Gingerbread Fun

Are you getting ready for the 18th annual Grove Park National Gingerbread House Competition! The competition date is November 15, 2010 and the sweet sugar and spice masterpieces will be on display November 17, 2010 – January 2, 2011 in ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA. I can’t wait to see the incredible creations for 2010!! DETAILS HERE.

Grove Park Gingerbread House Competition Esteemed Judges:

Gerry Hempel-Davis,  A judge at every National Gingerbread House Competition since its inception. She was a lifestyle contributor for several years on NBC’s Today Show and part of the production team at CBS for the Ed Sullivan Show.

Nicholas Lodge, Chef Lodge is recognized worldwide as a top instructor in the sugar craft arts and the author of numerous books. He has been a judge of the National Gingerbread House Competition since 2004.

Nadine Orenstein, Curator of the Department of Drawings and Prints of The Metropolitan Museum of Art specializing in Dutch, Flemish and German art. She brings her artistic eye and historical knowledge to the appreciation of gingerbread houses.

Colette Peters, The owner of Colette’s Cakes, a specialty cake company in New York City, she has designed celebrity cakes for Whoopi Goldberg, Al Pacino, Sting, Bette Midler, Hilary Clinton, the Rolling Stones and Yoko Ono. Pastry Art & Design magazine named her to its “Ten Best Pastry Chefs in America.”

Mark Seaman, Founder of Marked for Dessert, a boutique cake shop in Chicago. He teaches the art of gum paste flowers at the Wilton School of Cake Decorating and the French Pastry School’s L’Art du Gateau Professional Cake Decorating and Baking Program.

Steven Stellingwerf, In addition to judging competitions and conducting demonstrations, he has authored baking and sugar craft books, including “The Gingerbread Book.”

New judges for the 2010 National Gingerbread House Competition are:

Carol Gable,  has been a producer the last 15 years for the newsmagazine, “Dateline NBC”.

Michelle Pulliam, Food and Leisure Coordinator for Southern Hospitality Magazine—Traveler.

Jane Robelot,  is a nationally acclaimed television news anchor and correspondent and the recent recipient of a Peabody award. Jane interviewed such newsmakers as President Bill Clinton, First Lady Hillary Rodman Clinton, Evangelist Billy Graham as well as many actors and authors.

Denny Trantham, is the Executive Chef for The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa. His southern Appalachian culinary skills are reflected today in his innovative and diverse Southern elegance cuisine that is offered throughout the resort. He also works closely with the local famers in order to provide the freshest ingredients, while also supporting the local economy.

Calling all kids and parents! Time to make the Gingerbread cottages. Once again, Martha Stewart does not dissapoint with this fun Gingerbread Cottage project. This is a fun and yummy project that does not take too much time and really is so much fun for the whole family. Make a Tudor Gingerbread House, a Gingerbread Country Woodsy House, a Peprmint Palace Gingerbread House and More!For features such as green gumdrop hedges or a blue jelly bean path, buy sweets in bulk at a candy shop or online. Cover the ground with a blanket of snowy shredded coconut for a wondrous display you can enjoy all season. Details Here for Gingerbread Cookie Cottages.

We are loving that cupcakes are so popular and are having a blast visiting bakeries that bake these treats and are really enjoying the super yummy cupcakes (I think my dentist is enjoying the visits I have been making lately too). So, in all true form that we love Everything Gingerbread….here is a tasty Martha Stewart recipe we found for you all for a spicy Gingerbread Cupcake and it looks so cute decorated with tiny Gingerbread men and Gingerbread boy sugared candies. Enjoy!

Cupcakes seem to be all the rage latley so it makes perfect sense that we would find a Gingerbread cupcake to share with you all! On the Duncan Hines website you can find a really yummy recipe for Gingerbread chocolate cupcakes.  Details Here.

As my quest continues for unique Gingerbread Houses, I cam across this great one – Southwestern Gingerbread Cookie House. House is complete with adobe style architecture and details. Visit here for details BHG.

I don’t know what part of the country you are in but we are in the South and boy is summer time in full swing here with temperatures in the tripple digits! When most folks think of Gingerbread they tend to picture a snowy winter day near Christmas time and baking the Gingerbread treats and houses but not us here at Gingerbreadfun, why not have a frozen Gingerbead Man of Gingerbread Woman on a stick for a summer time treat! Check out the neat frozen Gingerbread recipe we found: Details here at Family Fun.

FROSTY FRED AND FRIEDA

1 quart chocolate or vanilla ice cream
Gingerbread men cookie cutters
Assorted candies, such as red hots, shoestring licorice, Dots, M&M’s and chocolate sprinkles

A Gingerbread House can be made for any holiday! This is such a neat colorful Patriotic Gingerbread House for the 4th of July with all the red, white, and blue!

Just when you think you have seen EVERYTHING about singer Lady Gaga and that there is NOTHING left to surprise you here are some Lady Gaga Gingerbead Cookies! If you look at the photo and really closely look at these cookie ladies you can see that the baker/decorator captured the costumes and poses Lady Gaga is famous for….pretty good job!! If you are interested in more details then visit here- Crafty Crafty.

This one is so neat! The Eiffel Tower made out of Gingerbread Bread and decorated simply with only red and green icing or M&Ms. It would also be really fun to make the Eiffel Tower super shiny as if it were all lit up at night with millions of lights and this could easily be achieved once your base Eiffel Tower was created as you could decorate it with edible glitter, sanding sugar or edible silver beads or “dragees”.  Its up to you and you can get as creative as you like, maybe you are skilled enough to create one of the two restaurants in the tower- Altitude 95 or Jules Verne the Michelin Star restaurant! “j’aime Paris” I love Paris.

Was just watching the movie Sabrina from 1954 with Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn on iTunes… remember her life altering trip to Paris?

The Life’s a Beach kit includes everything to make a great Gingerbread cabana:

• Spicebrook Forest Summer Candies
• Gingerbread Spice Mix
• Instruction Manual
• One easy cookie dough recipe makes seven houses
• Pastry Cloth and Rolling Pin Cover
• Cookie Cutter Set
• Made in America