Two gingerbread houses created by Darla McCammon’s daughters. Photo provided.
By Darla McCammon
Two of my four daughters worked together this week, in my kitchen, and created three gingerbread houses.
These turned out to be creative artistry that is also edible. it got me thinking about how gingerbread came into being and why it is now an occasion for the artistic to excel.
It turns out that ginger is responsible. This root crop which is now an everyday spice we use, especially in gingerbread, was grown in China, where it was found to have wonderful preservation qualities. It was able to preserve both meat and flour, which are very important to the Chinese diet. The ancient Greeks were also aware of the benefits to be found in ginger. Over time, ginger was baked into small cookies or “crisps,” which eventually made their way around the world and into the cookies we now call ginger snaps.
The original cookies were called “fairings” and were found to be in great demand at local fairs and events. The popularity of these small but tasty offerings became widespread through Europe and artistic chefs began the tradition of decorating them with vivid frostings and gilded designs around the edges. This was the very beginning of the expansion of this décor into the now popular gingerbread houses.
The practice of making tasty and creative gingerbread houses grew quickly both in North America and Europe but more notably was brought to an art form in the 1800s in Germany. Bakers in Germany are given credit for the next step. They adapted their gingerbread creations to fit the wonderful story of Hansel and Gretel. This fairy tale written by the Grimm Brothers describes the two children, who were lost and abandoned in a large forest when they came upon a lifesaving house made of all edible pieces. This house of gingerbread and various candies and deliciously decorated cookies and trim would save their lives.
Bakers used the story of the edible house and began creating actual small replicas of the house. Fantastic designs and embellishments began to follow until the gingerbread confection became a holiday tradition with all kinds of candy, including gumdrops, caramels, peppermints, fondant, and varied colors of icing adorning every available space. Imagination was key to making these gingerbread houses extremely popular at Christmastime. Today, Wilton Company offers kits for your family to create their own unique Hansel and Gretel gingerbread house. The end project is expected to represent some form of architecture but tradition shows most houses end up as depicted in the photo above. Everything else you need, except for your creativity, is included.