Winning Christmas

I know, I know Christmas isn’t about competition or winning BLAH BLAH BLAH. I don’t care.

Every year I take part in a Secret Santa gift exchange and gift wrapping competition with friends and this year I decided I was going to win the gift wrapping competition. Now if you too need to win a gift wrapping competition this is a sure fire way to win! Make a gingerbread gift box for your Secret Santa gift. Here is how you do it:

1. Make some gingerbread cookie dough. Chill it in the fridge for a few hours until it is nice a firm. (recipe below)

2. While the dough is chilling construct yourself an appropriately sized base and decide how big you need to make your gift box. You will need to cut out four side pieces and one top. I cut out two 2″x9″ pieces two 2″x12″ pieces and one 9″x12″ piece. Actually you probably should have decided how big you need to make your box before you make the dough. So now you have your chilled dough, a base and some measurements.

3. Cut four side pieces and one top piece. Transfer them onto a cookie sheet and bake as per the directions below.

4. While the cookies are baking start making the icing. I made Royal Icing and it worked rather well for me. The recipe I followed was pretty simple, beat 3 egg white with enough icing sugar to make a nice stiff and glossing icing. This made more than enough icing to ice my gift box. Transfer your icing into a ziplock bag and cut the tip off of one corner when you are ready to start icing.

5. Once the cookies are baked and fully cooled start assembling your gift box, just like you would a gingerbread house using the icing to attaching the walls and finally adding the top last. Don’t forget to put your gift in the box before you put the lid on the box. My gift was a book so, I wrapped it in plastic wrap before I put it in the box to make sure it wouldn’t get icing on it.

6. When you have the walls and top in place decorate the box however you would like.

You will win for sure! I did 🙂
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Gingerbread
Adapted from Martha Stewart’s Gingerbread Trees with Lemon Icing 

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for rolling
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup unsulfured molasses

Directions
Make cookies: In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar on medium-high until creamy, 3 minutes. Add egg and beat to combine. Add molasses and beat to combine, scraping down bowl as needed. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined. Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate until firm, 1 hour (or up to 3 days).
Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out dough to a 1/4-inch thickness. With a sharp knife or cookie cutter, cut dough into small 2-inch-wide triangles. Arrange triangles, 1 inch apart, on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are firm and golden at edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool completely on sheets on wire racks.