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The December 2009 Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to you by Anna of Very Small Anna and Y of Lemonpi. They chose to challenge Daring Bakers’ everywhere to bake and assemble a gingerbread house from scratch. They chose recipes from Good Housekeeping and from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book as the challenge recipes.
Ok, before you lynch me, rest assured that we were allowed to post our Daring Bakers’ challenge a little earlier than the 27th to coincide with the holidays. So don’t take me off the ‘Good Girl List’ just yet!
Cathedral all dazzled up with christmas lights
December’s challenge was always going to be excitingly festive and this year didn’t disappoint. After the initial, ‘oh, shit’, I think I may have yelled, ‘holy crap, awesome!’. It was always something I’ve wanted to tackle year after year but was always hampered by Xmas mayhem and the fact that I really couldn’t be arsed after days of tackling crazy carpark rage and holiday shoppers. This year, miracle of miracles, I had more time for myself, which is a good thing as I would’ve gone insane if I did the challenge in one hit rather than spreading it out over a period of time.
The back of the church and the closest I’ll ever get to a white Christmas this year
I’ve always been a little gung-ho and I knew that I wanted to do something a little different for my first time. I love classic architecture so when I glanced at a photo of one of my favourite buildings – St Andrews Cathedral in Glasgow, Scotland – I knew I found my crazy muse. Of course, the gingerbread version had to be simpler and even though I wanted to, I couldn’t include every single intricate detail of the cathedral.
The inspiration: St Andrew’s Cathedral in Glasgow, Scotland (image taken from Urban Glasgow)
Sketching the church and drawing all the template pieces to scale were the easy parts. Rolling, cutting and baking 35 different pieces of gingerbread were tedious but relatively drama-free. The scary part was always going to be the assembling and having the gingerbread collapse on itself.
I made Y’s dough for the challenge but found it a bit tough to work with after a small amount of shrinkage and puffage in the baked pieces so I used the rest for cookies (you can find the two challenge recipes on The Daring Kitchen). I chose to finish the challenge with the gingerbread recipe that I usually use, which is similar in some ways but it was one I knew would work for my needs.
The stained glass windows were done with coloured sugar crystals which I melted in a pot and ‘poured’ into the windows. Can I just reiterate that I hate working with caramel (and I’m sure I’ve told you all a million times!). True to form, this messy stained glass window business didn’t help.
The cathedral’s pillars were made with ‘building blocks’ of gingerbread. And in case I wanted to light it up, I added two pigeon holes at the back of the cathedral for string lights. Decorating the whole thing was kept simple with a liberal sprinkling of icing sugar snow (complete with footprints!) – after all, it’s Scottish and this is a white Christmas!
After some minor mishaps (and an odd bout of cursing at the caramel), I’m happy to see that my very first gingerbread ‘creation’ didn’t collapse or look like a primordial blob. The Captain is downcrest at the thought of ravaging my hard work (although he admitted it would be a delicious task). Sad thing is, I think I might’ve created a monster as I’ve already looked to even more wacky landmarks for next year’s project. The boy suggested my beloved Anfield Stadium. *Manic grin*. Watch this space lol.
And finally (yes finally… I will shut up soon!), a huge Merry Christmas and happy new year! So much has happened since my humble blog’s first Christmas last year and it’s all thanks to the myriad of amazing bloggers that I’m lucky to have as good friends and comrades as well as the lovely readers who visit, email and comment. I wish you all a safe and happy holidays and remember, drink responsibly and eat lots.
{ 96 comments… read them below or add one }
Absolutely stunning! Really beautiful job, and wonderful photographs!
Beautiful Cathedral. I love the architecture you did. Happy Holidays!
Such a great job! I love what you did with this challenge – the Cathedral is flawless =D.
COngratulations! I admire your patience in making the gingerbread cathedral :)
My… o… my, that's one amazing “project”, Happy Holiday!
What an amazing job Karen. It's so beautiful and original. I hope you and your family have a wonderful christmas. I looke forward to seeing more post from you in 2010.
AMAAAZZZZINNG!!! I knew it would be and it is! A masterpiece, you should be so so proud Karen :) I love that you kept the decorations subtle rather than going crazy with the candy decorations. I love it!
My goodness, an absolute masterpiece to wake to on Christmas morning! Have fun eating it and an even better Christmas =)
Hallehlujah indeed!!!! Oh my word, Karen, you have outdone yourself!!! I love those leadlight candy windows! Merry Christmas to you and hope to read more from you in the new year!
Geesh!!! This is one absolutely stunning creation. You have really set the bar for Gingerbread buildings. I love the multi coloured stain glass windows, beautiful.
Brings back memories of that time in Paris…I still have nightmares about that helicopter.
Lovely cathedral, lovely photos, lovely lights (and bokeh :P). Merry christmas.
Merry Christmas Karen! Love the cathedral. I'm counting on you to do the Anfield stadium in gingerbread next year! It's a definite must :)
Oh wow that is amazing Karen! Congrats on getting through it and Merry Christmas! Hope you have fun eating your cathedral (or maybe it's too much hard work to demolish in one go?)
Absolutely phenomenal job Karen! I love the idea of the cathedral and it looks very accurate! I hope you and your family have a very Jolly Christmas and a Happy New Year! :) xxx
wow that is so preeettty !!! Merry Christmas !
dude! that gingerbread cathedral is freaking beautiful! love the stained glass windows!
Omg. Gorgeous :D Beautiful photographs here! I love your Gingerbread Cathedral!
Wow. Wow. Wow. What a beautiful cathedral. I backed out of the December challenge because I'm not as creative as you and the other DBers. I wished I could make such a beautiful creation.
Beautiful…I love the windows! Hope you have a very merry Christmas!
Holy freaking cow Karen. I think that says it all.
Merry Christmas to you and the Captain!
Karen what a masterpiece! Wishing you and hubby a truly wonderful Christmas. Thankyou for all your hard work and for giving me so much joy from reading your blog each day. I look forward to hearing more from you. All my love Kate xx
Wow, gorgeous! I'm speechless and a bit envy. I would like to have your talent. ;-)
Happy Holidays!
So appropriate that you posted your gingerbread cathedral on Christmas day – it's an absolute masterpiece! You should do one of each of the major landmarks of the world (just joking, sort of!).
Have a happy Christmas.
This is really a masterpiece! Merry Christmas :)
OMG! YOu went further than usual gingerbread house! Fantastic! Love it :)
Merry Christmas from rainy Ireland!
Lots of presents from Santa, yummy Christmas feast and have a great time with your family and friends :)
Cheers! Anula.
Oh my that looks amazing! What a fantastic effort – I can almost hear the church bels and organ music :) Merry Christmas!
wow, i'm so inspired, this is by far the best gingerbread structure i've seen, well done!
that's impressive! awesome job. merry christmas!
Great job on this challenge Karen – the Cathedral is beautiful – so much detail and care that you put on this. Especially the windows! Merry Christmas!
Absolutely beautiful. Such a gorgeous gingerbread creation
Oh this is phenomenal….looks fantastic:).Loved it.Happy holidays!
You did it! It looks absolutely incredible Karen! I bet you're going to have a hard time pulling it apart to eat it!!
Excellent work with the challenge post! It's by far one of the best looking ones I've come across.
Though we may have come up with the same initial concept, we had a very different outlook on its end result, especially with the stained glass.
Nice work again, and a Merry Christmas to you and yours :)
WOW!!! What a terrific gingerbread “house”. “House” is just not the right word for such a grand, stunning creation! Truely magnificent! Merry Christmas.
WOW. Your cathedral is gorgeous! I love the multicolored windows and the roof especially. Nicely done!
AMAZING structure!! I love how your cathedral turned out! I also love all the colored windows and the simplicity with the snow dusted on it–so beautiful!!
Merry Christmas!!
WOW! This is absolutely incredible! Exceptional job!
It is beautiful! Patience pays in gingerbread construction. Well done.
Stunning job! I love it!
Hope you've had a wonderful Christmas and a good holiday season so far.
That's very beautiful and creative. Well done!
Oh wow – I am completely blown away by how beautiful and perfect your GB house is. Congratulations!! This was my very first Bakers Challenge and I”m really looking forward to the rest :)
Wow great job! Love to see the unusual versions of the gingerbread houses!
OMG this is absolutely stunning .. more than stunning. I am truly speechless. Hope you have a great hols and happy new year.
Fabulous Work! I love your cathedral rendition and the stained glass windows.
Natalie @ Gluten A Go Go
Ohh wow! that's incredible!
Wow . . that's an incredible baking project!!!
Love your gingerbread cathedral. It truly stands tall in the midst of our gingerbread houses.
Happy Holidays and best wishes for a very Happy New Year!
what a treat just to LOOK at this one!
You kept it simple? I can't wait to see complex… Your cathedral doesn't sound so simple to me. Love the windows and the creativity!
Awesome creation!
Architecturally AND gastronomically splendid!
Absolutely gorgeous!!!! You've done an amazing job! Happy Holidays and New Year!
Oh My, words can not express how amazing your gingerbread cathedral is. WOW, mine looks like preschoolers work compared. Beautifully done.
Eep you made a cathedral!! It's really gorgeous. I'm so glad you enjoyed the challenge!
Unreal! Love those stained glass windows, they look absolutely amazing when lighted up. And everything is so precise, mine always ends up slightly wonky. Yours is so perfect, well done!
Oh My Oh My Oh My! Words fail me!!! This is just incredible and arent you such an inspiration to us all!! Have a Blessed Xmas and New year!
A piece of art…gosh, your gingerbread house is STUNNING!This is award winning stuff. Brilliant pictures too! have a wonderful new year!
WOW!!
This is un-freaking-believable!!
Wow, it looks amazing! Your cathedral is so perfect and beautiful! I'm wordless…
best wishes for 2010!
Cheers,
Rosa
OMG are you serious? this is amazing
I live near this place, outstanding effort!
This is absolutely amazing! I'm speechless (well… almost)! Fabulous!!
That is one amazing gingerbread cathedral, it's truly a work of art!
Wow. Okay, you win this round- this is one of the most unique, creative, and impressive gingerbread houses I've ever seen! Bravo, amazing work!
Amazing… I love that you recreated one of your favorite buildings. It looks fantastic!
Thanks for your lovely comment on my site! I'm always happy when someone likes my photos, because I'm just a beginner!
Love your cathedral! Funny, I have been in Scotland/Glasgow 3 months ago! And I also have seen St Andrews there (both ;-)).
You are doing a great job with your blog :-)
Stunning. Not just the architecture but the detail. Each time I look I see something new!
Wow, there was some engineering in that! Congrats on a fantastic job!! Are you going to eat it after all your hard work??
One of a kind! The most distinctive construction ever built in DB challenge! Kudos to your creation :-)
Sawadee from Bangkok,
Kris
wow! this is an architectural masterpiece – simply lovely!
Wow – amazing job…so intricate and beautiful! The windows are really neat.
Stunning! Beautiful job :)
Now that is one amazing gingerbread house! You really showed how its done!
Wow! Absolutely gobsmackingly good and the photographs really capture the elegance of the design. I'm from Glasgow originally, so I love it even more still! Nice job. :D
That is incredibly inspiring and fantastic!
So cool, what an amazing replica!
Your gingerbread cathedral is absolutely amazing. What a great idea and so beautifully put together. Fantastic baking and lovely photos, as always :)
All the best for 2010!
wow–that is pretty incredible!! i wouldn't be able to eat it either! happy new year!!
This is really a masterpiece! How could you bear to eat it after?
OMG! That is absolutley beautiful. Congrats!
Wow, what an awesome model to use for your challenge – it looks amazing! Kudos to you for stepping up to the challenge!
This is beyond stunning. You deserve a standing ovation, methinks!
Wow! I am seriously impressed!!! I'm a Tassie girl living in Edinburgh for the last 7 years and I can confirm that Scotland (well Edinburgh and Glasgow at least) had its first true White Christmas this year. A childhood ambition now ticked off the list ;0)
Having visited the real St Andrews many times over I am in awe of your master piece. Well done.
Your gingerbread cathedral really takes the cake! Sensational!
OMG, this is absolutely stunning! You have put in a lot of work and it shows, well done!
That's a beautiful cathedral! You did an awesome job! Happy 2010 too! :)
Is it weird to just say WOW WOW WOW? Probably, but I'm speechless. Have a Happy New Year oh queen of the gingerbread house!
Holy (pun intended) moley, that is spectacular!
OMG, this is amazing. You are a machine! Wow.
Oh my gosh! Thank you so much guys for all your lovely comments and wishes!
I'm so sorry if I can't reply to each comment individually (for now) but I really am touched from all the reactions and complements! It has made all the work and frustrations worth it!
(Y – I'll start work on Anfield Stadium in winter ;P)
A big happy new year to you all and cheers to all my fellow daring bakers. You all did amazing on an incredible challenge! Roll on 2010!
Karen xx
Wow, Your gingerbread house is just amazing
Very original shape, and I really love the beautiful decoration!
You are truly a talented baker, wtg for the fabulous job!
Inbal
(also a DB)
this is beautiful and amazing ! I am Pierre a french foodie in Paris have a nice season holidays !! cheers from Paris Pierre
OMFGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG OMFG! KAREN
THIS IS A FRIGGEN MASTERPIECE WOMAN!!! The best gingerbread house IVE SEEN!!!!!!!!!!!
I think your gingerbread “house” is my favorite! Great job!
WOW WOW WOW! KAren!!! This is amazing! I especially love the windows! Love it!!
wow! this is just amazing. I would never have thought I'd find a gingerbread version of Glasgow cathedral but here it is and it's stunning.