How to Make a Gingerbread House Log Cabin (No Kit Required)
Save RecipeHi Bold Bakers! By popular demand, I’ll show you how to easily create a gingerbread house with no kit or special tools required. And we’ll make it BIG & BOLD into a rustic log cabin. So let’s get baking!
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- GINGERBREAD DOUGH INGREDIENTS
- 3/4 cup (6oz/171g) butter, softened
- 1 cup (7.5oz/ 216g) packed brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup (9oz/ 260g) molasses/treacle (or honey if molasses isn't available)
- 4 cups (1lb 2 1/8oz, 537g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- INGREDIENTS FOR THE HOUSE
- 2 hard candies for the windows
- 2 bags of log pretzels
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METHOD
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In a large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and molasses. Combine the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hours or overnight or until easy to handle.
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On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-in. thickness.
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Place one of the paper templates on top and with a sharp knife cut around. Repeat the process with the other templates using the remaining dough and rolling up the trimmings – until you have a front and back wall, two side walls and two roof panels and the chimney
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Click links below for the house measurements: http://justshyofperfection.com/tag/mini-gingerbread-house-pattern/
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Scroll down these pages for the templates. The Chimney are the small pieces, ignore the large square in the picture.
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For the door I cut out the door and windows free form. If you want stained glass windows don’t forget to add your hard candy.
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Carefully move the pieces on their baking parchment to baking trays and bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly brown. Remove the trays from the oven and allow stand for a few minutes. Place on a wire rack and allow to cool completely.
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Glue the house together using the royal icing. Leave off the last panel of the roof until the end. Use tins to hold up the house to add extra reinforcement. You can leave it dry for a bit.
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Cut and glue on the log pretzels all over.
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Add the snow on your roof and around the windows and any decorations you've made (wreath and garland)
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Make any decorations 24 hours in advance. Let your house dry WITHOUT MOVING for 6 hours. Take care when moving.
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You can add lights on the inside to shine thorugh the windows. Happy Holidays!!!
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What temp does this cook at? I can’t seem to find it in the instructions (nor the prep for pre-heating). Thanks
Hi Karina,
350oF (180oC) is the temp 🙂
Best,
Gemma.
I’m so excited to build my gingerbread house! My little ones and I mixed up the dough together yesterday, and I’ve cut out and baked the pieces this morning. Daddy wants to help us with construction, and we will all decorate it together. Pictures to follow! It’s turning into a whole weekend event, and I love that we are “baking memories” together.
I used the extra dough to cut out some cookie people and trees, so I snuck a taste, and these are delicious!!
Kristal, I am delighted! This is how I grew up too, then one day my mum said ‘if you can read, you can bake’ and gave us the cookery books. It was mayhem! but we all learned to cook, there were five of us!
Such a lovely happy time for your children, well done to Dad too, will be looking forward to the final construction,
Gemma 🙂
Can not bring up the pattern. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Susan,
I use this one (http://justshyofperfection.com/tag/mini-gingerbread-house-pattern/) scroll down through this post, there it is!
Gemma 🙂
The gingerbread house pattern linked doesn’t appear to be one used. Is there another link?
Hi Kathi,
Here is the link again. Scroll down to the very bottom of the page and the pattern is there. Let me know if you still can’t find it 🙂
Gemma.
Hi! I’m definitely going to make a full batch for my family today! How much does the oven have to be heated to? I’m guessing 350° Fahrenheit, is that correct?
Thank you!
Hi there,
(https://www.biggerbolderbaking.com/single-serving-christmas-cookies/) you will find the Gingerbread cookie recipe here, you bake it at 180C/360F for 10 or so minutes, keep an eye on them, happy baking,
Gemma 🙂
These looked and tasted GREAT! I cut them out into little cookies and baked them on 350F for 6 minutes they turned out nice and soft on the inside and crisp (but not too crisp *like my first batch*) Yummy! Will use this recipe again! My sister, who NEVER likes anything I make had 7! Thanks Gemma! =)
Haha! Kate, you made a rod for your own back , as my Mum would say, you will be chained to the cooker now!
I am happy that you are happy, and that your sister is happy too, you guys are so kind to your siblings,
Gemma 🙂
Hi! Is fancy molasses okay for the recipe? Thanks! Love your channel by the way!
Sure, that will work. 🙂
Is this also the recipe you’d suggest for cut out cookies? I tried your single serve gingerbread and it was absolutely amazing. I was looking for a batch recipe! I also intend on making that beautiful traditional Irish gingerbread as soon as I pick up a new pan! ♡ I adore you BTW. Random side note!
Yep, you can definitely use this recipe for making a full batch of gingerbread cookies. Thanks so much for visiting my website 🙂
Of course! This is still my go to recipe. I adore it. Thank you for sharing! I look forward to your newesr recipe. Random, but I saw a beautiful hot cocoa cut out cookie recipe done by Mike @ Semi Sweet Designs. Do you think you would ever consider trying this? Or is it not your style?
I will see what I can do. Stay tuned 🙂