Gingerbread Men

Equipment

• 1 large bowl
• Clingfilm
• Rolling pin
• Baking tray(s)
• Parchment paper
• Gingerbread Man cookie cutter
• For decoration: Piping bag or sandwich bag

Ingredients

• For the Gingerbread Men
• 350g Plain Flour, plus extra for rolling out
• 1 teaspoon Bicarbonate Soda
• 2-3 teaspoons Ground Ginger
• Optional - 1/4 teaspoon Ground Nutmeg and 1/4 teaspoon Ground Cloves
• 125g Unsalted Butter - Cold Cubed
• 150g Light Soft Brown Sugar
• 1 Large Egg
• 100g Golden Syrup
• For Decoration (Optional)
• 125g Icing Sugar (or Royal Icing Sugar!)
• As much water as needed
• Smarties

Method

1. Add the plain flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger, and nutmet/cloves (if using) to a large bowl and stir. Add in the cubed cold butter and mix until the ingredients are evenly dispersed (there shouldn't be any big chunks of butter, it should be like sticky breadcrumbs!). Squeeze the mixture together to form a dough.
2. Stir in the sugar, then add in the golden syrup and egg. Mix until combined and then knead the dough in the bowl until a smooth dough is formed. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and then put in the fridge for 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 180C (350F) standard / 160C (320F) fan and line 2+ baking trays with parchment paper while you wait for the dough to chill!
4. Take the dough out of the fridge, unwrap, and then roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface until it's 1.5-2cm (approx 0.75inches) thick. (It helps to lightly flour your hands and rolling pin too!). Cut out gingerbread man shapes using a cuter, and then place each gingerbread man on to a lined baking tray. Combine and re-roll the dough until you have none left!
5. Bake in the oven until lightly golden approx 8-15 minutes depending on the size of your cutter - mine took 11-12 minutes as I used a big cutter. Leave to cool on the baking trays for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a cooling rack until fully cooled.
6. To decorate: Add the icing sugar to a bowl and then add water a little at a time stirring until a stiff smooth paste is formed. Add the icing sugar to a piping bag (or use a sandwich bag), snip off the end of the piping bag, and then pipe decorations on to the gingerbread men. Add the smarties on to the gingerbread men, using the icing as 'glue'. Leave for 10 minutes to allow the icing to set firmer, and then enjoy!

Notes

• - Store your gingerbread men in an airtight container at room temperate, where they'll last for up to a week!
• - You can alter the spices to your taste: I like mine with a stronger spice flavour so I add 3 teaspoons of ginger, plus the optional nutmet and cloves!
• - Ideas for decoration: Hard chocolate such as Smarties or M&Ms, chocolate curls or sprinkles, sweets such as Skittles, fruit such as raisins!

Recommended Equipment and Ingredients*

• Kitchen Scales
• Baking Tray

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