
6 batches of my gingerbread recipe…

4 batches or 4 kg of royal icing…

and goodness knows how much candy later…

is what it took to make the 7 simple and whimsical gingerbread houses & gingerbread dollhouse facade I had planned to make this year.

I’m so happy I just managed to get them all done!

They’re why I haven’t posted in a while, but I wouldn’t have managed to even make them as fast as I did without my new, 7-quart bowl-lift KitchenAid mixer.

Sigh. It is a thing of beauty.

Not only is it pretty to look at, it’s pretty powerful too. It had no problem mixing the 6 batches of gingerbread I mentioned earlier. Amount-wise, with this mixer, I only had to make the dough twice! (3 batches at a time). For the royal icing, I only had to make 2 double-batches and still have leftover icing which I’ll use for decorated cookies.
To show you how I made the icing in my new mixer, I finally made another video – here’s a how-to on making royal icing for your gingerbread houses:
{Video} How to Make Royal Icing for Gingerbread Houses
Click here if you can’t see the video.
If you’d like to make royal icing for your gingerbread house(s), and would like printable recipes, I’ve included a single and double batch recipe here for you, as well as a classic royal icing recipe made with egg-whites especially for those of you who can’t find meringue powder. The first two recipes listed here are adapted from cakecentral.com’s user Antonia74. The recipe made with egg whites is adapted from the author of Gingerbread for All Seasons, Teresa Layman.
You can find a template for a gingerbread house and a video on how I put the house together, HERE.
I bought most of my candy at Old Thyme Confections HERE.
Royal Icing Recipe for Gingerbread Houses (One or Two Batches)
Click here for the Printable Recipe

Royal Icing Recipe Made with Egg-Whites
Click here for the Printable Recipe THE PRINTABLE RECIPE HAS A TYPO! IT SHOULD SAY 1 KILOGRAM (KG) ICING SUGAR, NOT 1 pound (lb).

A quick note about royal icing – if you’d like more information on how to store it, how long it lasts etc., please click here and for a video on find royal icing consistency for decorating cookies, please click here.
It was completely worth the one hour’s drive to Toronto to buy the mixer (I had to drive there to get one as it’s a new model and the residential model is exclusively available to Williams-Sonoma right now. The NSF commercial mixer is more readily available. You can find it on Amazon here), as the amount of icing I went through for the houses and the facade was really something!
You might be wondering by now what a ” gingerbread dollhouse facade” is. In fact, I didn’t know what to call it, so I just kind of made the name up. I know you’re not supposed to play with your food, but I couldn’t resist making a little gingerbread “house” that our H-banana could play with this Christmas. Truth be told I had wanted to make an all edible interior too, but time-wise, that was just not going to happen. I can’t wait to see how she reacts.

And another confession, I’m not sure who’s going to enjoy her gift more, her or I. Lol. I think I’ve fallen in love with miniatures.

I mean, really. Those little cookies are barely 1 cm long.

And oh my goodness, a little sieve and whisk! I want to try sifting flour with it! (No, haven’t done it yet… stress the yet).

By the way, there’s a tiny version of something in the ‘gingerbread dollhouse facade’ that I’ll possibly be giving you for Christmas – except it will be adult size. Can you guess what it is? Chances are, if you’ve read the title of this post, you already know 😉 .

You got it!

Ultimate 7-Quart KitchenAid Mixer Giveaway!
To celebrate the Holiday season and help you with your Christmas baking, I am hosting a giveaway for TWO 7-quart Ultimate KitchenAid Mixers!
You’ll be able to chose from the following available colours:

I am so excited and thankful that KitchenAid is sponsoring this giveaway for you! Good luck!
Here’s how to enter:
You have at least five chances of winning – each option below gives you one chance, and you’re about to see how there are even more possibilities.
Either use Facebook or your name and email to enter the contest below.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
The contest is not running on Facebook and although I appreciate your comments on my Facebook page, those comments will not be entered into the draw. Again, you must leave your comments here.
*
Announcing the Winner of the *TWO* 7-Quart KitchenAid Mixers!
First of all, thank you to all of you who entered; I was delighted and touched by your sweet, funny and passionate responses.
I really WISH I could give away as many mixers as there were entries; you dedicated bakers and sweet-tooths deserve it!
There is one winning comment number though, and it is:
Congratulations!!

The winner is Nicole Irwin Cross, entry #16,754!
Please contact me with the best way to reach you so that you can claim your prizes.
Thank you to ALL of you how entered! Blessings to you this holiday season!
xo,
Marian



LOVE your blog!
I would love to win that cherry red kitchen-aid mixer!!
That giveaway would be the cherry on top of my sweets and beyond imagination.
Thank you for your creativity!
I have a family of 7 and this mixer would be so helpful. All four of us girls love to bake and our dream is to have a kitchen aid mixer. Imagine how many trats we could make with one of these beauties!
Thanks for always doing awesome giveaways! Hope I win the mixer! 🙂
Those miniatures are awesome.
This would be a wonderful Christmas gift to me!!!!
I would love to win this!
oh how I would smile every time I would use that mixer!!
Oh my goodness! I’d be so thankful to win this! 🙂
I would love the red one , it would make my day and year, yay Kitchen Aid!
I would love to win a RED mixer!!
I would love to win the black kitchen-aid mixer!!! Pick me Pick me!!! lol
I would love to enter to win the mixer too.Your gingerbread houses are adorable!!!
I would love to win !!!!
A thing of beauty!
Beautiful houses. You did a wonderful job. I would love to win a mixer.
I LOVE your gingerbread houses.. but my fave is the PINK onr!!!
best regards,
Wanda
I would be HONORED to win this mixer contest!!!!
I am opening a cupcake shop and sure do need the black (or any color) Kitchenaide, and would love love love to have your video. ~~smiling very big~~
Oh how I would love a 7 quart Kitchen Aid!!!!
@ Ali:
How gorgeous – – I would LOVE to win the mixer 🙂
Sorry I do not have a website right now as I am just starting out on this delicious venture. I have very much enjoyed viewing all the pictures, tips and tricks and because of the generosity of that I have learned a lot. Thank you so much!
I would love to win that mixer in medallion silver. Sweetopia really is an inspiration 🙂
Would love to win the red one could make so many delicious things
I loved the gingerbread house,I hope I win this kitchen aid mixer,I never won anything in my life yet,hope my luck changes today,plz pick me
Amy Rouse sent me and I would really really love to win this mixer. Thank you for the giveway and Merry Christmas
WOW this place is fab!!!! And that is the most amazing mixer ever!!
My vintage KA mixer would like a bigger little sister 🙂
I’d love to win one of the wonderful kitchenaids. The red one is so cute!! It would be a dream to win it.
My sister, Ashley Shay, told me about your giveaway and I had to enter! I love the silver one. My sister makes a ton of cookies and NEEDS a new mixer badly so I am crossing my fingers that I can help her win one. Thanks for the great giveaway!
I would really love to win because my business is growing so incredibly fast, and my tiny mixer refuses to grow with it! This mixer is super cake-hot, and so is sweetopia! 😉
I really want a black kitchen aid mixer hope I win today,it’s nice for a change
Oh this would e such a wonderful win! Just in time for Christmas. Thanks for the giveaway!!!
I would really love to will the candy apple red mixer! Iäve always wanted one!
awesome would make a great gift
My husband said it was either a mixer or the mortgage this year for
Christmas…. I picked the mixer, but apparently he felt the mortgage
was more important… (where are his priorities?!??!)
So on that note, I’d very much like to enter the contest! A
shiny black mixer would make my year-
It would also save my husband another year of guilt trips 😉
Merry Christmas!
I looooooove it…I want the Black one!!!!
I would LOVE to win the cherry red mixer! My old Kitchenaid Artisan is dying and I was planning on replacing it soon. This would be a dream come true!7 qts!
My 17 year old is an avid baker..she’s always making something or the other..this would be perfect!
I would love to win a kitchen aid mixer!!!! 🙂
I do a ton of cakes and cookies all year long, I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to win! That red mixer is just gorgeous!
I would LOVE to have a kitchenaid! My off-brand stand mixer is not able to keep up with all of my baking orders!
Thanks for hosting such a wonderful giveaway!
Would love to win as I am just starting out cooking and need all the great tools to help! Thanks!
I love ur page sweetopia and I also would love a black kitchen aid mixer for my brand new home,I hope guys pick muah xo
Beautiful gingerbread houses! Would love to win a new mixer!
Would love to win this for my wife!
I’m all about the candy apple red Kitchen Aid! Love the cool houses!
Oh, and Ashley Shay sent me!