For all fans of healthy eating, I am collecting old recipes for Russian gingerbreads, which are prepared with honey. This is a treat can be stored for years and quite simple to prepare.

Personal note - if you want to try REAL gingerbread, do not use store-bought flour: take wheat, grind it in a food processor or coffee grinder, and knead the dough on it. Wheat makes the dough dark - almost like black bread. But if that’s not possible, store-bought flour will certainly do. Homemade gingerbread is delicious anyway.

The high content of honey makes the finished gingerbread crumbly, soft, aromatic and does not stale for a long time. Honey acted as a natural leavening agent; sometimes a little sour cream was added (100-200 g per 1 kg of flour), which, in combination with honey, gives a light fermentation that loosens the dough. The effect of weak leavening is very important, because if you overdo it, the characteristic gingerbread density will turn into biscuit softness.

According to the method of preparing gingerbread dough They are divided into raw, prepared from dough kneaded with cold sugar syrup, and custard - with hot sugar syrup.

Gingerbread cookies are being baked at 200-250° immediately after cutting and before crust formation. During baking, the gingerbread cookies acquire a spongy texture. With a small amount of leavening agents or an incorrect technological process, the products turn out dense and damp.

Small and thin gingerbreads are baked at a temperature of 220-240° C for only 5-15 minutes, and large products and gingerbreads - at a temperature of 180-220° C. Immediately after baking, wipe the surface of the gingerbread with a soft napkin. This increases the shine of the products.

We do not grease the baking sheets with anything; they should be cold. We sculpt the gingerbread cookies themselves in flour and place them on a baking sheet; they are lightly coated in flour on the bottom. The technology can also be as follows: at the very beginning, the average baking temperature, then the oven heats up to maximum, bake for 7 - 10 minutes at maximum temperature and then reduce the heat and bake until done. Gingerbread cookies do not change color much, they just become a little darker, on average they bake for 30 - 35 minutes. Readiness is determined this way: if the thinnest part of the figurine has become hard, you can turn off the oven and take it out. The thickest part may still be soft, it will then harden.

Basic gingerbread dough has three varieties: honey, sugar (without honey) and honey-sugar.

"Eternal" gingerbread

To prepare gingerbread you need: 1200 g of honey, 2 kg of wheat flour, 5 eggs, 2 teaspoons of soda and a little of any spice powder.

Honey is heated to the temperature of fresh milk and poured into a bowl with flour. Eggs are broken there, soda dissolved in warm water is poured and spices are added. The dough is thoroughly kneaded, wrapped in a napkin and placed in a warm place for 0.5 hours. When it has risen, knead it, divide it into pieces and roll it into circles with a diameter of about 20 cm, place it on an iron sheet, greased with oil and sprinkled with flour, and allow it to rise again. They put it in the oven. To prevent the dough from swelling, prick it with a fork. When the gingerbread is browned, take it out and cover with a towel until it cools down. Gingerbread can be stored for years.

Honey gingerbread "Princess Olga"

To bake this gingerbread, prepare 200 g of honey, 100 g of granulated sugar, 200 g of wheat and rye flour, 100 g of butter, 3 egg yolks, 1/2 teaspoon of a mixture of ground cloves and cinnamon, 1 packet of vanilla sugar, 1 teaspoon of soda . Bring honey to a boil over heat, add spices, cool to room temperature. Mix rye, wheat flour and soda. Beat the yolks with sugar and butter, add cooled honey, flour and knead the dough well. Place it on a greased baking sheet and bake at medium temperature.

Gingerbread

Here are the ingredients:

• 700 g flour
  2 teaspoons baking soda
  4 tablespoons ground ginger
  2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
  1 teaspoon ground cloves
  300 g butter, cut into pieces
  350 g granulated sugar
  4 tablespoons light syrup
  2 eggs

Collection of texts about gingerbread

The composition of the gingerbread is quite simple. It is based on a mixture of rye flour (or wheat) and honey (in old recipes the ratio was equal, but then less honey was added), yolks and milk (in some types of gingerbread).

Over time, many types of gingerbread appeared in Russia, which conditionally can be classified by production technology (raw, beaten, brewed); by appearance (written, curly, printed, embroidered); by composition and filling (mint, honey, almond, raspberry, molasses). Most often, gingerbreads were distinguished by place of origin: Tula, Moscow, Vyazma, Rzhev, Gorodets.

Spices in gingerbread. Raw and custard gingerbreads

Aromatic crushed spices rich in essential oils were used as flavoring and aromatic additives: cinnamon, cloves, star anise, cardamom, allspice, nutmeg, ginger, anise, lemon, vanilla or decoctions of aromatic herbs (oregano, mint).

A noticeable spice content is a distinctive feature of gingerbread dough.

The dough can be prepared in two ways: raw (simplified) and choux. Gingerbreads made from raw dough quickly dry out and become hard, while gingerbreads made from choux pastry remain fresh and fragrant for a long time.

When preparing dough using the raw method. Place honey in a bowl or saucepan, add pre-mashed butter, eggs, spices and mix everything for 1-2 minutes, then add sifted flour mixed with soda and knead a not very stiff dough. If the honey is candied, it is heated until the crystals dissolve, but in no case do they boil, since the honey then loses its aroma.

When making sugar gingerbread, bring sugar and water to a boil, skim off the foam, add butter to the syrup, stir, cooling the syrup to room temperature. Add spices, eggs, and then flour mixed with soda to the cold syrup, stirring.

Preparing gingerbread dough using the custard method. Put honey, sugar in a saucepan, pour in water and heat to 70-75° C, add half the sifted flour and finely ground spices and quickly mix with a wooden spatula. Cool the kneaded dough to room temperature, add eggs, baking powder, remaining flour and knead until the dough has a soft consistency. The dough must be cut immediately, otherwise the product will be of poor quality.

The essential ingredients in gingerbread are black and white molasses and burnt sugar (but you can do without them). Gingerbread cookies were often prepared filled with berries (jam, marmalade); sometimes nuts, candied fruits, raisins and other dried fruits were added.

Most Russian gingerbread was made meatless (without eggs or milk). The main binding component of gingerbread dough was honey, molasses or sugar. If milk and eggs were added, then very little (1 glass of milk and 1-2 yolks per kilogram of flour). The components were mixed until homogeneous, after which the dough had to be kneaded into a homogeneous plastic mass. After kneading or, as they say, “beating,” the dough should be allowed to rest for about 15 minutes, and then the gingerbread cookies should be baked.

You can use the composition of seasonings suggested below or come up with your own - the main thing is that the prepared spices are pleasant to you when prepared and mixed.

• 35% coriander,
  30% cinnamon,
  10% cardamom,
  10% nutmeg,
  5% cloves,
  5% star anise,
  5% allspice.

All components must be thoroughly ground into dust and kneaded into the dough when it is still quite liquid.

Tula gingerbread

There were several recipes for Tula gingerbread, but only one has survived to this day, and even then not much was known about the recipe honey, flour and molasses.

Tula gingerbread recipe

Sugar - 1 glass
Egg - 2 pcs
Soft margarine (butter) - 125 g
Honey - 3 tbsp. l.
Ground cinnamon - 1 tbsp. l.
Soda (do not extinguish!) - 1 tsp.
Sugar (for glaze) - 4 tbsp. l.
Milk (for glaze) - 2 tbsp. l.
Wheat flour - 2.5 cups (about that)
Jam (any thick) - 1 cup.

Mix sugar, eggs, soda, cinnamon and honey. Add margarine. I prefer butter. Mix well and place in a boiling water bath for 10-15 minutes. Stir occasionally. You will get a homogeneous air mass.

Add one glass of sifted flour to this mixture. Stir and cool. Gradually add the remaining sifted flour to the cooled, warm dough, stirring well with a fork, and at the end of kneading - with your hands. The amount of flour is approximate, you may need a little more. If you pour flour into hot dough (without cooling it first), then much more flour will be used, and the dough will turn out very tight, but we need soft and elastic.

Roll out the dough into a layer 0.5 cm thick and cut into squares. Dust the table well with flour, otherwise the dough may stick. Place jam on one half of the square, cover with the other half and press down well on the sides with your fingers. The dough forms and sticks together very well, the filling will not leak out.

Place on a greased sheet of parchment and bake in a hot oven at 180 degrees 10-15 minutes, no more! Tula gingerbreads bake quickly - they will rise well and brown. While baking, prepare the glaze: mix sugar and milk, put on fire and stir until the sugar dissolves, bring to a boil and simmer for 3-4 minutes. As soon as the gingerbread cookies are baked, immediately brush them with hot glaze and let them cool.

Do not reduce the amount of cinnamon - the taste will not be the same! You can add nutmeg and ginger to the cinnamon - 1/2 tbsp. l. cinnamon + 1/2 tsp. nutmeg + 1/2 tsp. ginger

Store gingerbread cookies in a plastic bag - they remain soft and fragrant for a long time.

As additional elements you can add to the gingerbread dough: lemon zest, chopped fried nuts (for example, walnuts), a little vanilla. If you couldn’t find rye flour, you can tint the dough made from wheat flour with zhzhenka (burnt sugar). However, as I wrote above, if you made the flour yourself from wheat, it will be very dark and without coloring. Burnt sugar is added along with spices to the still liquid dough.

Gingerbread errors and their correction

Types of marriage	Causes
Products are dense, not streamlined	Reduced humidity of the dough: the brew was not cooled enough: there are few sugary substances; lots of leavening agents.
Products are blurry	Dough with high humidity; too much soda, poor gluten: low oven temperature.
Hard, rubbery products	Not enough sugar: high dough temperature during kneading; long kneading
The top crust is separated; raw crumb	Very soft dough; the oven is overheated.
The products shrank and fell off	The dough is soft and has a lot of leavening agents; high oven temperature, the product was removed from the oven early.
Products with empty bottoms	The dough is dense; the oven is not heated.
Products have few pores	Not enough leavening agents provided.

flour - 3 cups

butter (or margarine) - 100 g.

honey - 0.75 cup

egg - 1 pc.

soda - 0.5 teaspoon

Need to know in advance:

1. The dough can be prepared in two ways: raw and choux.

Gingerbread products made from raw dough dry quickly and become hard.

2. Real gingerbread cookies are prepared without chemical leavening agents (without the addition of soda, ammonium carbonate, etc.).

For additional loosening, it is always useful to add 4 tbsp per 1 kg of flour. spoons of vodka, cognac or rum.

3. Gingerbread cookies, as a rule, are made from first-grade wheat flour, but you can also use second-grade flour, and the gingerbread cookies will be slightly darker.

4. The amount of flour may vary depending on the thickness of the honey, the amount of fat and eggs.

5. Finely ground dry spices are added as aromatic substances. For the spice mixture, take 35% coriander, 30% cinnamon, 10% cardamom, 10% nutmeg and 5% each of cloves, star anise and allspice. You can change the spice ratio to taste. In addition, for aroma and taste, you can add another ½ cup of peeled, roasted chopped nuts, peanuts or almonds, candied fruit, lemon or orange zest and 5-10 g of vanilla sugar.

6. If the honey is candied, it is heated until the crystals dissolve. Honey should not be boiled, as this will cause it to lose its flavor. After heating, the honey is cooled to room temperature.

Cooking method:

Place honey in a bowl or pan, add pre-mashed butter, egg, spices and mix everything for 1-2 minutes, then add sifted flour mixed with soda and knead a not very stiff dough.

To prepare you will need:

flour - 3 cups

honey - 0.75 cup

eggs - 1 piece

soda - 0.5 teaspoon (or sour cream - 50-150 g without adding soda)

vodka, cognac or rum - 2 tbsp. spoons (useful to add for loosening)

chopped spices - 0.25 teaspoons

water (or kefir, yogurt, fermented baked milk) - 0.25 cups (when adding vodka, cognac or rum, the amount of water decreases accordingly)

The yield of baked products is 850 g.

Need to know in advance:

1. Gingerbread cookies made from choux pastry are much tastier than gingerbread cookies made from raw dough; they remain fresh and aromatic for a long time.

2. Real honey gingerbreads are prepared without chemical leavening agents (without adding soda, ammonium carbonate, etc.).

Preparing gingerbread dough only with honey (without sugar or molasses) with the addition of thick (fat content not less than 20%) sour cream makes the addition of baking powder unnecessary. In combination with honey, sour cream produces a slight fermentation, accompanied by slight gas formation, which moderately, almost imperceptibly, loosens the dough. It is this slight loosening that creates the special consistency of real gingerbread dough.

For additional loosening, it is always useful to add 4 tbsp per 1 kg of flour. spoons of vodka, rum or cognac.
Adding soda to such a dough will prevent “gingerbread” sour cream and honey fermentation.

3. Any gingerbread dough must be kneaded well until the products are evenly distributed in it, i.e. until complete homogeneity is achieved. Actively kneading the dough with your hands can take from 10-20 to 40 minutes.

The better the dough is kneaded, the softer and fluffier the gingerbread cookies will be.

4. You can add twice as many eggs to the dough or not at all, changing the dosage of water accordingly.

5. Gingerbread cookies, as a rule, are made from first-grade wheat flour, but you can also use second-grade flour, and the gingerbread cookies will be slightly darker.

6. The amount of flour may vary depending on the thickness of the syrup or honey, the amount of fat and eggs.

7. Finely ground dry spices are added as aromatic substances. For the spice mixture, take 35% coriander, 30% cinnamon, 10% cardamom, 10% nutmeg and 5% each of cloves, star anise and allspice. You can change the spice ratio to taste.

Cooking method:

Put honey in a saucepan, pour water and heat to 70-75°C, add half the sifted flour and finely ground spices and stir quickly with a wooden spatula or a strong spoon.

If, after pouring flour into hot syrup, you leave it unstirred for 1-2 minutes, lumps will form that will be difficult to stir.

The kneaded dough should be cooled thoroughly to room temperature ( so that no warmth is felt in it- this is important), only then add an egg, fat sour cream (from 100 to 300 g per 1 kg of flour - according to the consistency of the dough) or baking powder, remaining flour and knead until the dough has a soft consistency (depending on the amount dough, knead vigorously for 10-20-40 minutes).

You cannot knead very stiff dough, as it will not rise well and the finished product will turn out unsatisfactory in appearance and hard in taste. Very soft dough is difficult to shape; when baking, it spreads, and the gingerbread turns out shapeless and without a pattern.

The finished dough should be plastic, not very sticky to the table or hands, and easy to mold.

The kneaded dough should be immediately cut up and started baking, otherwise it will take longer and the products will turn out to be of poor quality.

Irina Kamshilina

Cooking for someone is much more pleasant than cooking for yourself))

Gingerbread owes its name to the spices that must be in this delicacy. In addition to them, the composition initially also included molasses with honey, but today sugar is more often used to add sweetness. What is the most delicious and simple gingerbread recipe? You can choose any one you like from the options below.

How to make gingerbread dough

In general, there are three types of gingerbread dough: sugar-honey, honey and sugar. The latter is made on the basis of burnt oil, i.e. burnt sugar. When honey is added it resembles caramel. Whey is also often used. In general, preparing gingerbread dough at home has two main options:

1. The base turns out to be hard, which is convenient for baking various gingerbread houses, snowflakes or stars.
2. A soft base that is mixed according to the recipe without adding eggs. Only white flour, honey, spices and sugar are used.

Gingerbread dough recipe

As for specific ways to prepare gingerbread dough, there are also two of them. These are raw and custard methods. For the latter, the flour is pre-brewed. The starch in its composition is partially gelatinized, as a result of which the gingerbread does not go stale for a long time. According to the raw method, the delicacies are loose in consistency, but viscous. You can choose a specific recipe for gingerbread dough from the ranking of the most popular ones.

Goat dough

• Cooking time: 1 hour 35 minutes.
• Number of servings: 10 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 359 kcal.
• Purpose: for a festive table / for tea.
• Cuisine: Russian.

Roes are those classic northern Christmas cookies. They are also prepared on the basis of gingerbread dough. The goat cookies themselves are often made in the shape of animals. They are believed to protect the house from evil spirits. Goat gingerbread dough is based on sugar and honey. As a composition for dry perfumes, i.e. flavoring additives, take a mixture of nutmeg with cinnamon and cloves.

Ingredients:

• water – 2 tbsp.;
• sugar – 2 tbsp;
• butter – 100 g;
• coarse rye or wheat flour – 1 kg;
• honey - 1 tbsp.;
• mixture of nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves - 1 teaspoon.

Cooking method:

1. Mix honey, water and sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. Then, stirring occasionally, cook over medium heat until the mixture turns brown.
3. When the mass has cooled to a warm state, add softened butter with spices and stir.
4. Add flour next. Stir again and let cool completely. It is better to leave for an hour in a cool place.
5. The base should become elastic and soft, then it can be rolled out and cut out into shapes.
6. Bake the goat dough for 10 minutes at 210 degrees. Decorate with a glaze of egg whites whipped with sugar.

Gingerbread dough

• Cooking time: 1 hour.
• Number of servings: 20 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 353 kcal.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

The recipe for honey and gingerbread is also a holiday recipe. In Western countries, such a delicacy is already considered a sweet symbol of Christmas. But you don’t have to wait for this bright holiday if you suddenly want delicious gingerbread. Find out how to prepare this delicacy. There is one win-win recipe where honey and ginger are mandatory.

Ingredients:

• egg yolk – 0.5 pcs.;
• salt – 0.25 tsp;
• flour – 175 g;
• butter – 65 g;
• powdered sugar - 75 g for glaze and 100 g for dough;
• ground ginger – 1 tsp;
• ground cinnamon – 1 tsp;
• maple syrup – 2 tbsp;
• soda – 0.25 tsp;
• egg white – 0.5 pcs.

Cooking method:

1. Sift flour with baking soda, ginger, salt and cinnamon into a bowl.
2. Add softened butter, powdered sugar and maple syrup to the resulting mixture.
3. Lightly beat the yolk and also add to the flour mixture, knead into a thick dough, and leave it in the refrigerator for half an hour.
4. Next, roll out the gingerbread base on baking paper in a layer about 5 mm thick.
5. Cut out shapes into shapes and place them on a baking sheet.
6. Bake gingerbread cookies at 180 degrees. This will take about 10-12 minutes.
7. Beat the egg whites until stiff, gradually adding powdered sugar.
8. Decorate the finished delicacy with protein glaze.

Gingerbread dough for a house

• Preparation time: 2 days 9 hours.
• Number of servings: 6 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 353 kcal.
• Purpose: for a festive table / for tea / for children / for the New Year.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

On New Year's holidays, the whole house is decorated with a variety of little things, including the festive table. The gingerbread house occupies a special place on it. This is a stunningly beautiful Christmas dessert. The dough for a gingerbread house is important, because thanks to it the structure of the dessert will not fall apart. You will find the process and technology of how to prepare the base in the recipe with photos.

Ingredients:

• ground cloves – 0.25 tsp;
• egg – 3 pcs.;
• egg white – 1 pc.;
• honey – 250 g;
• soda – 0.5 tsp;
• vodka – 50 ml;
• flour – 1 tbsp.;
• ground ginger – 0.25 tsp;
• powdered sugar – 180 g;
• cognac – 1 tsp;
• cinnamon – 0.25 tsp;
• butter – 200 g;
• ground cardamom – 0.25 tsp;
• sugar – 200 g;
• ground allspice – 0.25 tsp;
• lemon juice – 1 tsp.

Cooking method:

1. Combine all the spices in a small bowl and grind them well.
2. Sift the flour into another bowl, add soda to it.
3. Pour sugar into the spices, add honey and vodka. Add melted butter and eggs to this and beat everything with a fork until smooth.
4. Add the flour next, knead the mixture for about 15 minutes, wrap it in a bag and put it in the refrigerator overnight. Cling film will also work.
5. For now, get busy with the details of the gingerbread house - draw them on cardboard and cut them out.
6. In the morning, you can take the base out of the refrigerator and let it warm up at room temperature.
7. Next, roll out the layer 0.5 cm thick and place cardboard parts on it.
8. Using a sharp knife, cut out the elements of the gingerbread house along the outline.
9. Next, bake the products at a temperature of 180 degrees. This will take 10 minutes. Then leave them for a day under a towel.
10. Make the glaze - add lemon juice to the whites, beat them gradually, adding powdered sugar, let stand for 1 hour to thicken.
11. Lightly “file down” the edges of the parts with a grater for better fastening, and coat these places with glaze. She can decorate everything at her own discretion.
12. After the decorative layer has dried, assemble the gingerbread house. Let the structure stand for 1 day.

Honey gingerbread dough

• Preparation time: 1 day 3 hours.
• Number of servings: 10 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 336 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

Honey gingerbreads are no less fragrant. They also fit perfectly into the holiday menu. But besides the table, you can decorate a Christmas tree with them or give them to friends. The base for gingerbread decorations is prepared in advance. It should sit for about a day to be completely saturated with spices. This way the taste of the finished delicacy will be more intense, not to mention the aroma. The recipe for honey gingerbread dough will help you prepare it.

Ingredients:

• salt – 1 tsp;
• cinnamon – 1.5 tsp;
• lemon juice – 1 tbsp;
• water – 0.5 tbsp.;
• soda – 1 tsp;
• flour – 4.5 tbsp;
• baking powder – 1 tsp;
• egg white – 1 pc.;
• honey – 3.5 tbsp;
• granulated sugar - 1 tbsp.;
• powdered sugar – 1.5 tbsp;
• ground ginger – 0.5 tsp;
• cloves – 0.5 tsp;
• lemon juice – 1 tbsp.

Cooking method:

1. Mix honey with water and granulated sugar, put in a saucepan on fire, cook until the latter dissolves.
2. Next, add all the spices, add butter and remove from heat when it melts.
3. Sift the flour into a separate bowl along with baking powder and soda, add to the honey-sugar mixture.
4. Knead the base, roll it into a ball and leave it in the refrigerator overnight.
5. In the morning, roll out a thin layer, cut out the gingerbread cookies and place them on a baking sheet with parchment.
6. Bake for 5-6 minutes at 200 degrees.
7. Decorate the finished treats with a mixture of whites whipped with lemon juice and powder.

Gingerbread dough using choux method

• Number of servings: 5 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 336 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

Experienced chefs believe that real gingerbread is made only from choux pastry. Its preparation includes three main stages - brewing flour, cooling and direct kneading. For the first step, you need a saucepan without a lid. In it, molasses is heated with water and sugar, everything is mixed, then cooled to 70-75 degrees. The resulting syrup is used to brew the flour. It is important to mix it quickly so that the choux gingerbread dough does not turn out with lumps.

Ingredients:

• soda – 0.5 tsp;
• flour – 3 tbsp;
• egg – 2 pcs.;
• water – 0.5 tbsp.;
• granulated sugar – 3/4 cup;
• butter – 20 g;
• honey – 0.5 tbsp.;
• cardamom, cloves, dry mint, star anise, ginger powder - 0.5 tsp.

Cooking method:

1. Place water with honey and sugar in a saucepan, stir and heat over low heat to 70-75 degrees.
2. Next, sift half the flour, add spices, and quickly stir with a wooden spoon.
3. Then cool to room temperature, add the remaining flour, softened butter and eggs. Stir for about half an hour until smooth.
4. Roll out, cut out gingerbread cookies and bake at 200 degrees. This will take 7-10 minutes.

Raw gingerbread dough

• Cooking time: 40 minutes.
• Number of servings: 5 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 270 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

The raw method of preparing gingerbread dough differs from the custard dough in temperature. With the latter method, flour is poured into a hot syrup of sugar, honey and water. In the raw method, these ingredients are heated, but then allowed to cool. What is the basis then? Its consistency is loose and viscous at the same time. It is important to stir the mixture thoroughly so that all the sugar dissolves.

Ingredients:

• vanillin – 1/4 tsp;
• flour – 3 tbsp;
• butter – 50 g;
• soda – 0.5 tsp;
• water – 0.5 tbsp.;
• sugar – 1.25 tbsp.

Cooking method:

1. Mix sugar with vanilla, add water, put this mixture in the microwave for 7 minutes, then cool completely.
2. Next, add softened butter and mix.
3. Next add flour and soda, knead the base, then roll it out into a layer about 6 mm thick.
4. Using molds or a knife, cut out the products and place on a baking sheet.
5. Bake at 190-200 degrees. The optimal time is 12-14 minutes.

Gingerbread dough without honey - recipe

• Cooking time: 2 hours.
• Number of servings: 20 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 298 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

Gingerbread dough without honey is no less tasty and soft, and has a fragrant smell. It is made tender by kefir. It also contains soda, which is extinguished with vinegar. As a result, the base rises, and the gingerbread cookies themselves come out tall and fluffy. Cocoa powder gives the delicacy a light chocolate taste. Its proportions can be changed at your discretion.

Ingredients:

• egg – 1 pc.;
• flour – 6 tbsp;
• kefir – 1 tbsp.;
• cocoa powder – 1 tbsp;
• soda – 1 tsp;
• sugar – 1 tbsp. for the base, 0.5 tbsp. for glaze;
• vegetable oil – 1 tbsp.

Cooking method:

1. Pour the kefir into a deep bowl, add sugar and butter, and mix.
2. Next, add cocoa powder, yolk and soda slaked with vinegar.
3. Mix until smooth, and then add flour and knead into an elastic mass.
4. Next, form small balls, place them on an oiled baking sheet, place in the oven for 35 minutes and bake at 200 degrees.
5. Meanwhile, make the glaze - beat the egg white until stiff, gradually adding a glass of sugar.
6. Place the gingerbread cookies in a saucepan and pour in the protein mixture.

Shortbread gingerbread dough

• Cooking time: 1 hour.
• Number of servings: 15 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 245 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

Shortbread gingerbread dough can be classified as a quick recipe. The finished base is infused for only half an hour, and only then it can be rolled out. The baked goods are soft, tender and crumbly. The store-bought one cannot be compared with it. The basis of the delicacy is baking, i.e. a mixture of butter with flour, sugar and eggs. You can also use margarine, but the delicacy will have a slightly different taste.

Ingredients:

• vanilla sugar – 10 g;
• flour – 2 tbsp;
• granulated sugar – 4 tbsp;
• butter – 200 g;
• egg yolk – 2 pcs.

Cooking method:

1. Divide the eggs into whites and yolks, grind the latter with sugar.
2. Next, add softened butter and vanilla sugar.
3. Gradually add flour and knead the base. When ready, roll into a ball, wrap in cling film and place on the refrigerator shelf for half an hour.
4. After the specified time, roll out the gingerbread cookies using molds, bake for 15 minutes at 200 degrees.

Gingerbread dough - a simple recipe

• Number of servings: 12 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 278 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

Simple gingerbread dough is prepared without honey. Moreover, it is even suitable for creating structures in the form of houses or boxes. To do this, you just need to roll out a layer about 0.5 cm thick and cut out the necessary elements from it. Although just gingerbread cookies will also turn out very tasty. You can decorate them with the same protein glaze or make them with filling, for example, jam.

Ingredients:

• sugar – 250 g;
• salt – 1 pinch;
• soda – 0.5 tsp;
• water – 125 ml;
• egg – 3 pcs.;
• butter – 100 g;
• spice mixture – 30 g;
• flour – 500 g;
• orange – 0.5 pcs.

Cooking method:

1. Melt half the sugar in a small saucepan. Then add boiling water and cook for a couple more seconds.
2. Add the remaining sugar and continue dissolving it.
3. Next, add oil, spices and orange zest.
4. Sift the flour along with soda and salt, add 1 whole egg and 2 yolks.
5. Leave the kneaded base in the refrigerator for a day.

Sugar-honey gingerbread dough

• Preparation time: 1 day 1 hour.
• Number of servings: 20 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 345 kcal.
• Purpose: for a holiday table / for tea / for children.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty of preparation: medium.

Gingerbread dough with sugar and honey is valued for its thick consistency, bright taste and amazing aroma. Another advantage is that even without freezing it can be stored in the refrigerator for several months. This is very convenient, because you can knead more at once, so that you can treat yourself and your loved ones with a delicious treat at any time. And it’s also easy to make a gingerbread house from it.

Ingredients:

• egg – 3 pcs.;
• spices – 2 tsp;
• honey – 450 g;
• quicklime soda – 1 tsp;
• cocoa – 30 g;
• sugar – 450 g;
• flour – 1.3 kg;
• butter – 160 g.

Cooking method:

1. Fry a glass of sugar in a frying pan until dark brown.
2. Next, pour a glass of boiling water into it. Cook until the grains are completely dissolved.
3. Add remaining sugar. Stirring, cook until it dissolves.
4. Add honey and butter to the hot syrup, add spices and flour.
5. Next, beat in the eggs, salt and add cocoa and soda, mix until smooth.
6. Place the resulting mass on a surface sprinkled with flour and gradually knead into a thick, thick base.
7. Place in the refrigerator for a day.

Making gingerbread dough - the secrets of delicious baking

It is important not only to combine the products, but also to properly knead the gingerbread dough. If it is wet, the cut out figures will begin to spread during baking. A base that is too dry will simply crack in the oven. To avoid this, cook only with room temperature ingredients. You shouldn't beat the sugar and butter too much either. Baking will take 5-10 minutes, no more, otherwise the products will dry out.

Video: Dough for soft gingerbread

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The tradition of using honey to bake bread and flatbreads has been around for a long time. The ancient Egyptians smeared unleavened cakes with honey, and the famous gingerbread cookies cannot do without it. In Russian gingerbread, honey is contained in large quantities in the dough, and you will not find such a variety of baked goods as in Russia anywhere.

The first gingerbread baked in Rus' back in the 9th century had a fairly simple recipe and was made from a mixture of berry juice, rye flour and honey. The composition of modern gingerbread has become more complex and rich. Its basis is a mixture of honey and rye flour, yolks, butter and milk (in certain types of gingerbread). The following are flavoring and aromatic additives:

• Decoctions of mint and oregano;
• Nutmeg;
• Cinnamon;
• Cardamom;
• Ginger;
• Allspice;
• Carnation;
• Vanilla;
• Star anise.

The required components of the delicacy are white and black confectionery molasses and burnt sugar. Gingerbread cookies may contain berry filling, nuts, raisins, and other dried fruits.

The bulk of Russian gingerbread recipes involve meatless delicacies (without milk or eggs). The binding component of the dough is honey, sugar or molasses. All ingredients are mixed and the dough is kneaded until a homogeneous plastic mass is obtained. Gingerbread cookies are baked after the dough has “rested” for 15 minutes after kneading.

Thanks to the high honey content, the gingerbread cookies of those times were soft, crumbly, and aromatic. The products retained their freshness for a long time and did not become stale.

Honey dough for gingerbread is prepared using the custard and raw methods:

• For raw honey dough, mix honey with softened butter, add eggs and spices. The mass is whipped until smooth, after which baking powder and flour are added to it. The finished dough is quite stiff.
• Chouxed honey dough involves heating honey, sugar and water to 75 C. Some of the sifted flour along with spices is added to the resulting composition. When the dough has cooled, add eggs, remaining flour and baking powder. The kneaded dough turns out soft, as soon as it is ready, immediately begin baking gingerbread cookies.

Honey dough recipe

• Eggs - 2 pcs.;
• Soda - 0.5 tsp;
• Spices - 0.25 tsp;
• Flour - 3 cups;
• Honey - 1 glass;
• Oil - 50 g.

Mix oil, spices and eggs in a separate bowl, add honey. Mix or beat the mixture well. Add flour combined with soda, knead the dough. You need to knead the dough manually; the longer the kneading process lasts, the fluffier and softer the finished gingerbread cookies will be.

Russian honey dough recipe

• Egg - 3 pcs.;
• Ghee - 4 tbsp. spoons;
• Dry black currant - 6 tbsp. spoon;
• Soda - 0.25 teaspoon;
• Sugar for glaze;
• Natural honey - 0.75 cups;
• Nutmeg (ground) - 0.25 teaspoon;
• Flour - 2 cups;
• Ground ginger - 2 teaspoons;
• Ground walnuts - 0.5 cups;
• Ground cloves - 0.25 teaspoon;
• Brown sugar (optional) - 0.5 cups;
• Ground cinnamon - 0.5 teaspoon;
• Raisins - 10 tbsp. spoons

Dilute honey in a water bath until liquid, using a saucepan with thick walls. Add oil, soda and spices.

Pour the flour onto the table in a heap, make a depression by driving 3 egg yolks into it and adding the honey mixture. Mix everything carefully with your hands and knead the dough. Knead the dough thoroughly until a homogeneous soft mass is obtained. Add nuts, berries, raisins, knead the dough again and leave in the refrigerator for 2 hours, wrapped in cling film.

If you want to please your loved ones with delicious gingerbread cookies with natural filling, or surprise your business partners by presenting a fragrant delicacy as a gift, the Bogorodsky Gingerbread company offers a wide range of gingerbread products for every taste. . We work with wholesale and retail customers, and also invite dealers to cooperate.

Section “TABLE SERVING, DISH DECORATION, ETIQUETTE”
This section helps you decorate a variety of dishes with minimal effort.

Chapter

2nd page of the chapter

GINGERBREAD HOUSE (or gingerbread palace) is a cake made from gingerbread dough, which, in addition to its beautiful appearance, should also have an excellent taste befitting a cake. In shaping the proper taste of a gingerbread house, an important role is played by the composition and method of preparing gingerbread dough.

Making gingerbread is a truly creative process that provides the gingerbread master with the widest possibilities; It is not without reason that gingerbread technology has always been associated with many secrets and mysteries, which the masters carefully guarded from meticulous, malicious competitors.

A LYRICAL DIGRESSION WHICH IS NOT NECESSARY TO READ. Making gingerbread (like) can become either a beautiful, enjoyable home hobby, or a great thing for your independent business. Even a dozen good gingerbread houses sold a month will be a good help in the family budget. Nowadays in Russia we have good gingerbread cookies and gingerbread houses - these are rare and expensive things, although in many cases they are pleasant and very desirable as gifts for all sorts of anniversaries. And to make gingerbread houses, a kitchen table and a stove in your kitchen are enough. After all, it is not so much the number of houses that is important, but the quality of the gingerbread dough (so that it melts in your mouth), the care and originality of the design of the products.
By carefully and thoughtfully reading the contents of the pages of this section, as well as the pages about gingerbread that are linked here, you will be able to achieve considerable heights in your gingerbread creativity. The main thing is not to be afraid to try and experiment, using your taste and your creativity. Anyone can repeat a recipe, but it is the ability to create their own excellent and unique style that distinguishes great masters from all others. And to do this, you need to enthusiastically experiment and experiment, carefully evaluating (and certainly writing down) all your successes and failures, so as not to repeat mistakes twice.
And always remember - it is impossible to prepare good things from bad starting materials. Even the addition of one low-quality product will ruin everything. But the use of good starting products will surpass and leave any current food production behind. If it is not possible to surpass in volume, you need to focus on quality and corresponding prices.

Of course, this is a personal choice for everyone, but:

real gingerbread dough is prepared only with honey and sour cream

(no added sugar or molasses and no artificial raising agents);
- in all cases, to obtain a good gingerbread leavening, add 4 tbsp. spoons vodka, cognac or rum for 1 kg of flour;
- if you have to use sugar (sucrose) instead of honey, try to replace it in the same amount with natural sugar fructose(fruit sugar);

For real gingerbread, only butter is used

(but not margarine or vegetable oil);

real gingerbread dough should only be choux

(not raw);

gingerbread icing should only be real

(cooked with beaten egg whites, not water, and preferably not with sucrose, but with fructose).
It’s even better to glaze gingerbread cookies with honey boiled to a caramel state, mixed during boiling with a small addition (about 10%) of some acidifier (juice of cranberries or other sour berries and fruits, lemon, etc.; or you can add a little strong citric acid solution ) is an ancient traditional method, and it is the best.

Very good results are obtained by adding various ground dried berries to the gingerbread dough, as well as finely grated nuts.

- experiment with their additives, and your gingerbread cookies will surpass all others in taste!
You can also add finely chopped with a knife (or minced through a meat grinder) to the gingerbread dough. dried fruits(raisins, dried apricots, dates, prunes, etc.) - gingerbread cookies will be even tastier.
Surprisingly, low-grade flour gives better results in gingerbread.

Any gingerbread is flavored with herbs or ground spices. This is an important part of cooking.

DRY PERFUME- Russian confectionery designation for a set of spices used in confectionery production, especially gingerbread.
Dry perfumes include (according to Pokhlebkin): cinnamon, black pepper, allspice, star anise, cloves, anise, ginger, coriander, lemon and orange zest, calamus, nutmeg, nutmeg, vanilla.
Typical for a good gingerbread dough is a whole mixture of spices: cloves, cinnamon, ginger, anise, coriander, cardamom, nutmeg, a little black pepper, red pepper and salt - all crushed into powder.
Grinded bitter almonds, lemon and orange zest are also added.
Dry perfumes (flavoring and aromatic additives) are added at the dough kneading stage so that they properly saturate the gingerbread dough with their odors.
You can use the compositions suggested below or come up with your own signature - the main thing is that the prepared spices are pleasant to you in the finished and mixed form.
If any component seems out of place or you simply don’t like its smell, change it at your discretion.
- 35% coriander,
- 30% cinnamon,
- 10% cardamom,
- 10% nutmeg,
- 5% cloves,
- 5% star anise,
- 5% allspice
Typically, 1-2 tsp is added per 1 kg of gingerbread dough. mixture, be sure to grind it into the finest dust.
(how much of this mixture to put into the dough is decided according to your own taste, i.e. for the first time we just add a little, smell and taste the dough, for the next preparations we add according to our experience)
- as additional elements, you can add grated lemon zest, orange zest, fried and then grated nuts (for example, walnuts), and a little vanilla to the gingerbread dough.
All components must be thoroughly ground into dust and kneaded into the dough when it is still quite liquid.
Good results are achieved by adding 1-2 tbsp. spoons of good cognac or rum per 1 kg of flour. Or, according to taste, part of the water can be replaced with good fortified wine (sherry, port, muscat, tokay, various dessert wines).
There are a lot of compositions of dry gingerbread perfumes - gingerbread masters have always kept them a great secret. For example, once in Tula various private bakeries made wonderful gingerbread cookies from many different types of gingerbread dough. After the hardships of the revolution and the Second World War, all gingerbread secrets were lost, and only one single recipe for Tula gingerbread was reliably restored, all other recipes were irretrievably lost. A lot had to be reinvented. So don't be afraid to experiment and create your own excellent gingerbread recipes.
SOME MORE OPTIONS FOR GINGERBERRY DRY PERFUME
These and other versions of gingerbread mixtures are used mainly in the confectionery industry, where 1-2 teaspoons of powder are used per 1 kg of dough.
1st OPTION (in teaspoons):
- cinnamon - 4,
- star anise - 2,
- nutmeg - 1,
- ginger - 1,
- Jamaican pepper - 1,
- orange zest - 1,
- nutmeg color - 1/2,
- anise - 1/2,
- black pepper - 1/2.
2nd OPTION (in teaspoons):
- star anise - 3,
- anise - 2,
- cinnamon - 2,
- ginger - 1,
- lemon zest - 1,
- cloves - 1/2,
- nutmeg - 1/2,
- cardamom - 1/2.
3rd OPTION (in teaspoons):
- cinnamon - 4,
- star anise - 2,
- nutmeg - 1,
- ginger - 1,
- cardamom - 1/2,
- cloves - 1/2,
- lemon zest - 1/2,
- orange zest - 1/2,
- orange zest - 1/2,
- black pepper - 1/2,
- Jamaican pepper - 1/2.
NOTE.
Confectionery spice mixtures are used in many types of baked goods.
They usually include spices such as anise ( cookies, gingerbread, gingerbread); star anise ( Easter cakes, cookies, muffins, gingerbreads); vanilla ( all baked goods, cream, cakes, curd products); carnation ( gingerbread); oregano ( pizza); ginger ( cookies, gingerbreads, sweets, marmalade, jelly; an obligatory component of “dry perfume”); cardamom ( Easter cakes, cookies, honey cakes, gingerbread, yeast dough pies); coriander ( bread, cookies, gingerbread, gingerbread); cinnamon ( cookies, rolls, biscuits, gingerbreads, gingerbread); lemon balm ( cakes, pastries); nutmeg mixed with cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, star anise ( gingerbread, gingerbread, cookies); black pepper ( gingerbread); allspice or Jamaican pepper ( gingerbread; included in “dry perfumes”); cumin ( bread, cookies, gingerbread, buns, bagels, cheese sticks, cheese and feta cheese cookies); saffron (as flavoring and yellow coloring) for Easter cakes, muffins, rum baba).
Modern confectionery mixtures in Russia, as in European countries, have many options, fairly stable recipes and usually consist of 7-10 spices.

Baking powder.

Good results are obtained by replacing baking soda with ammonium carbonate or a 1:1 mixture of soda and ammonium (baking powder). Soda slightly changes the taste of the dough and does not change its color; ammonium does not give the dough any flavor, but gives the eggs included in the dough a slightly greenish color (this is completely harmless, but it is not noticeable in tinted dough).

If you couldn’t find rye flour or it’s not included in the recipe, you can tint the dough:
- burnt sugar (burnt sugar) - burnt sugar is added in the form of a thick syrup along with spices into the still liquid dough;
- grated chocolate or cocoa powder;
- various dry berries crushed into a fine powder (tinting with berries is the best option).
All coloring additives are added at the beginning of kneading the dough.

Gingerbread cookies, like pies, can be made with a thick sweet filling or layers of it can be layered after baking.

. In addition to thick jam or marmalade - see section and page, you can also layer it with chocolate melted in a water bath.
If the jam is runny, it should be further boiled with constant stirring (so as not to burn) until the desired thickness.
Filling for gingerbread(not to be confused with a layer) can be thick fruit jam, marmalade, jam well strained from the liquid, as well as marzipan or nuts minced, thoroughly mixed into a thick mass with egg whites whipped with sugar. It is useful to add a small amount of good cognac to the filling.
The filling is placed into the products before baking in a thin, even layer and the edges of the dough are carefully pinched until completely sealed.
When making printed gingerbread cookies with filling, a layer of dough is placed in a greased gingerbread mold, then the filling is applied (make sure that the filling does not get on the edges), covered with a second layer of dough and everything is carefully pressed into the mold for a good seal of the relief (when making large gingerbreads, a press is used ). Then the mold is tipped over, the gingerbread is released and sent for baking.

When baking parts for gingerbread houses, filling is usually not used. For large gingerbread houses, the assembly parts can be sandwiched by gluing them from 2 or more baked thin layers (6-8 mm thick), then trim the edges of the glued part with a knife (chop the resulting scraps and use them for decoration).

Gingerbread products should be baked well, but should not be baked for a long time, otherwise their taste will deteriorate.

- gingerbread dough is one of the fastest baked doughs.

Gingerbread products should be stored in a cool, well-closed place.

It is best to store gingerbread cookies wrapped in paper in a wooden or metal box in which several slices of apple are placed - then they do not go stale for a long time and retain their taste and aroma well.
ADVICE. If the gingerbreads are dry, you can grate them, mix them with a mixture of condensed milk and butter softened at room temperature (1:1 by volume) and prepare delicious Potato cakes (it is advisable to add a little cognac to the mixture).

You can't make good gingerbread without honey.

Be sure to read the very useful page in the section. Also in this section, see page.
For recipes for various Russian gingerbread cookies, see the page in the section.

Below on this page are given various recipes for gingerbread dough, the features of its preparation, as well as recipes for sugar glazes - to choose from according to taste.

Gingerbread houses are a wonderful decoration for any dessert table.

GINGERBERRY DOUGH

Gingerbread products include gingerbread cookies and gingerbread cookies. The word “gingerbread” comes from the word “spices,” the presence of which in these products is their characteristic feature.
Gingerbread is one of the oldest Russian delicacies. Once upon a time they were prepared only with honey, since sugar brought from distant countries was very expensive.
Currently, gingerbread is prepared both with sugar alone and with a mixture of it with honey and molasses.
In the old days, gingerbread cookies were widespread at almost all folk festivals; they were made in different sizes, given all sorts of shapes and decorated with intricate designs.

Gingerbread dough, compared to other types of dough, is the easiest to prepare and very quick to bake.

Before choosing gingerbread dough and getting acquainted with its very simple preparation (this is below on this page), you need to choose the idea of ​​​​your future gingerbread building - a small house or a large luxurious palace, an impregnable castle or something completely fantastic.
Gingerbread cookies allow you to build anything you want.
Your creative imagination is unlimited!

You can make a very simple gingerbread house with minimal decorations, glued together with icing sugar from several gingerbread slices:

You can decorate your house more richly. For example, like this:

Or like this:

Or build a small village out of houses:

Even the simplest house can easily make candy or marmalade windows that glow comfortably in the night darkness:

You can make a small edible composition based on the house. Like this:

or this more complicated one:

You can make a gingerbread copy of your personal home:

and decorate a copy of your home with figurines made from gingerbread, from protein dough, from icing (sugar-protein mass) and confectionery mastic.
Confectionery decorations will be discussed further on page 4 of the section, but to become a real gingerbread builder, this section must be read in order from its first page to the last.

You can build an entire palace, creating a festive background for it:

Or make a gingerbread mountain:

You can build a castle with turrets - small or larger:

And if you are expecting a lot of guests, build a whole gingerbread city with palaces, skyscrapers and a toy train rolling around:

To make the windows of the building glow in the dark, make them from marmalade or candies, or simply cut holes in the walls.
Place a small flashlight inside the house, loosely wrapped in a thin cloth - white or pink, or yellow, or orange for light scattering:

From the designed gingerbread parts you can build a structure with a complex structure:

Or you can create something incomprehensibly fantastic:

Haunted House for Halloween:

Gingerbread house for Saint's Day Valentina. It can be presented as an original Valentine's card:

"Gifts of the Magi" Gingerbread nativity scene for Christmas:

You can create gingerbread dough not only at home. Gingerbread Train:

Children's impressions of gingerbread houses always exceed all expectations:

A gift gingerbread house will always make any child happy:

A gingerbread house as a gift will delight every adult.
Give your oligarch friend a gilded gingerbread house on a gold stand with diamond pendants for his name day:

And if you’re short on time, you can quickly make something very simple, but also very tasty, from gingerbread dough:

We bake on Saturdays! The simplest and most delicious homemade gingerbreads:

Roll out a layer of gingerbread dough 7-8 mm thick on a baking sheet, bake for 8-10 minutes.
Once ready, cut the hot layer into two equal parts with a sharp knife.
Place jam or strained jam on one half of the hot layer, cover with the other half of the layer and, while hot, cut into squares, rectangles, triangles, diamonds (baked gingerbread dough becomes crumbly after cooling).
Let cool and serve fresh fragrant gingerbreads to the table.
NOTE. It is not advisable to store any gingerbread for more than one week.

Cooking different types
gingerbread dough
(any gingerbread dough is very easy to prepare)

Gingerbread dough recipe

Products and units of measurement	Number of products for dough
	honey		sugar		honey-sugar
Flour, tea glasses (250 ml)
Granulated sugar (preferably fructose), tea glasses			1,25		0,75
Honey, tea glasses
Butter (or margarine), g
Eggs, pcs.
Soda, teaspoons (or for honey dough sour cream - 50-150 g without adding soda) In all cases, for good loosening, it is very useful to add 2 tbsp. spoons of vodka, cognac, rum.
Chopped spices, teaspoons
Water (or kefir, yogurt, fermented baked milk), tea glasses (when adding vodka, cognac or rum, the amount of water decreases accordingly)
Yield of baked product, g	850	850	950	1000	950	950

Depending on the sugar and honey content, the main gingerbread dough has three varieties: honey dough, sugar(without honey) and honey-sugar.

The dough can be prepared in two ways: raw And custard.

Gingerbread products made from raw dough dry quickly and become hard.

Gingerbread cookies made from choux pastry are much tastier and remain fresh and aromatic for a long time.

.

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR HONEY TEST:
Real gingerbread is made without chemical leavening agents.(without the addition of soda, ammonium carbonate, etc.).
Preparing gingerbread dough only on honey(without sugar or molasses) with added after brewing and cooling the dough thick (fat content not lower than 20%) sour cream 100-300 g per 1 kg of flour (the amount of sour cream is selected according to the resulting dough consistency) makes the addition of baking powder unnecessary.
In combination with honey, sour cream produces a slight fermentation, accompanied by slight gas formation, which moderately, almost imperceptibly, loosens the dough. It is this slight loosening that creates the special consistency of real gingerbread dough.
For additional loosening, it is always useful to add 4 tbsp per 1 kg of flour. spoons of vodka or cognac, rum.
Adding soda to such a dough will prevent “gingerbread” sour cream and honey fermentation.

The main thing is that any gingerbread dough should be thoroughly kneaded until the products are evenly distributed in it, i.e. until complete homogeneity is achieved.
Actively kneading the dough with your hands can take from 10-20 to 40 minutes.
The better the dough is kneaded, the softer and fluffier the gingerbread cookies will be.

(This is the only way to make real gingerbread!)

Put honey, sugar in a saucepan, pour in water and heat to 70-75°C, add half the sifted flour and finely ground spices and mix quickly with a wooden spatula or a strong spoon.

If, after pouring flour into hot syrup, you leave it unstirred for 1-2 minutes, lumps will form that will be difficult to stir.

The kneaded dough should be thoroughly cooled to room temperature (so that no warmth is felt in it! - this is important), only then add eggs, full-fat sour cream (from 100 to 300 g per 1 kg of flour - according to the consistency of the dough) or baking powder, leftover flour and knead until the dough has a soft consistency (depending on the amount of dough, knead vigorously for 10-20-40 minutes).

The finished dough should be plastic, not very sticky to the table or hands, and easy to mold.

The kneaded dough should be immediately cut up and started baking, otherwise it will take longer and the products will turn out to be of poor quality.

Preparation of dough using the raw (simplified) method
(this method is not recommended, although it is often used)

Place honey in a bowl or pan, add pre-mashed butter, eggs, spices and mix everything for 1-2 minutes, then add sifted flour mixed with soda and knead a not very stiff dough.

If the honey is sugared, it is heated until the crystals dissolve. Honey should not be boiled, as this will cause it to lose its flavor. After heating, the honey is cooled to room temperature and the dough is kneaded as described above.

When making sugar gingerbread, bring sugar and water to a boil, skim off the foam with a slotted spoon, add butter to the syrup, stir and cool the syrup to room temperature. If the syrup turns out to be liquid, boil it until it is tested on a thick thread. Add spices, eggs, and then flour mixed with soda to the cold syrup, stirring.

About permissible changes in the recipe

Cow butter can, but is highly undesirable, be replaced with margarine or vegetable oil, since it is not very sensitive in gingerbread. You can prepare the dough with double the amount of fat (including by adding fatty sour cream) or without fat. Gingerbread without fat will, of course, taste worse than with fat.

You can also add twice as many eggs to the dough or not at all, changing the dosage of water accordingly.

If a recipe calls for sugar (sucrose), it is always advisable to replace it with an equal amount of fructose (fruit sugar).

Gingerbread cookies, as a rule, are made from first-grade wheat flour, but you can also use second-grade flour, and the gingerbread will be slightly darker. For certain types of gingerbread, premium flour is desirable, as indicated in the corresponding recipes; You can make gingerbread from pekled rye flour or from a mixture of wheat (2 cups) and rye (1 cup).

The amount of flour may vary depending on the thickness of the syrup or honey, the amount of fat and eggs.

You cannot knead very stiff dough, as it will not rise well and the finished products will turn out unsatisfactory in appearance and hard in taste. Very soft dough is difficult to shape; when baking, it spreads, and the gingerbread turns out shapeless and without a pattern.

The finished dough should be plastic, not very sticky to the table or hands, and easy to mold. Baking soda can be replaced with ammonium carbonate, but it is best to take the same amount of soda and ammonium, this will weaken the taste of alkali and the smell of ammonia in the finished gingerbread.

Dough flavoring and coloring

Gingerbread cookies prepared with honey have a strong aroma of honey, so they should be lightly flavored. Gingerbread without honey needs to be flavored much more. Finely ground dry spices are added as aromatic substances. For the spice mixture, take 35% coriander, 30% cinnamon, 10% cardamom, 10% nutmeg and 5% each of cloves, star anise and allspice. You can change the spice ratio to taste. In addition, for aroma and taste, you can add another 1/2 cup of peeled, roasted chopped nuts, peanuts or almonds, candied fruit, lemon or orange zest and 5-10 g of vanilla sugar.

If gingerbread is made from dark varieties of honey and dark varieties of flour, then you should not tint the dough. Gingerbread cookies made with sugar or from light varieties of flour and honey should be tinted with burnt sugar (burnt sugar) until light brown.
The burner is added to the syrup at the beginning of the batch.

It’s even better to tint the dough by adding various dry berries ground into powder at the beginning of kneading (choose berries according to taste and availability).

You can tint the dough by adding cocoa powder or dark dark chocolate (65% cocoa or higher) slightly heated in a water bath until softened.

Cutting and baking gingerbread dough

The finished dough is placed on a flat board or table. To prevent it from sticking to your hands and to the board, sprinkle the board and dough with flour. Form the dough into a brick shape with your hands, place it on a floured board, sprinkle flour on top and roll it out with a rolling pin into an even layer 5-8 mm thick. When making a gingerbread, the prepared layer, 10-12 mm thick, can be rolled onto a rolling pin and placed on a baking sheet.

If gingerbread or shortcakes are prepared, then the finished layer of dough is cut with a knife or using notches into all kinds of figures. The weight of one gingerbread, depending on the size of the notch, can range from 20 to 40 g. Certain varieties of gingerbread, for example Batony, Tula, can weigh up to 100 g.

Gingerbreads are gingerbread products that differ from piece gingerbreads in their large size. The gingerbread is usually a large baked layer with or without filling and decorations, which is cut into pieces when finished.

For baking, hard gingerbread dough can be placed on a clean, washed baking sheet without grease, and soft dough can be placed on a greased baking sheet, otherwise it will stick to the baking sheet and the products will turn out with large bubbles and torn bottoms.

Before baking gingerbread, sweep away excess flour and brush with egg or, better yet, egg yolks. To prevent the gingerbreads from moving when greased, you need to spray the baking sheet with water before placing them.

To speed up the work, brush the entire layer of dough with egg and, if desired, make various designs with a fork or pastry comb; You can also sprinkle the layer greased with egg with peeled, unroasted chopped nuts, almonds, peanuts, and when the egg grease dries, divide the layer with a knife or using grooves into different figures and transfer to a baking sheet.

Small and thin gingerbreads are baked at a temperature of 220-240°C for 8-15 minutes, and large products and gingerbreads - at a temperature of 180-220°C.

Immediately after baking, wipe the surface of the gingerbread with a soft cloth or brush. This increases the shine of the products.

Glazing of gingerbread

After baking and cooling the gingerbread, they are covered with a thin layer of glaze (boiled sugar syrup or honey), which preserves the aroma and freshness of the gingerbread and gives it a more beautiful appearance and pleasant taste.

Glazes for gingerbread
and other confectionery products

Glazes are used to cover the surfaces of flour confectionery products. Apply the glaze to the products with a brush, and then dry them in a low-heat oven (at 80-100°).
Products can be glazed in two ways: simplified or real glaze.
Products with real glaze (with egg whites) look prettier and taste better.

Protein glaze (real glaze)
(frosting with beaten egg whites is real glaze)

:
- 1 glass of granulated sugar,
- 2 egg whites,
- 1 glass of water,

Boil sugar and water until tested on a soft ball. Beat the whites into a thick foam. Gradually (with continuous whisking) pour the resulting thick hot syrup in a thin stream into the previously well-beaten whites, without stopping beating the mass.
Then put the mixer (or whisk) aside, add aromatic substances and food colors to color the glaze in the desired color and, stirring with a spatula, heat to 60-65°.
After this, glaze the product with a brush and then dry it.
The glaze will be even better and tastier if in this recipe instead of sugar syrup you use honey boiled to the desired thickness.
Gingerbread cookies with real glaze look more beautiful, retain their freshness better and taste more pleasant.

Powdered sugar icing
(if the glaze is prepared without egg whites, this is simplified glaze)

Ingredients for 200 g glaze :
- 1 glass of powdered sugar,
- 3 tbsp. spoons of water,
- aromatic substances and food colors.

Sift the finest powdered sugar through a sieve, pour into a saucepan, pour in warm water and add aromatics. Heat the glaze, stirring with a spatula, to 40°. If the glaze is too thick, add water, and if liquid, add powdered sugar.
The glaze can be painted any color.
To speed up drying and improve the quality of the glaze, instead of water, add 3 egg whites to the glaze(i.e. replace 1 protein for every 1 tablespoon of water in the recipe).

Chocolate glaze

Ingredients for 270 g glaze :
- 1 glass of granulated sugar,
- 1 teaspoon cocoa powder,
- 1/2 glass of water.

Mix sugar with water and cook until it tastes like a thick thread.
Then add cocoa powder, cool the glaze to 60-80°C and, to cause the sugar to crystallize, periodically dip a spatula or spoon into the glaze and rub it on the edges of the pan.
Friction makes the glaze lighter and a thin shiny crust forms on its surface, which indicates the readiness of the glaze.

NOTE:
- All explanations for recipes for cooking syrups, glazes, as well as recipes for preparing the components needed for decorating gingerbread houses and compositions with gingerbread houses- various simple and flavored LIPSTICKS, JELLY on gelatin and agar - see page section.
- For the preparation of fruit puree, jam, marmalade for glazing products, jams from fruits and berries, jam for decorating confectionery, candied fruits - see page .
- About decorating confectionery products, about making drawing masses (protein, fruit and flour), decorations from jelly, chocolate, marzipan, caramel, toppings for confectionery, streusel - see page .

First put 1/2 cup of flour (after mixing all the ingredients, add flour until the desired dough consistency is obtained),
- 1/2 to 2 cups thick apricot jam (amount to taste)
- 1/2 cup honey,
- 1/2 cup crushed candied orange peel,
- 50 g softened butter,
- 1 teaspoon of ground dried orange peel (or 2 teaspoons of grated fresh),
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda,
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice,
- 1 tbsp. a spoonful of cognac, rum or vodka (this is desirable, but not necessary).
Knead everything well for 20-30 minutes. Add flour until you obtain a viscous, plastic dough consistency that almost does not stick to the table and hands.

White sugar icing

1 protein
- 1/2 cup of powdered sugar.
Pour the egg white into a small bowl and, continuously whisking it, add powdered sugar (it should be freshly ground), sifting through a strainer.
The consistency of the finished glaze should be quite thick and at the same time fluid.
To improve the taste, add a few drops of lemon juice.

Strawberry, cranberry, raspberry glaze

200 g powdered sugar,
- 3-4 tablespoons of strawberry, raspberry, cranberry, viburnum or red currant juice,
- 1-2 spoons of hot water.
Sift the powdered sugar through a strainer into a small bowl, add berry juice and hot water and rub thoroughly with a wooden spoon until a smooth, shiny mass is obtained.
To color it pink, gradually add berry juice.

Sea buckthorn glaze

200 g powdered sugar,
- 1 protein,
- 3-4 tablespoons of sea buckthorn syrup.
Beat the egg white with a whisk, gradually, 1 teaspoon at a time, adding powdered sugar.
When the mass becomes fluffy and white, you also need to gradually add sea buckthorn syrup to it.
Even a small addition of this syrup gives the glaze a wonderful delicate color, taste and aroma.
NOTE. If you replace sea buckthorn syrup with mint syrup, you will get a mint glaze that has a delicate light green color and a mint aroma.

Cocoa glaze

100 g powdered sugar,
- 3 teaspoons cocoa powder,
- 2-3 tablespoons of hot water.
Mix powdered sugar with cocoa powder, add hot water and grind well.

:
400 g wheat flour
100 g rye flour
2 fresh yolks
0.75-1 glass of milk or curdled milk
125 g sour cream
500 g honey
1 tbsp. spoon of burnt sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 capsules cardamom
4 buds of cloves
0.5 tsp star anise
1 hour spoon of lemon zest
0.5 tsp soda

Boil the honey in a saucepan over low heat until red hot, removing the foam, then brew some of it into rye flour and mix it with the rest of the honey, cool until lukewarm and beat until white.
Grind the buttermilk with the yolks, add milk and knead the wheat flour into the egg-milk mixture, after mixing it and mixing it with the powdered spices.
Combine the honey-rye mixture with sour cream and add it to the dough, whisking it thoroughly. Place the finished dough in a greased form (or baking sheet) in a layer of 1-2 cm and bake over low heat. Cut the finished gingerbread plate into squares.
Usually these gingerbread cookies are not glazed and are served immediately.
When used to build a gingerbread house, these gingerbread cookies should be glazed for longer preservation.

:
4 cups dry raspberries
3 cups honey
1-1.5 cups rye crackers, ground into powder
2-3 tbsp. spoons of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla sugar

Pour 3 cups of dry raspberries into 4 cups of boiling water and cook over low heat until boiling and completely soft, then squeeze out 3 cups of thick juice.
Mix the juice with honey and boil.
Grind well-dried crackers into powder and mix it with dry raspberry powder, prepared from the remaining 1 cup of dry raspberries, and then combine this mixture with the honey-raspberry mixture into a thick dough, which is placed in an enamel bowl (low saucepan, basin) and placed in boiling water to heat until the dry raspberries are boiled and the cracker mass is completely swollen.
Cut the dough thus boiled into flat cakes and dry them on a sheet either in a preheated but turned off oven, or on top of the stove in which the oven is lit.
Roll the dried gingerbreads in powdered sugar mixed with vanilla sugar or vanillin.

:
3-4 cups crushed rye crackers (powdered rusks) or rye crackers half with butter - cookie crumbs
2-3 cups jam syrup (currant, cranberry, lingonberry) or a mixture of currant and raspberry syrup
2-4 tbsp. spoons of honey
1 teaspoon cinnamon
0.5 tsp star anise
0.5 tsp ginger
3 clove buds
1 pinch nutmeg
1-0.5 teaspoons of ammonium or baking powder
2 fresh yolks
1 tbsp. spoon of flour

Mix the jam syrup and honey and heat until it comes to a boil, add ground spices and knead this mixture with rye breadcrumbs into a stiff dough.
Knead it well, spread it in a 1 cm layer on a pastry sheet and dry it on the stove, just like raspberry gingerbread.
Then cut into a notch while warm and glaze.

Add raisins, washed in hot water and cut in half, to the dough for “Black gingerbread” (see above).
Roll out the dough into a rope, cut into pieces, roll them into balls the size of a walnut and place them tightly on a sheet, framing them with a rope of dough every 10-20 pieces (i.e., combining them into a block - in one line or in a round group).
After baking, cover these blocks with glaze.

:
700 g flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
4 tablespoons ground ginger
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
300 g butter, cut into pieces
350 g granulated sugar
4 tablespoons light syrup
2 eggs

In a large container (or in a saucepan), mix flour, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, and cloves.
Add softened butter and chop it into crumbs along with a mixture of flour and spices.
Add sugar, syrup and eggs. If the dough does not bind, add 1-2 teaspoons of water.
Lightly flour a work surface, place the dough on it and knead until smooth.
Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
You can make gingerbread houses from this dough.

Gingerbread

Soft, fragrant gingerbread has long been a symbol of Christmas. But in fact, this is a delicious and original gift at any time of the year and for the whole family. Whether it's a whole gingerbread castle or small gingerbread cookies wrapped in pretty paper or tied with a ribbon, they make a very nice gift and treat.

Ginger, one of the oldest spices, has been traded from country to country for many centuries. It is now used in all sorts of recipes, including sweet baked goods and cookies. Ornately decorated holiday houses, spicy fruit cakes, fragrant sweet breads with or without yeast, luscious cakes and, of course, cookies - they are all called “gingerbread”.

For their preparation, ground dried ginger root, sold in powder, is usually used, but pieces of candied ginger are also sometimes added in chopped form to dough or cream.

Baking with gingerbread is an art that has been particularly developed in the last century, since gingerbread gained popularity in Europe. In Medieval Europe, where fairs were common, gingerbread was sold in various shapes, often gilded and decorated with spices. The fairs became known as "Ginger Fairs" and their participants bought gingerbread as a treat from the fair.

Nuremberg (Nuremberg) in Germany is known as the "Gingerbread Capital of the World" due to its central location on the northern trade routes. It was here that the art of making gingerbread cookies of exquisite shapes and ornaments appeared. Here, kings and queens, windmills, letters, hearts and animals were made from gingerbread dough. When the gingerbread cookies were taken out of the mold, they were often painted with gold paint and sold at markets and fairs.

The German fairy tale about, in which children discovered a house built entirely from gingerbread dough, candies and sweet pies, began the tradition of creating various buildings from gingerbread dough. These fairy-tale houses decorated with powdered snow make an amazing Christmas gift for friends.

Nowadays, for many, gingerbread is associated with Christmas, but in fact it is a delicious and original gift at any time of the year - a treat for the whole family. Whether it's a whole castle or gingerbread cookies wrapped in pretty paper or a box and tied with a ribbon, it's a very nice gift.

WORKING WITH GINGER DOUGH

There are a few rules to remember when working with ginger dough for the first time. It may be easier for you to roll out the dough into a large sheet and cut it out on a baking sheet with a cookie cutter so that the products do not become distorted when you transfer them from the table to the baking sheet. Unless the recipe says otherwise, leave some space on the baking sheet between the gingerbread cookies to allow them to rise.

Gingerbread cookies, unlike other cookies, are not dense and crispy when they come out of the oven. So it's very hard to tell if it's done, especially since baking times vary so much depending on the oven. As a rule, if the gingerbread has risen slightly and browned around the edges, it is ready. Leave it on the baking sheet for a few minutes, during which time it will begin to crisp up (if the gingerbread is still soft, return it to the oven for a few minutes). It is very common for gingerbread to lose its shape when baking, but this can be easily corrected by trimming it properly after baking.

Large, flat pieces of gingerbread must be refrigerated and stored on a flat surface, otherwise their shape will be distorted. It may be more convenient to bake the gingerbread the day before decorating. If you do this, let it cool completely and then wrap in parchment or plastic wrap.

:
- Flour - 1 heaped glass
- butter - 100 g
- sugar - 1/2 tbsp.
- egg - 1 pc.
- baking powder - 1.5 tsp.
- cocoa -1 tsp.
- ground ginger - 1 tsp.
- ground cinnamon - 1/2 tsp.
- salt - a pinch
For the glaze:
- egg white - 1 pc.
- powdered sugar - 1/2 cup
- lemon juice - 1 tbsp. l.

Sift flour, baking powder, cocoa, ginger, cinnamon through a sieve.
Add the butter crushed with a knife into crumbs.
Add sugar, add egg, quickly knead the dough. Roll into a ball, wrap in cling film, and place in the refrigerator for 1.5-2 hours.
Roll out the chilled dough on a floured table into a layer 7-8 mm thick. Apply paper stencils (or use shaped cutters) and cut out the gingerbread cookies.
Place the gingerbread cookies on a floured baking sheet. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 180°C.
Beat the cooled egg whites with a mixer into a stable foam. Continuing to beat, add powdered sugar and lemon juice in small portions. Beat for another 15-20 seconds.
If desired, you can add food coloring to the glaze.
Decorate the gingerbread cookies with glaze and let the glaze dry.

Perhaps the best type of gingerbread is honey gingerbread according to an ancient Russian recipe (honey bread)


Sifted flour + up to 50% fresh (liquid) honey + some raisins. Because good honey is tasty on its own; no spices are added to honey bread or they are added in minimal quantities so as not to overwhelm the taste of honey. If the honey is candied, it is first liquefied in a water bath. Honey is added to flour until a plastic mass is obtained. You can heat the honey to a temperature of about 90-100 degrees. C (the honey does not boil) and brew half of the flour with it while vigorously stirring, then add the rest of the flour - the gingerbreads will be custard-like, even more tasty and shelf-stable. Then knead the mass thoroughly with your hands for 20-30 minutes, form small gingerbread cookies and immediately (without delay!) bake at a temperature of 220-230 degrees. From about 10-12 minutes. If you let the dough sit for at least a little while before baking, the dough will “tighten” and the products will turn out tough. The finished gingerbreads are glazed with honey boiled over a fire - the gingerbreads are immersed in hot glaze, then dried on a wire rack until the glaze hardens. A layer of glaze protects the gingerbread from drying out quickly and gives it a more attractive appearance.
See page .
In former times, honey bread was prepared as a well-preserved, high-calorie and always ready-to-eat food on a long journey, on a military campaign, and was stored in lari (wooden boxes made of linden or birch). If the honey bread dried out from being stored for a long time during the campaign, it was crushed and brewed with boiling water.

Industrial preparation of gingerbread
Mixture of spices - "bouquet" ("dry perfume")
Baking gingerbread
Types of marriage and causes

Gingerbread dough products come in a variety of shapes and contain large amounts of sugar and various spices, which give them a special aroma.

The mixture of spices added to the gingerbread dough is called "bouquet" or "dry perfume".
It consists (in%):
cinnamon 60, cloves 12, allspice 12, black pepper 4, cardamom 4, ginger 8.
In addition to gingerbread cookies, gingerbread cookies are baked from the same dough, sandwiched with fruit filling or jam.

Sometimes, instead of sugar, artificial honey or invert syrup is added to the dough, and part of the wheat flour (50%) is replaced with rye flour. This improves the quality of gingerbread and reduces their shrinkage during long-term storage due to the increased hygroscopicity of these products.

Flour for the dough should have a low gluten content (26-28%). Loosen the dough with chemical leavening agents (soda).

The dough is prepared in two ways: raw and choux. With the custard method, part of the flour is boiled before kneading the dough. The peculiarities of the recipe and preparation of gingerbreads contribute to the fact that many types of them can be preserved for a long time without becoming stale.

Gingerbread dough contains honey and molasses, which delay the staling process. In addition, brewing flour and invert syrup greatly delay the staling process.
To prepare gingerbread dough you need the following products:
Flour 1 kg, sugar 300 g, water 200 ml, honey 100 g, eggs 2 pcs., butter or margarine 150 g, salt 4 g, dry spices 5 g, soda 1 g.

Preparation of dough using the raw method

The dough prepared using the raw method has a loose and at the same time viscous consistency due to the high content of sugar, honey, and molasses in it. Sugar or sugar syrup, water, honey, molasses or invert syrup, eggs are mixed well for 6-10 minutes. Sugar dissolves in the liquid and is evenly distributed throughout the mixture. The higher the temperature at which the dough is kneaded, the shorter the kneading time, otherwise the dough may turn out to be too long.

After mixing, add finely ground spices, soda, softened butter or margarine and flour. Knead the dough for 4-12 minutes depending on the amount of dough and the temperature conditions of the room. The finished dough is a homogeneous mass of astringent, loose consistency.

Preparing the dough using the custard method

The process of preparing this dough consists of three stages: brewing flour in sugar-honey, sugar-and-saccharide or sugar-and-sweet syrup: cooling the brew; mixing tea leaves with all other types of raw materials.

Brew flour in an open pan. To do this, add sugar and molasses, pour in water and heat (70-75°C) with stirring until the sugar is completely dissolved. The transparent syrup is filtered through a fine sieve, cooled to a temperature of at least 68°C, sifted flour is gradually added and quickly mixed. If the syrup is cooled to a lower temperature, it will reduce the quality of the gingerbread. When the flour is brewed, partial gelatinization of the starch occurs, which helps keep the gingerbread fresh for a longer time. The starch gelatinization temperature is 67.5°C. Flour is mixed with hot syrup as quickly as possible (10-12 minutes), since prolonged contact of mixed flour with hot syrup may cause lumps to form.

If the recipe calls for a lot of eggs and butter, then boil some of the flour, and use the remaining flour when kneading the dough, leaving 6-8% for dusting.

Cool the brew in baking trays, where the dough is placed in layers and greased with vegetable oil or sprinkled with crumbs so that a monolithic mass does not form. The brewed dough is cooled to a temperature of 25-27°C. It is impossible to knead the dough without pre-cooling, as it loses its properties, the gingerbreads become dense, non-streamlined, and the leavening agents and aromatic substances evaporate.

After cooling the brewed dough, it is kneaded, combined with the rest of the products specified in the recipe, and kneaded until a homogeneous consistency is obtained for 30-40 minutes. The dough should be evenly mixed and have a creamy consistency. With less kneading time, products are obtained with a dense structure.

You can prepare the dough in a semi-brewed way.

To do this, take 80% water according to the recipe at a temperature of 70°C. add sugar, margarine and heat to 90°C, mix thoroughly, gradually add 45% flour. Continue stirring for another 6-8 minutes. This mass is cooled to 25°C. Honey and soda are dissolved in the remaining water, combined with the cooled mass, eggs and the remaining flour are added. The dough is mixed for 10 minutes and cut.

Shaping and baking

The finished dough is laid out on a table heavily dusted with flour, kneaded and given an oblong shape.

The layer is gradually rolled out with a smooth wooden rolling pin in different directions, periodically dusting with flour, to a thickness of 8-10 mm. The layer must be rolled out evenly, otherwise the products will be of different thicknesses and bake unevenly. Before molding the products, test molding is carried out in different places of the formation to determine the uniformity of its rolling.

The pattern is applied to the surface of the formation with a serrated or corrugated rolling pin. To mold products, various devices are used in the form of metal recesses, which are cone-shaped rims with pointed edges, the shape corresponding to the products being produced. Wooden forms with a design or inscription engraved on the board are used.

If products need to be given a certain shape and a design applied to the surface, wooden forms are used in combination with metal recesses. Products are formed from a rolled out layer of dough using a knife, disk cutters or using notches.

Using a notch, press the dough layer five to six times, separating pieces of a certain shape from it, and lay them out in even rows on baking sheets. The recess is periodically immersed in flour, this prevents the dough from sticking to it.

Before laying on the sheets, sweep the flour from the products with a brush.

For gingerbreads and loaves, the dough is rolled out into a layer 12 and 8 mm thick, respectively. The layer must correspond to the size of the baking sheet. The loaves are cut with a knife or disk cutter into rectangular pieces of the appropriate size. After rolling out, the layer of dough for the gingerbread is placed on a sheet previously greased with vegetable oil or dusted with flour.

The surface of the product is moistened with cold water and pierced in several places with a knife to avoid swelling.

Pieces of hard dough are placed on dry sheets dusted with flour or greased with oil. On products stuck to the sheet, voids form, and the bottoms turn out different. If the products are greased with egg before baking, then so that they do not move during greasing, they are placed on sheets greased with a mixture of fat and warm water.

Before baking, the surface of some types of products is sprinkled with sugar, crumbs, chopped nuts or almonds, and decorated with raisins, candied fruits or nut kernels.

Gingerbread cookies are baked at 200-240°C for 10-15 minutes immediately after cutting, and gingerbread and mint gingerbread cookies are baked at 190-210°C.
The baking mode and duration depend on the thickness of the products. The thicker the baked goods, the lower the temperature and the longer the baking time.

At high baking temperatures, a crust will quickly form, which will prevent moisture from being removed from the crumb. After baking, the product will shrink under the weight of the raw crumb.

The low temperature in the oven makes the products blurry from excess sugar. Timely formation of the crust preserves the shape of the gingerbread.

After baking, the gingerbreads, greased with egg, are rubbed several times with a soft brush to obtain a better shine.

Gingerbread cookies can be glazed with sugar syrup. For this purpose, boilers with a capacity of 3 to 5 liters are used. Cooled products are poured with pre-prepared sugar syrup at a temperature of 85-90°C. The gingerbreads are mixed with the syrup with a wooden paddle for 1-2 minutes, and then taken out and placed in one row, dried.

Types of marriage	Causes
Products are dense, non-streamlined	Reduced humidity of the dough: the brew was not cooled enough: there are few sugary substances; lots of leavening agents.
Products are blurry	Dough with high humidity; too much soda, poor gluten: low oven temperature.
Hard, rubbery products	Not enough sugar: high dough temperature during kneading; long kneading
The top crust is separated; raw crumb	Very soft dough; the oven is overheated.
The products shrank and fell off	The dough is soft and has a lot of leavening agents; high oven temperature, the product was removed from the oven early.
Products with empty bottoms	The dough is dense; the oven is not heated.
Products have few pores	Not enough leavening agents provided.

Making a “COCKER” cake from a round gingerbread cake (or sponge cake)

In addition to the gingerbread (or sponge) cake, you will need icing sugar, jelly candies in the shape of orange slices, 1 round lollipop and a lot of coconut flakes - about 2 cups.
According to picture A, cut the hot round gingerbread cake (while it is still soft) along solid lines.
The part indicated by the dotted line also needs to be cut off, but slightly above the indicated line.
This part of the cake will not be used as a whole; it can be crumbled and used for sprinkling.

In Figure B shows how to fold the cut out pieces of the cake:

To glue the side edges of the gingerbread (biscuit), use hot sugar icing or heated chocolate.
Cover the entire surface and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. And before it hardens, sprinkle the cake with coconut flakes.
Decorate the cake with multi-colored jelly candies, focusing on the photo: attach a tail, wing, comb, beak, paws.
For the "eye" of the cockerel, use a round dark-colored candy.
NOTE. Similar figures can be used to create fairy-tale compositions with gingerbread houses.

Joint production of even the simplest gingerbread house will always bring sincere joy to the entire creative team of gingerbread housebuilders:

For the curious
THE SECRET OF THE FAMOUS VYAZMSKY GINGERBREAD

In the Tula Gingerbread Museum.

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