Gingerbread House

1. Preheat oven to 160ºC fan bake and line 2-3 large oven trays with baking paper.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar together until smooth and creamy. Beat in golden syrup, egg and orange zest.
3. Sift flour, ginger, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg into butter mixture. Mix to form a dough, adding milk as needed. Use your hands to bring the dough together and shape into a ball. If dough is too soft to roll out, refrigerate for 30 minutes.
4. Print and cut out the gingerbread house template.
5. Divide dough into two pieces. Place one half on a large piece of baking paper and roll out to approximately 3mm thick. Gently place the gingerbread house shapes on top and cut around them. Remove the template and any excess dough from around the shapes. Keeping the shapes on the baking paper (cut the baking paper if needed), transfer to prepared trays.
6. Using the other piece of dough, repeat to form a second set of shapes (you will need two of each shape to create the house). Re-roll any scraps and use to make gingerbread men or other decorations.
7. Bake the gingerbread for 12 minutes, until edges are lightly browned and biscuits seem crisp.
8. Cool on trays for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Icing

1. Place egg white in a medium-large bowl and whisk with a fork until frothy. Sift in icing sugar and stir to combine, adding orange or lemon juice as required to form a thick, pipeable icing. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a small, round nozzle.

To Decorate / Assemble

1. Pipe decorations (windows, doors etc) onto the gingerbread shapes. Allow icing to set completely.
2. Select a base to create the house on. Use icing to attach one side of the house to the front (the house will fit best if you secure the side on the outside edge of the front piece). Hold or prop up until partially set. Follow the same method to attach the back, then the other side of the house. Pipe icing in the seams on the inside of the house, including at the base, to secure.
3. Pipe thick layers of icing, about 1cm in, on the inside of one of the long sides of both roof pieces. This forms a ‘ledge’ for the roof to rest on the sides of the house, allowing the roof to overhang slightly. Allow to dry completely.
4. Pipe a line of icing along the top of the house front, back and sides. Place the roof on.
5. Secure the chimney together with icing and place on top of the roof.
6. Pipe icing around the outside seams of the house to fill any gaps and give a decorative snow effect. Leave to set, then dust the house with a little icing sugar if you like.

Tips

• You can add icing whitener to the icing to make it bright white (purchase from specialty kitchen and baking stores).
• Use a skewer or toothpick to easily fix up any mistakes in the piping of the icing before it hardens.
• For a more colourful house, add food colouring to the icing, or decorate with lollies (try to avoid anything too heavy!).