eatattexastech posted: " Making gingerbread cookies is a holiday season tradition for many countries and people, but did you know it also has a long history dating back to ancient Greeks and Egyptians? It first appeared in the 11th century as a ceremonial piece until ginger"
Making gingerbread cookies is a holiday season tradition for many countries and people, but did you know it also has a long history dating back to ancient Greeks and Egyptians? It first appeared in the 11th century as a ceremonial piece until ginger was brought from the Middle East for aristocrats to cook with. As the spice ginger expanded amongst different countries, the process of making gingerbread became more commonly known.
How was gingerbread used?
The earliest recorded recipe in Europe contained ground almonds, stale breadcrumbs, rosewater, sugar, and some ginger. The cookie was a staple for telling stories to kings, religious leaders, and symbols. As the gingerbread cookie changed, breadcrumbs were replaced with flour, and other sweeteners and eggs were then added.
The first gingerbread man was created by Queen Elizabeth I. The shape of the cookie was designed by her to represent the people in her court at the time, what a cool fun fact!
Gingerbread as of Today
Over time the cookie has changed whether that be different ingredients, the shape, the size, or the texture. The cookie today has added spices such as nutmeg and cinnamon along with brown sugar and molasses for better flavoring and sweetener. So, for what the cookie used to be, ground almonds with ginger, more like honey cake, it has now become the Christmas staple cookie. As you can see gingerbread has a long history, and might I add too long of history for me to discuss in this article, but I will leave more articles and interesting facts about history at the bottom of the page.
It is fascinating how each culture has a unique way of preparing gingerbread. I have provided different recipes within each country and how they determine it to be. - I'm not a fan of this wording, if you have anything you'd like to add, let me know.
Preparation: Gather ingredients in a large bowl, beat the eggs with sugar until light. Add the spices, baking soda-water mixture, and honey and mix well. Add flour gradually and mix util a stiff dough form. Shape into a ball, wrap it in plastic, and let it rest for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400F. On parchment paper cut to fit your baking pans, roll dough ¼ inch thickness. Cut into desired shape then bake for 10 minutes until lightly brown. Let cool.
Icing: Gather ingredients and combine all ingredients in a microwavable bowl for 20 seconds until completely melted. Use it immediately to decorate cookies, serve, and enjoy.
Preparation: In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, spices, and baking soda until thoroughly mixed. Add honey, eggs, rum, and zest and form a smooth dough. Wrap in plastic and let rest at least 30 minutes. Heat oven to 325 F. Roll dough 1/8- to 1/4-inch thick between two pieces of parchment paper. Remove top parchment paper and cut out various shapes, leaving 2 inches between cookies. Remove scraps. Lift parchment paper by opposite corners and place on a sheet pan. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until light golden at the edges. Cool completely on the pan before removing to a wire rack. Repeat with remaining dough and dough scraps.
Preparation: Gather ingredients in a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt. In a separate bowl beat two egg yolks and 1 whole egg, melted butter, and honey. Mix dry ingredients until firm. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour. Heat over to 350F. Place parchment paper the size of your cookie sheets on a clean surface. Using a cookie scoop, portion out mounds of dough and roll them in your hands until they are a completely smooth ball. Place on the prepared cookie sheets leaving 2 inches between each cookie. They will flatten out somewhat but still retain a domed shape. Bake for 10 to 20 minutes, or until just golden, rotating the sheets halfway through for even baking. Cool on the sheets until the cookies firm. Transfer to racks to finish cooling.
For the glaze: Gather ingredients in a small bowl and whisk sugar, and water to form a thin icing. Spread on cooled cookies and allow them to harden
2 tablespoons licitar yeast, or baker's ammonia or baking powder
4 2/5 pounds all-purpose flour
For the Red Glaze:
3/4 pound granulated sugar
1 quart water
Red food coloring, optional
For the Decorative Icing:
1 recipe royal Icing, thinned with a little water, if necessary
Preparation: Gather ingredients. In a medium saucepan, dissolve the sugar in water over low heat. Let cool to room temperature and preheat the oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, whisk together the licitar yeast and flour. Add the cooled sugar water and knead until smooth. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface or directly onto parchment-lined baking sheets and cut with copper licitar molds known as šteheri or regular cookie cutters into a heart and other traditional shapes. Make a hole in the top of each shape for hanging ribbon. Remove scraps and bake 8 minutes or longer or until golden in color. Repeat with remaining dough. Place a string through the hole and dip each cookie into the red glaze and hang to dry completely.
3-4 cups powdered sugar, or more if planning to cover the whole cookie.
water, to thin
a few drops food coloring (optional)
pearl sprinkles (optional)
Preparation: Add the sugar, honey, and milk to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil then turn off the heat and let cool slightly. Add the butter and the spices to a mixing bowl and pour the warm syrup mixture over them. Mix until the butter is melted, and everything is combined. Sift the baking soda, salt, and flour together, and then add to the butter and the syrup mixture. Mix until everything is evenly incorporated. Shape the dough into a flat disk, and chill in the fridge overnight or up to 48 hours. Preheat oven to 350F. Roll out dough to about 3/8" thick and cut out using cookie cutters. Arrange cookies on a baking sheet and bake for about 10 minutes, until golden. Allow to cool completely before icing.
Icing: Mix the powdered sugar with just enough water to make a smooth but thick glaze. Divide the icing into smaller batches if you want to make different colors. You can also flavor the icing with a little vanilla extract or almond extract if you'd like
Preparation: Gather the ingredients in a large bowl, mix the flour, raw cane sugar, butter, milk, spice, baking soda, and zest with your hands or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. The dough is ready when you can shape it into a ball without it sticking to your hands. Cover the dough ball with plastic wrap and set aside at room temperature for an hour. Heat the oven to 347F. Line them with parchment paper. Brush the cookies with egg white and sprinkle brown sugar and flaked almonds on top. Bake 10 to 25 minutes, depending on the size and thickness of the cookies, or until the almonds are caramelizing and the cookies are turning a slightly darker shade of brown. Let cookies cool down on a rack.
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