Are You Counting Down Until Gingerbread House Making Day?

My kiddos are beginning to think about the holidays, and of course, that means gingerbread house decorations and gingerbread house techniques are becoming part of the weekly conversation.  Gingerbread house making day isn't set in stone yet, but with 2 kids in college, we are looking at the latter part of December. 

I depend on my older daughters to help with the baking, and in fact, they've watched so much through the years that they can do the baking and cutting on their own.  Imagine starting out as a Mom with all of the expertise and experience that it took me nearly 20 years to amass.  My daughters will most certainly have fun with their own house decorating as mothers some day.

Parents, even if your kiddos are young, create a tradition that instills understanding and experience while building skills.  My learning began as a youngster making cookies with my Mom.  Gingerbread wasn't an annual tradition, but it was a treasured one.  With my kids, I've improved over time to the point where they will have lots of knowledge about what works and what doesn't when they create their own family traditions.  Whatever your holiday holds, traditions based on favorite baking and decorating themes are cementitious in that they hold things together.

You can check out my compilation of recipes, techniques and gingerbread traditions here.

Gingerbread House Village Parts

Gingerbread House Village

If you don't really want to make your own gingerbread house village, these beautiful ceramic gingerbread houses are just wonderful. There are lots of additional options, and this can be equally captivating for adults and children. My sister-in-law has extensive Christmas village displays set up each year, and they fascinate the kids. I love the idea of a gingerbread Christmas village theme! Explore more ceramic gingerbread house decor.

Whimsical Gingerbread House Techniques: Sugar Cone Trees

Whimsical Gingerbread House Tree Figurinees

If you love gingerbread house decor during your holiday season, then you will adore these cute trees.  If you want to incorporate this concept into your gingerbread house techniques, there is absolutely no difficulty in tracking down sugar cones and doing a little stacking.

If you need a little padding between cones to create a layer that makes for distinct levels of each cone section, I suggest using a soft candy like Air Heads, rolling out a bit between parchment paper layers to thin, and placing between sections.  Marshmallow would work as well.  Fondant would also work.

Of course, a single cone makes an elegant tree, while stacked cones are more whimsical.

For more gingerbread house techniques, be sure to explore this post (http://allthingsgingerbread.blogspot.com/p/gingerbread-cutting-techniques.html), full of my cutting techniques for making your own gingerbread houses.

Gingerbread House Yard Decor: Gingerbread Flag

Gingerbread House Yard Decor:  Gingerbread Flag

Yard flags are great for use in your holiday decorating. They serve as visual reminders of the season without requiring a huge amount of effort. You can save all of your decorating energy for your gingerbread house project in the kitchen! The gingerbread house yard flag depicted is a beautiful choice of holiday imagery, great for greeting carolers or for welcoming your grandkids to gingerbread camp. Of course, if you are looking for a gingerbread man or an inflatable gingerbread house, there are always more gingerbread house yard decor possibilities.

Gingerbread House Recipes and Steps

How to Make Gingerbread Houses
with Gingerbread House Recipes and Variations






 If you are looking for a Kindle book on how to make a gingerbread house, I've compiled my steps and strategies along with my gingerbread house recipes, sugar cookie house recipe and other variations in this guide. Available here.

Gingerbread House Candies: Find Razzles Online

Memory Lane

For the youngster of the late 70's and early 80's, Razzles were one of the favorite candies...or should I say, gums...or, perhaps, both? Of course! With a hard candy coating, original Razzles candies began with the feel and flavor of fruity candies. However, as the coating dissolved, the chewy goodness of gum came through, giving long lasting flavor and fun to the consumer. A childhood favorite, I enjoyed Razzles, and they were also a favorite decorative accent to family gingerbread house making. Though the years have passed, the classic candy/gum treat is still around, available for your own trip down memory lane, or for a perfect part of the ultimate gingerbread house!

Razzle Dazzle?

As with many popular childhood candies, Razzles have gone through some innovation in flavor, and a number of alternatives to the original lemon, raspberry, grape, blueberry and orange are available. The sour candies phase of the late 80's has never entirely disappeared, and many familiar varieties experimented with sour candies, Razzles included. Try those same original flavors in their sour counterparts.

Tropical Delight

The tropical trend also hit many popular candies of the 70's and 80's, and Razzles offers a tropical flavor assortment, as well.

Take a little trek into your past, or stock up for some fun summer treats. Plan ahead for your gingerbread house party, or just stock up because you enjoy them!

You can find all sorts of old fashioned candies in the virtual aisles of Amazon...and some, though not as old fashioned as we realize, are still our childhood favorites, stirring up memories, and inspiring gag gifts, practical jokes, and fun times as we remember the childhood themes that surrounded them. My favorite use for these older favorites is incorporating them into gingerbread house decorating activities with my kiddos.
However you put these candies to use, you can definitely find Razzles candies online, along with others, in varied quantities.

Now and Later Candies for Gingerbread House Decor

 

 

A Favorite From the 70's

For the teens and tweens of the late 70's, Now and Later Candies were a standard favorite, often purchased before school at the local 7-11 store, and pawned off at a profit throughout the day. Visible at the grocery checkstand, Now and Later candies were a favorite request when Mom was at the point of proceeding with her purchase. The lasting ability of Now and Later was it's selling point for a kid. Pop one in, and fruity flavor was long lasting. Harsh on the teeth, but great for flavor, it was very popular, if not permitted, in the school arena.

Now and Later, Now

It's rare to see Now and Later Candy in the checkout lane of the grocery store these days. Even at the local convenience store, it's not the most obvious on display, if it's there. Check the candy aisle of the grocer, and it's probably not visible. Now and Later may make an appearance in a different form, as a candy cane variety at Christmas, for example, or as a Jelly Bean variety at Easter. The flavors are bold, and therefore worthy of such innovation. However, Now and Later in it's original form is a little tougher to locate. Our local nostalgia candy store carried the small 4 packs, but as the economy slowed, the store closed its doors. A favorite in our annual gingerbread house decorating, it's great to know that we can order online.

Flavors

Now and Later candies are still available in the classic flavors, memorable to school kids of the 70's and 80's, including grape, watermelon, and sour apple. A modern twist, many new flavors abound, sure to stimulate the sweet tooth of young and old, alike. Orange, Strawberry, Strawberry Banana-split, Mango Melon, Lemonberry Split, Green Tingleberry, Cherry Apple Split, Black Radberry, Red Radberry, Blue Radberry, Cherry Limeade Splash, Peppermint, and Peach Smash are some of the new selections available.

Easier on the Teeth

Now and Later soft candy is also available, more taffy-like than the original chews, which were much too hard to chew, and needed to slowly soften in one's mouth. That was the appeal of the original candy, more than likely to the chagrin of many dentists and parents. The softer version, still a danger to the dental work of us 70's kids in modern day, may be a nice way to enjoy an old favorite without tearing out crowns!
Different flavors are available in the soft Now and Laters, including chocolate and vanilla.

Enjoy a Trip Down Memory Lane!

Stock up, eat some now, and enjoy some later! You will find online sources a good way to do so, with bulk Now and Later Candies easily available.