We read several renditions of Gingerbread Friends like The Gingerbread Man by Jim Aylesworth and Barbara McClintock,
Gingerbread Baby and
Gingerbread Friends by Jan Brett,
and Gingerbread Mouse by Katie Bratun.
Most of these stories became favorites.
Our housekeeping area was filled with things so that we could practice making cookies. We had bowls, spoons, rolling pins, cookie cutters, cookie sheets and spatulas.
As we played, we chanted:
Five little cookies at the bakery shop
All decorated with sugar on top
Along comes ___________ with a penny to pay
And he (she) bought one cookie and he (she) walked away.
Four...Three...Two...One...
More practicing took place with paint and collage materials.
Gingerbread men shapes and buttons provided
a fun sorting and designing activity.
We did some more practicing with cinnamon-scented playdough. We squished it, rolled it, cut it and decorated it with buttons.
All the practice was put to the test when we set out to make real Gingerbread Friends.
Here’s our recipe so we can make some more at home:
8 tablespoons of butter
1/2 cup sugar1/2 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Beat butter with sugar and molasses. Mix in egg. Sift dry ingredients and mix into wet mixture. Chill in freezer 1 hour. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out portion of dough 1/4 inch thick on lightly floured board. Chill remaining dough. Cut with cookie cutter. Place on greased baking sheets and decorate. Bake 8-10 minutes. Cool.
We worked together putting in the ingredients. We watched the mixer stir it up and then we each had a teeny tiny taste!
We put the dough in the refrigerator to chill. Awhile later, we took turns rolling out the dough and cutting out our Gingerbread Friends. We added little candies to complete their look.
We were fortunate in that our Gingerbread Friends didn’t run away!
We loved decorating gingerbread houses with real candy!
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