INGREDIENTS
(Makes 12 big gingerbread men)
140g unsalted butter
100g dark muscovado sugar
3tbsp golden syrup
350g plain flour
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
2tsp ground ginger and 1 tsp ground
cinnamon
Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
2 balls stem ginger from a jar, chopped
 

To decorate:
50g icing sugar
A few glace cherries (we used undyed)
2 balls stem ginger

 

Line two baking sheets with baking parchment. Melt butter, sugar and syrup in a pan. Mix flour, soda, spices and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Stir in the butter mix and chopped ginger to make a stiffish dough. Wait until cool enough to handle, then roll out dough to about 5mm thick. Stamp out gingerbread men, re-rolling and pressing the trimmings back together and rolling again. Lift onto baking sheets. Bake for 12 mins until golden. Cool 10 mins on the sheets, then lift onto cooling racks.

To decorate, mix icing sugar with a few drops of water until thick and smooth.

Halve then slice cherries thinly to make smiles, and cut ginger into small squares. Spoon icing into a food bag, snip off the tiniest bit from one corner, then squeeze eyes and buttons, and a tiny smile onto one man at a time. Stick on a cherry smile and ginger buttons.

Repeat; leave to set. Will keep up to one week in an airtight tin.

􀁥 This recipes is taken from Good Food magazine. The December issue is on sale now, priced