desired shape using a knife. Carry on in this manner until all of the gingerbread pieces have been collected.
- Refrigerate the gingerbread house pieces for 30 minutes to harden up. This will prevent them from spreading and altering form during baking.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F and bake the gingerbread pieces for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges begin to brown. Because all of the parts may not fit in the oven at the same time, this may have to be done in stages.
Gingerbread House Frosting
- While the gingerbread bakes and cools, prepare the royal icing that will be used to decorate and adhere the gingerbread house together.
- Add the egg whites and powdered sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer or a medium sized mixing bowl if using a hand mixer.
- For approximately 5-8 minutes on medium speed, beat until it is thick and brilliant white.
- To keep it from drying out, place it in a small dish and cover it.
Gingerbread House Decorations
- Fill a piping bag with royal icing and a tiny round nozzle.
- Complete the gingerbread home by decorating all of the parts. Instead of constructing the gingerbread home beforehand, this is much simpler to accomplish now when the parts are flat. There are many various decorating designs for gingerbread homes, so you can either replicate what I did or conduct a fast internet search for inspiration.
- Before constructing the home, let the decorated gingerbread pieces to set for approximately 6 hours. This enables the frosting to fully solidify and avoid being smeared.
Putting Together the Gingerbread House
- Begin by constructing the four walls of your gingerbread home. Pipe lines of royal icing along each side and use glasses, mugs, pans, or anything you can find to support the home while the frosting dries.
- Allow for the icing to set and dry for approximately four hours before adding the roof. The entire video can be seen here, and it will show you in much more detail.
- Finish the chimney by piping royal icing along the sides and putting them together on the roof. When putting the home together, be as cautious as possible since nothing is more terrible than it coming apart. This is why it’s critical to let the walls dry before adding the roof’s weight.
Putting the Finishing Touches on the Gingerbread House
- Add the leftover royal icing as snow to the foundation of the gingerbread home and a few additional decorations, such as cinnamon sticks as logs of wood, to complete the gingerbread house. This is where you can be very creative and make it your own.
- To create the appearance of new snow, I usually finish with a sprinkling of powdered sugar.
Notes
The free printable gingerbread house pattern may be found here.
Products to Consider
I earn money from qualifying purchases as an Amazon Associate and as a member of other affiliate programs.
The gingerbread house recipe shortening is a quick and easy way to make this holiday treat.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best ingredient to keep gingerbread houses?
To keep gingerbread houses, you need to use a lot of oil.
What is the best way to put together a gingerbread house?
The best way to put together a gingerbread house is by following the instructions found on the back of your gingerbread man.
How far in advance can I make gingerbread house?
You can make gingerbread houses up to two weeks in advance, but the more time you buy, the better.
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