Gingerbread Dough for Gingerbread Hearts and Gingerbread Houses

Since I referred once already to my gingerbread dough out of the fridge and will do so again for the next post, here goes the recipe! Thus far I have used the dough mainly for big gingerbread hearts, gingerbread houses or Christmas cookies in normal cookie cutter size. As mentioned before, the dough can be kept in the fridge for several weeks and even gets better during that time, as the potassium matures and makes the gingerbread rise better. Thus, it is awesomely practical to have some of the dough in store!

Ingredients for 1 portion of 1400 g:
250 g honey

250 g brown sugar

150 g butter 
100 g ground almonds

650 g flour

1 TSP cinnamon

2 TSP gingerbread spices (cinnamon, ground cloves, coriander, ginger, cardamom und nutmeg)

1 EL cocoa

1 egg

1 TSP potassium

2 TBSP rum or water

Energy: 385 kcal for 100 g dough

For the Royal Icing:
1 egg white

250 g powdered sugar
1/2 TSP lemon juice
food coloring

Preparation:

Heat honey, sugar and butter in a pot while stirring until the sugar has dissolved, let the mixture cool. Add almonds, flour, spices and egg to the honey mixture. I use 1 TSP cinnamon and 1 knife point ground cloves, coriander,  ginger, cardamom and nutmeg each, but you can use different mixes or buy the gingerbread spice mix readymade.

Knead the ingredients well with the dough hooks of the electric mixer or kitchen machine.
Use a cup to solve the potassium in rum or water. Add the mixture to the dough while it is being kneaded. Continue kneading the dough until it shines and isn't sticky any more. Add some flour if the dough is to soft. Put the  dough into an airtight container or wrap in clingfilm and set to rest in the fridge for at least 12 hours.


Use as needed, e.g., for gingerbread houses, gingerbread hearts, or small gingerbread cookies:

Roll out parts of the dough on little flour, 5-6 mm thick. Cut out hearts or other shapes, or use a template to cut them out with a knife. Set the gingerbread on a baking tray laid out with baking paper and bake at 180 °C for 10-18 minutes, depending on the size of the gingerbread and on the properties of the oven. The gingerbread is done when it's brown on its underside, but still soft on its upper side.

Royal Icing:
Start beating the egg whites, add lemon juice and powdered sugar. Depending on the size of the egg, you can add more powdered sugar, the Icing should be rather stiff.   
It hardens quickly, but can be kept for several days if it's sealed in an airtight container or plastic bag.