Gingerbread Cookies... Greece

According to Rhonda Massingham Hart’s ‘Making Gingerbread Houses’, the first known recipe for gingerbread came from Greece in 2400 BC. Chinese recipes were developed during the 10th century and by the late Middle Ages, Europeans had their own version of gingerbread. The hard cookies, sometimes gilded with gold leaf and shaped like animals, kings and queens, were a staple at Medieval fairs in England, France, Holland and Germany. Queen Elizabeth I is credited with the idea of decorating the cookies in this fashion, after she had some made to resemble the dignitaries visiting her court. Over time some of these festivals came to be known as Gingerbread Fairs, and the gingerbread cookies served there were known as ‘fairings.’ The shapes of the gingerbread changed with the season, including flowers in the spring and birds in the fall. Elaborately decorated gingerbread became synonymous with all things fancy and elegant in England. The gold leaf that was often used to decorate gingerbread cookies led to the popular expression ‘to take the gilt off of gingerbread.’ The carved, white architectural details found on many colonial American seaside homes is sometimes referred to as ‘gingerbread work’.

With this one, you will only be doing simple shapes of the cookie cutters you have, no icing, no fuss, no hassle.

Gingerbread Cookies

INGREDIENTS

• 227g butter/margarine, at room temperature (salted or unsalted)

• 150g granulated sugar

• 1 egg

• 1 cup honey

• 2 tablespoons white vinegar

• 5 cups all-purpose flour (700g)

• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 4 teaspoons ground ginger

• 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 2 teaspoon ground cloves

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mix butter and sugar until well combined and light and fluffy.

2. Mix in egg, honey, and vinegar.

3. Sift all of the dry ingredients together and then mix sifted dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, working in batches, stirring after each addition.

4. Divide the dough into two even pieces, wrap each piece of dough in clingfilm or transparent nylon, and refrigerate for 30 to 90 minutes.

5. When the dough is done chilling, preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Working in sections, roll the dough to 1/4″ thick on a floured surface; cut into desired shapes. Place shapes on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or a baking mat. Gather and reroll “scraps” of dough as needed, using all of the dough.

6. Bake at 180 degrees C for 12-15 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the tray for 5 minutes, and then move to a cooling rack.

7. Repeat with remaining dough.

8. Take pictures and post on the Advent Calendar group, Instagram, don’t forget to tag us and enjoy!!!