Gingerbread Man and Christmas Tree
The gingerbread man is so cute! Add him a beautiful icing coat, with gorgeous colors, and pair it with a Christmas tree to instantly amp up the holiday vibe! I think this gingerbread is delicious as it is, with a subtle ginger and cinnamon flavor that feels warm and heartening. (I used ginger-flavored brown sugar from Taikoo. If you're using regular brown sugar, you can increase the amount of ginger powder to 3g for a stronger ginger flavor (≧▽≦)).
Ingredients
Steps
Prepare the ingredients
Melt the butter over warm water
Add honey
Add whole egg liquid
Mix the liquid ingredients well
Sift in cake flour and baking powder
Sift in ginger powder, cinnamon powder, and finally the brown sugar, breaking up any lumps
Mix all the ingredients evenly with a spatula
Knead the dough by hand until smooth, seal it in a plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour to relax
Roll out the dough and cut with star-shaped molds in five different sizes (two for each size)
Use the remaining dough for gingerbread man and Christmas tree molds
Use a knife to lift the shaped dough pieces
Transfer the pieces to a baking sheet
Place in a preheated oven, middle rack, at 170°C for 18 minutes (bake until cookies are lightly golden)
Cool the baked cookies on a cooling rack thoroughly
Prepare the royal icing
Gradually add the powdered sugar into the egg whites in three batches and whip
Whip the royal icing until smooth and thick (about 5-6 minutes)
Place the white icing in a piping bag, divide the rest into two bowls, and add desired food coloring
Place the colored icing into piping bags
After filling the bags, seal the openings and cut a small opening at the tip. You can prepare additional colors for decoration
Unleash your creativity by decorating the cookies! Be sure to let the icing fully dry before moving the cookies. I usually let the drying rack sit in an unpowered, cooled oven overnight.
Assemble the Christmas tree by arranging the different-sized stars
Stack the stars from largest to smallest
Once all the stars are stacked, the Christmas tree is complete! Add the decorated gingerbread man, and you have a festive gingerbread creation!