Gingerbread

PREPARATION

• 1
  Let the kneading begin! In a bowl, mix the flour, spice blend, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, a pinch of salt, and powdered sugar.
• 2
  Mix this dry base well, then add the butter and egg. Using your fingers or a food processor, crumble the mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs.
• 3
  Finally, pour in the honey and knead it into a slightly sticky, smooth dough that resembles playdough in texture.
• 4
  Wrap it in foil and place it in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours, but it's best to leave it overnight!
• 5
  Time to bake! Once the dough has rested, preheat the oven to 160 °C and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• 6
  On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to about 4-5 mm thick. Use various cookie cutters and cut out the shapes!
• 7
  Transfer them to the baking sheet. It's important to always bake similarly sized shapes at the same time, so they bake perfectly and evenly!
• 8
  Place in the hot oven and bake for about 8-10 minutes.
• 9
  Kifli trick: As soon as you take the baking sheet out, immediately brush the gingerbread cookies with a lightly beaten egg white. This will make them beautifully shiny.
• 10
  Let them cool slightly on the baking sheet, then transfer them to a wire rack and let them cool completely to room temperature.
• 11
  Time to decorate! Once the cookies have cooled, prepare the icing: lightly beat the egg white with a fork, then sift in the powdered sugar and starch. Mix until you get a thick, shiny icing. The icing should be thick, but still just able to drip off a spoon.
• 12
  If it's too thick, add a tiny bit of lemon juice; if it's too thin, add a little more sugar.
• 13
  Fill a piping bag with some of the icing, cut off a very small corner, and decorate the gingerbread cookies with thin lines as your imagination dictates.