New Year's gingerbread house-lamp
8 servings
480 minutes
The New Year's gingerbread house-lamp is not just a treat but a true culinary masterpiece embodying the spirit of winter holidays. Originating from the tradition of European gingerbread, this house recreates an atmosphere of coziness and magic. Its base is aromatic dough rich in spices that give it a warm, spicy flavor. The caramel windows sparkle like icy patterns, while the egg white icing turns the house into a snowy fairy tale. This masterpiece can be used not only as a festive decoration but also as a unique gift filled with heartfelt warmth. The sweet spicy notes of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg make its taste unforgettable. And if you place a garland inside, the house transforms into a magical lamp that creates coziness and festive cheer.
1
Burn two cups of sugar without water in a deep pan over low heat until brown. Then, very carefully (without leaning over the pan!), constantly stir the melted sugar with a wooden spoon, adding 1.5 cups of boiling water in small portions to dissolve the burnt sugar. Add another 2 cups of sugar and dissolve thoroughly. Add 400 grams of margarine. Pour the mixture into a large pot (at least 4 liters), cool it to a warm state, and add 3 eggs and 5 yolks, well mixed with a fork. Then add 0.5 teaspoons of salt and a mixture of ground spices — cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cardamom, as well as 2 teaspoons of baking soda. Gradually add flour until the dough thickens and does not stick to your hands (about 1.8 kg). Let the dough rest in a cool place for about one day (if you are in a hurry, let it sit for 1-1.5 hours at room temperature, then place it in the freezer for 20-30 minutes).
- Sugar: 4.5 glasss
- Water: 1.5 glass
- Margarine: 400 g
- Chicken egg: 8 pieces
- Salt: 0.5 teaspoon
- Ground cinnamon: 0.5 teaspoon
- Soda: 2 teaspoons
- Nutmeg: 0.5 teaspoon
- Cardamom: 0.5 teaspoon
- Ground ginger: 0.5 teaspoon
- Wheat flour: 1800 g
2
Draw and cut out templates from paper for the future house (need to calculate the sizes very accurately). It's better to make a larger hole on one side of the house so that a garland can be easily placed there for lighting.
3
Roll out the dough to a thickness of 3-4 mm. Place paper templates and cut along the contours of the house parts. Cut out holes for windows and doors. Fill the window holes with crushed candy (for this, place colored lollipops in a sturdy bag and crush them with a hammer or something similar).
- Sugar: 4.5 glasss
4
Bake at 180 degrees for 15 minutes and let cool. The candies we filled the window holes with will melt and form the so-called windows of the future house.
5
When all the parts are fully ready, boil the sugar syrup (caramel). Put 100 grams of sugar, 2 tablespoons of water, and a pinch of citric acid in an iron bowl or saucepan over low heat. Bring to complete dissolution. Dip the edges of the house parts into the still hot glaze and immediately glue them together. You will need to hold the house for quite a while until it sticks, so you can prop the walls from different sides with something heavy (like kitchen jars).
- Sugar: 4.5 glasss
- Water: 1.5 glass
6
Decorate the house with protein icing (whip 3-4 egg whites with 2 cups of powdered sugar). Decorate as desired (with candies, gummies, or pastry decorations). For more detailed pattern drawing, you can use a pastry syringe.
- Chicken egg: 8 pieces
- Powdered sugar: 2 glasss
7
Let the little house dry, and you can place a garland inside, or serve it immediately, or beautifully wrap it and gift it to friends and family.