Gingerbread Exchange Community

Thank you Ginger Art for your gingerbread dough recipe! 

From Ginger Art......I made up my own recipe after so many problems with so many others.
This is construction grade dough...not good to eat.

Mix everything in kitchenaid mixer.

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Vegetable Shortening
1 Cup Light Corn Syrup
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1 tsp. Salt
1 T. Ginger
1 T. Cinnamon
1 tsp. Cloves
5 T. Water
5 Cups Flour

roll out on aluminum foil then cut pieces.

NO COOKING INGREDIENTS...NO FLOUR NEEDED TO ROLL OUT...NOT STICKY...NO REFRIGERATION...BAKES PERFECTLY FLAT...NO BUBBLES

bake at 350 degrees until brown.


I run a pro cookie baking company and everything i want in my cookies...I want the exact opposite for my gingerbread...lol

I want my cookies soft and moist...my gingerbread hard and dry...so I reversed all the ingredients and got the dough recipe from that. the baking soda makes things flat...baking powder makes them puff. So that's why the small amount of soda in the recipe. and yes it does help in browning. and you are exactly right...i wanted a light dough that could be colored easily and perfectly...hence the corn syrup and no molasses. this dough colors perfectly every time for me.

Please let me add a trick for perfectly shaped pieces if i may.......I bake my pieces on foil for about 5-6 minutes, then remove from the oven and cut the doors, windows and around the outside edges. you have to do this fast as the dough hardens quickly. I use the template and an oven mitt and pasta wheel. then the pieces don't spread any more and are perfectly square around the edges. they are baked just long enough to keep their shape. then i finish baking, flatten between paper towels and books overnight, and viola! flat, hard, smooth pieces that go together so easily. no fudging with icing. and I apply everything including gumpaste and fondant and it never falls off.

Hope this may help!!

I don't know if this will be helpful as it's not so much a packing tip.  It's more an unpacking thought that you've probably already considered. 

There's an off-chance that the TSA folks at the security check will ask to open the package.  This is especially true if you don't want to send it on the X-ray conveyor belt.  So, anything you've packed it with will need to be easy to take out quickly with out harming the pieces.

I guess I do have one idea depending on the size and amount of pieces.  Use a clear plastic shoe box or document-size box (these are shorter, but wider) as your outer container so you can safely put it on the belt without fear of breakage.

Perhaps dry, popped popcorn as the packing material?

Good luck!  It's such as great tradition.

I don't think there would be a difference if you used molasses instead of corn syrup, except for a color change.  Molasses will make the dough much darker. 

Hope this helps. 

I think the bread should hold up just fine in hot weather.  The trick is to bake it till nice and dry, then allow it to 'age' at least a week so it's completely dry and hard.  The less moisture in the bread after baking, the better!

I found rolling it between layers of foil worked best for me in my tiny (temporary apartment) kitchen.  I have a 'no stick' rolling pin here, as opposed to the good wooden one I have at home.  The dough sticks terribly to the no stick pin, so that's why I experimented successfully with the foil. 

I also cut my pieces (windows, etc.) before  baking, but left the pieces in place.  I then pulled it out at 8 minutes and cut again, and still left the pieces in place.  When baking was complete the pieces needed cutting one more time, but it was easy to do and the pieces popped out easily.

I found my husband likes the trimmed off pieces as a nice snack with his coffee.  It's hard and crispy, but has a great flavor.

Approximately how much dough does this recipe make? Can this dough be frozen and if it can, how long?
I hate using a bunch of dishes to make a batch of dough so when I saw your recipe and it said "mix everything in kitchenmaid mixer" I threw my old recipe away. Thanks