The aroma and look of homemade gingerbread make the atmosphere in the house even more festive. The dough can be baked in advance, and the whole family, including children, can paint the day before. For the New Year 2024 or Christmas, gingerbread can be prepared in the form of a dragon - a symbol of the coming period. We offer you to pay attention to the most popular recipes with and without honey, with icing, chocolate.
Ginger honey classic
Be sure to bake gingerbread cookies for the New Year. They are fragrant and very tasty. A great idea would be to create a set of pastries as a Christmas or New Year's gift.
Prepare:
- 100 g of granulated sugar;
- 2 st. l. natural honey;
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon;
- 100 g butter;
- 2 tsp minced fresh or dried ginger;
- egg;
- 0.5 tsp baking soda or baking powder;
- 250 - 300 g flour.
Soda can be replaced with baking powder.
Actions:
- Sift the flour twice or thrice into a large bowl and mix it with ground spices and soda.
- Slightly heat the honey in a water bath.
- Place softened butter in another bowl, add granulated sugar and beat the ingredients with a mixer until a white air mass is formed.
- Crack the egg while still using the technique.
- Pour the honey in a thin stream, without turning off the mixer and add the spicy flour in small portions.
- Shift the resulting mixture to a work surface lightly dusted with flour and knead the dough with your hands (for 2-3 minutes).
- Send the baking base back to the bowl, cover it with a lid or film and leave for several hours (preferably overnight) in a cool place.
- After the time has elapsed, put the flour mass on parchment, lightly floured, cover with a second sheet and roll it into a thin layer (about 3-4 mm).
- Cut out blanks with curly molds, transfer to a baking sheet and send it to a hot oven for 5-7 minutes. at t +180°С.
After the pastries are golden brown, take them out and place them on a flat surface, such as a metal grill, until they cool completely.
Watch the video recipe.
In the form of a symbol of the year
Gingerbread in the form of a symbol of the coming year will decorate the festive table for the New 2024 Year of the Dragon. The recipe is without honey and therefore the gingerbread is hypoallergenic. New Year's baking is soft, airy and fragrant. Additionally, you can make chocolate fondue.
Prepare the ingredients for the test:
- 125 g butter;
- 1 tsp vanilla extract;
- 3 st. l. glucose syrup;
- 3 tsp gingerbread spices;
- 100g brown sugar;
- 1 tsp baking soda;
- 300 g flour;
- 1 tsp ground dried or fresh ginger.
For fondue:
- 2 st. l. cooled boiled water;
- ¾ st. cream;
- 150g each of dark and milk chocolate;
- 1 st. l. maple syrup.
Actions:
- Pour the spices, sifted flour into a deep bowl and combine the ingredients.
- Place the butter, glucose syrup, brown sugar and vanilla extract in a bain-marie.
- Melt the ingredients, stirring constantly with a kitchen spatula.
- Gently pour the resulting mixture into a bowl with spicy flour and knead the gingerbread dough of a uniform consistency.
- Divide it into two parts, wrap each of them with polyethylene or film and send it to the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- After time, lightly dust the workplace with flour and transfer the flour mass to it.
- Roll it into 2 layers 5 mm thick.
- Cut out the blanks using a dragon cutter and carefully transfer them to a baking sheet lined with baking paper.
- Send the products to the oven, heated to 180 ° C, for 10-12 minutes. or until ruddy.
- When ready, spread the pastries on the wire rack and leave to cool completely.
- At this time, prepare the fondue by melting all the prepared ingredients in a water bath.
- Pour the mixture into a festive bowl.
Serve cooled gingerbread with melted chocolate.
And show you some ideas.
To make the taste of baking more memorable, add orange or lemon zest to the dough.
Gingerbread pictures for 2024 Year of the Dragon
If you want to make gingerbread more he althy, replace wheat flour with whole wheat flour. Colored glaze contains only natural ingredients, so even small children can give such pastries.
Prepare the ingredients for the base:
- 390 g flour;
- 250g cane sugar;
- egg;
- 100 ml cooled boiled water;
- 1 tsp each ground cardamom and cinnamon;
- 2 tsp baking powder;
- 0.5 tsp nutmeg;
- 100 ml vegetable oil.
For colored glaze:
- 2 eggs;
- 1 tbsp each l. freshly squeezed carrot, beetroot and spinach juice;
- 2 st. l. lemon juice;
- 200 g of powdered sugar.
Actions:
- Sift the flour into a deep container, add the remaining dry ingredients and combine them.
- Pour in water, vegetable oil and mix well.
- Crack the egg, knead the dough, it should come off your hands.
- Wrap it in cling film and put it in a cold place for half an hour.
- After 30 min. divide the dough into several parts weighing 50 g, each of which roll into a small ball.
- Shape the gingerbread by pressing lightly.
- If you want to make figured products, roll the dough into a layer to a thickness of 1-2 mm and cut out blanks from it with molds.
- Carefully transfer them to a baking sheet lined with cooking paper or a silicone mat.
- Place in a well-heated oven for 10-15 minutes. at t° 180°C.
- When ready, place the gingerbread on a wire rack to cool completely.
- For the glaze, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice very well, preferably twice.
- Beat the ingredients until air foam appears.
- Divide the resulting mass into 3 equal parts, add prepared vegetable juice of different shades to each of which and mix.
- Decorate the cooled gingerbread with ready-made icing.
Watch the video where the author shows how beautifully gingerbread can be painted.
Photo-recipe of chocolate gingerbread for New Year 2024
Chocolate products are very delicate, tasty and fragrant. Recipe with cocoa powder, but it can be replaced with dark chocolate by melting in a water bath and adding butter.
Prepare:
- 2 eggs;
- 40g cocoa powder;
- 1 tsp baking powder;
- 125 g flour;
- a pinch of finely ground s alt;
- 180 g of granulated sugar;
- 60 ml vegetable oil.
Note: You will also need about 50 - 80 g of powdered sugar.
Actions:
- Pour cocoa powder into a large bowl, add butter, granulated sugar and mix thoroughly.
- Crack 1 egg, beat well. Add the second and again mix the ingredients until smooth, preferably using a mixer.
- Combine the sifted flour with s alt, baking powder and gradually add to the egg mixture, kneading the dough.
- Send the kneaded flour mass in the cold for 3 hours or more, putting it in a polyethylene bag or wrapping it with a film.
- Divide the "rested" dough into walnut-sized pieces, roll each of them and roll in powdered sugar.
- Transfer all blanks immediately to a baking sheet covered with a silicone mat or baking paper.
- Bake in a hot oven for 15 - 20 minutes. at t° 180°C. When ready, transfer the chocolate gingerbread to a flat dish or wire rack to cool completely.
If you overdry the pastry in the oven, transfer it to a container with fresh apple slices and leave it in a cool place overnight, covered with a lid.
Baking gingerbread is easy. The main thing is to prepare and correctly measure all the necessary ingredients, follow the step-by-step instructions. As for painting, show all your imagination using glaze of different colors. Catch some ideas.
For 2024 the Year of the Dragon, you can cook gingerbread in the form of a symbol of the year, Christmas trees, snowflakes, little men, stars, bells, bunnies, tangerines. Any figure that is associated with the holiday will do.
