Gingerbread Men

Gingerbread men are great fun to make with kids and… er… even adults can eat them too!

Ingredients

350 g (12 oz, 2½ cups) plain flour
125 g (4 oz, ½ cup) butter
125 ml (4½ fl oz, ½ cup) Golden Syrup or light molasses
100 g (3 oz, ½ cup) sugar
1 egg
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp salt

150 g (5 oz, 1 cup) of icing or Confectioner’s sugar
About 1 tbsp of milk or water

Method

1	Beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy.
2	Beat in the egg and Golden Syrup until the mixture is smooth.
3	Sift in the remainder of the ingredients and beat/mix to form a smooth dough.
4	Wrap the dough in plastic or place in a plastic bag. Let the dough chill in the ‘fridge for about an hour to firm up.
5	On a floured surface, roll out the dough to about ¼” (6mm) thick. Use a gingerbread man cutter to cut out the shapes.
6	Place a piece of baking paper on a baking tray and arrange the shapes ready for baking. Leave at least ½” (1cm) between the shapes.
7	Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 10 minutes.
8	Place on a wire rack to cool before decorating.
9	Prepare the frosting: Sift the icing sugar into a bowl and gradually mix in the milk until you achieve a firm paste.
10	Use a piping bag or syringe to decorate the shapes.

Titli’s Tips

The initial dough should be quite firm – if it is too soft it will spread while cooking. If you find your dough is very soft simply sift in a tbsp or two of extra flour until you achieve the desired consistency.

While gingerbread men are traditional, you can make other shapes too depending upon what cookie-cutter shapes you have.

If you want to use different colours in decorating the shapes, simply take a portion of the frosting and mix in a drop or two of food colouring. You can also decorate with Smarties for buttons.