Gingerbread – a taste familiar from childhood! This is not only a delicious delicacy, loved by both adults and children, but also a delicate work of culinary art. Professionals paint the surface of baked goods using unique technologies, and amateurs, especially children, spend time usefully painting, developing creativity and imagination.
In the 21st century, many folk traditions in Russia are being successfully revived, including the art of gingerbread painting. It has become an integral part of the cultural heritage, touching which people become kinder and happier.
Glaze for painting gingerbread cookies
For gingerbread painting, you need to prepare the glaze correctly. It is used to cover gingerbread and apply beautiful patterns to the gingerbread fabric. Glazed gingerbreads have a subtle sweet taste, so loved by everyone. There are many recipes for this unique food material. We present proven and reliable options.
Recipe No. 1
To prepare the glaze you will need the following ingredients:
- protein – 1 pc.;
- powdered sugar – 200 gr.;
- food colorings.
You can add vanilla sugar - 3-4 g.
Cooking process:
Shake the protein in a cup until smooth and add 2-3 tablespoons of powdered sugar to it.
IMPORTANT! The protein should be at room temperature, and the powder should be sifted.
When protein combines with powder, lumps form. They should be thoroughly ground, gradually adding all the powder to the mass and kneading it well with a mixer until ready.
The consistency of the glaze may vary and depends on the purpose of use. So, to decorate the outline of the gingerbread, you need a base glaze, and filling is suitable to cover the surface.
Glaze consistency
- base glaze (hard peaks)
- soft peaks
- filling
Something to remember!
The finished glaze has quality characteristics such as:
- White color;
- uniform texture;
- density sufficient for use.
White glaze, ready for use, can be laid out individually and colored in the desired colors with food or natural dyes. At home, to obtain the desired color, its brightness and saturation, you should use beet or carrot juice.
Sweet success in painting gingerbread cookies with this glaze is guaranteed!
Recipe No. 2
An excellent solution for filling and painting gingerbread cookies is Hungarian or varnish glaze.
To prepare it you will need:
- yolk – 1 pc.;
- milk – 1 tbsp. l.;
- food coloring.
Cooking process:
The yolk, milk and dye must be combined and mixed until smooth, avoiding the appearance of bubbles. The glaze is ready.
It should be applied with a brush to the gingerbread cookies and put them to dry in an oven preheated to 140-150 degrees for 2-3 minutes. After this, let the baked goods dry for another day or two and only then can you apply any painting.
Recipe No. 3 Icing
Translated from English, “icing” is “glaze.” Prepared according to a special recipe, icing is used to decorate not only gingerbread cookies, but also cakes and pastries, making them real masterpieces of painting. With it, the appearance of confectionery products becomes more attractive, more appetizing and tastier.
Knowing some culinary subtleties, you can prepare icing from raw proteins at home:
To do this you will need the following ingredients:
- Egg white - 90 gr.
- Powdered sugar - 455 gr.
- Lemon juice - 5-7 drops
Cooking process:
The whites, separated from the yolks, should be refrigerated for 3-7 days. Then you must strain them through a sieve.
Sift the powdered sugar and combine with the strained egg white. Beat with a mixer for 5-7 minutes until foamy.
When all the components are combined, all that remains is to add lemon juice and beat everything until smooth.
Important! Lemon juice should not be added more than required in the recipe, otherwise the icing will turn out fragile and unsuitable for painting.
Recipe No. 4 Royal icing
Royal icing, prepared on the basis of egg powder, is becoming increasingly popular:
It includes the following components:
- Powdered sugar – 500 gr.;
- Dry egg powder (albumin) - 26 g;
- Boiling water - 90 ml. for base glaze (115 ml for filling).
Safe ready-made mixtures that use pasteurized protein (“Alter-icing” or “Ilmix”) are best suited for egg powder for icing.
Important! In order for the icing to be the desired consistency, suitable for applying a pattern to the surface of the gingerbread, the proportions of the ingredients must not be violated!
The combined components are whipped with a mixer until the consistency of thick sour cream. The resulting mass can be combined with dyes and can be used in white. Since icing dries quickly, it must be quickly transferred to a pastry bag and used for painting.
If there is unused icing left after painting, you can cover it with cling film and put it in the refrigerator, where it will retain its properties for a short time - about one week. It is advisable to cover the container with a lid so that the icing comes into contact with it. This will prevent a thick crust from forming and the product from drying out.
IMPORTANT! It must be remembered that finished products coated with icing cannot be stored in the refrigerator! The cold may cause the icing to deteriorate. Heat also has a negative effect on it: the product becomes sticky and loses its visual appeal.
At home, it is best to store painted gingerbread cookies in a cardboard box in a clean, dry room with moderate humidity. Recommended storage period is two weeks.
The process of making glaze
Wash the eggs well with soap or soda, since we will be using raw eggs.
Immediately start beating the whites with powdered sugar. Do not start beating the whites separately, otherwise the structure of the glaze will be filled with air bubbles instead of glossy and homogeneous.
Gradually add powdered sugar in parts, add citric acid at the end. The white glaze should turn snow-white.
For liquid glaze, use 30 g. less powder.
To achieve a perfect coloring result, food coloring is used. I use Americolor gel dyes. Add coloring to the finished glaze.
Photo: Kashevarnya.com
Prepare natural dyes for glaze
If you are a lover of organics and naturalness, then use natural dyes; they can also produce good results, but you need to work with them carefully so as not to upset the balance of the glaze composition.
For example, if you add the juice of a bright fruit, the amount of powder will have to be increased, but the coloring natural spices, on the contrary, will absorb the liquid, so you will have to reduce the amount of powdered sugar.
Turmeric, lemon and orange zest juice will give the yellow color. The brown color comes from onion peels, burnt juice, and strong coffee infusion. Chocolate - cocoa powder, a mixture of cocoa and red. Blue color - blueberries, blackberries, a mixture of green and yellow dyes. Red - juice of barberries, cherries, dark grape marc, dogwood, red currants, red syrups and jams. Burgundy, soft pink, raspberry - beet juice, red cabbage juice, raspberries. Orange - a mixture of yellow and red, tangerine zest, carrot juice. Green - spinach squeezed. Purple is a mixture of blue and red dyes, black currants.
What tools are used to paint gingerbread cookies?
A professional has many tools for painting gingerbread cookies. But at home, the main confectionery equipment should consist of at least six items such as:
Pastry awl
Pastry pencil
Pastry bag with tips
Kornetik
Pastry spatula
Brushes for drawing small details
Important! For novice craftsmen, it is better to apply the pattern on the gingerbread surface using pastry bags. The thickness of the drawing lines depends on the size of the hole at the tip of the bag.
Drawing tools
To paint confectionery products, you need a simple set of tools:
- pastry bag with nozzles or syringe;
- toothpicks to remove bubbles and level the coating;
- spatulas, they can be replaced with short rounded knives;
- stencils;
- tassels;
- parchment paper.
Methods and types of drawing
There are two main methods of painting: dry and wet. When using the dry method, the first layer of glaze is allowed to dry, and then the second is applied. This is how three-dimensional drawings are created. The second method is to apply the drawing on a wet background. This way you can mix colors and create gradient pictures.
Painting gingerbread cookies is a very painstaking task. For beginners, it is enough to master simple drawing techniques: filling with and without a contour, drawing wet on wet icing, wet on dry glaze, gradient filling. Ideas for inspiration can be found in photos and videos on the Internet. More experienced chefs use openwork decor - curls, mesh, monograms, cutwork. A detailed description of all the nuances of professional gingerbread painting can be found at numerous master classes.
Pattern application technique
To decorate gingerbread or cookies, glaze of different consistencies is used.
The edge of the cookie is outlined with a thin outline. Uneven lines can be corrected with a needle or toothpick. The product is dried naturally or in a preheated oven. It's cooling down. When drawing the main picture, you should start from the center. You can use special templates and stencils.
Maybe you will be interested in reading an article on how to prepare 7 glaze recipes for drips on a cake: https://style40plus.ru/tort-s-podtekami-shokolada-i-kak-sdelat-krasivo-podteki-na-torte/
Master class on applying icing
Gingerbread cookies with openwork patterns look very delicate and beautiful. To create such a pattern, you can use an embroidery pattern. The process is quite simple. Fill a piping bag with the icing mixture. Using a thin nozzle, carefully apply the mesh to the surface. First, horizontal lines with an approximate distance of 2 millimeters, followed by vertical lines in the same way. We fill the resulting cells with the pattern from the diagram. Dry in the oven.
More advanced cooks can paint colorful decor. You want the glaze to be the same consistency. We use colored dyes for the drawing.
Using a paper pattern, use a needle to mark the gingerbread with marks for the future design. Carefully fill the surface with the main color. Let it dry. Apply a second layer of fill according to the selected picture. If you plan to decorate with additional decor, beads, sparkles, they should be placed on wet glaze so that they adhere securely.
Painted gingerbread cookies are good not only as a separate dessert. It has become fashionable to use airy figures to transform other baked goods. For example, decorating cakes. Skewers are used for this. With their help, we fix the icing product on the surface of the cake.
Methods for painting gingerbread with glaze
Despite the fact that the painting of gingerbread cookies made by master confectioners looks fascinating, there is no magic in the process itself. There is a clearly defined set of methods, techniques, techniques and skills for mastering them. By following the rules for working with materials and equipment, practicing and consolidating the skills of sequential mastery of painting elements from simple to complex, you can achieve an excellent result.
To make the gingerbread really beautiful you need:
- Be able to work primarily with a cornet and a pastry bag;
- Understand the consistency of the glaze;
- Be able to transfer the template of the desired design onto the gingerbread surface.
Drawing skills will be developed gradually if you are not lazy and follow the chosen technique, learn to paint drawings by combining various methods. You can learn how best to do this at master classes at the Brother Gingerbread culinary workshop. They are open and accessible to all gingerbread fans.
In just a few hours, master pastry chefs will teach you how to correctly use templates and stencils for applying a design to a gingerbread, show you how to transfer it to a tasty surface, options for decorating the edges and using one or another painting technique.
Main stages of decoration
The decoration of the gingerbread canvas begins with the central part: the icing is evenly distributed using a large nozzle. If the gingerbread cookies have a complex ornate shape, then the glaze is smoothed out with a pastry awl or spoon.
After painting the central part, the gingerbread cookies should be dried again in a hot oven for 20 to 30 minutes.
Then the products cool and become suitable for applying the main design.
The final stage is creative and responsible, as it allows you to adjust the pattern and supplement it with new details.
And when the work is finished, the gingerbread cookies need to be dried again for the last time.
Important! When working with icing and glaze, remember that this material thickens and dries quickly. To give it the desired consistency again, add a few drops of lemon juice and mix well.
Chocolate glaze for drawings
Cocoa glaze is an excellent decoration for sweets. She decorates cakes and paints gingerbread cookies. The luxurious chocolate coating hardens quickly and does not spread. Even novice cooks can easily cope with the drawings.
To receive, prepare:
- two tablespoons of cocoa;
- 4 spoons of sour cream;
- 5 tablespoons of sugar;
- 50 grams of butter;
- milk – 50 grams.
Mix the dry cocoa and sugar mixture well. Add warm milk, butter melted in a water bath and sour cream. Beat with a whisk or mixer until the sugar is completely dissolved. If the glaze is not thick enough, add a little sifted flour.
The process of painting with this glaze is very simple.
Sugar icing for cookies
This is a “lifesaver” for all occasions. By applying gloss to a piece of ordinary bread, the food turns into an elegant cake. This glaze is suitable for both shortbread cookies and gingerbread. Made from just 2 ingredients. But there is one point - it turns out not as snow-white as icing (on whites).
I use this option for everyday home baking. And for holiday decorations, I recommend using the previous recipe.
Ingredients
- Powdered sugar - 150 g
- Water - 1 tbsp. (approximately)
Cooking method
- Combine the two components in a deep container. Stir thoroughly so that there are no lumps.
- It is better to add water gradually, rather than all at once, while controlling the consistency. Perhaps you may need a little more water, or vice versa, less.
- The finished mass should be viscous. Having dropped a drop onto a flat surface, it should not spread too quickly.
Egg option
Making icing for cookies Now let's look at how to make colored icing for cookies using both whites and yolks. So, let's take:
- 3 eggs;
- 600 g powdered sugar;
- 60 g orange juice (freshly squeezed).
Preparation:
- For everything to work out perfectly, you need to cool the eggs. The squirrels will be the first to go.
- Separate them from the yolks and begin to beat with a mixer at low speed. As soon as foam begins to appear, gradually add 1/2 powdered sugar (300 g) in small portions.
- If you want to get a thicker mass for drawings, then you should increase the rotation speed.
- When preparing colored glaze for cookies, it is better to bring the yolks to room temperature. Pour them into a deep bowl along with orange juice.
- Repeat the process with a mixer, as with the whites, adding the remaining powder. Only here there is a difference. After application, the yellow fondant must be dried in the oven at low temperature (100 degrees).
Making thick marmalade coating
Marmalade icing is also easy to make yourself. For sweet fudge, it is recommended to use the simplest marmalade, avoiding everyone’s favorite analogues with sugar sprinkles or filling. But even with this limitation, you can choose exactly the flavor you like, be it lemon, strawberry or apple marmalade.
Cookies painted with this icing have a bright taste and aroma. However, it will be a tasty addition not only to cookies, but also to other baked goods.
Ingredients:
- 200 g marmalade;
- 100 g sugar;
- 50 g butter;
- 2 tablespoons of sour cream.
Preparation:
- Cut the marmalade into a small saucepan, add sugar, sour cream and butter. We put it on fire.
- When the sweet mass boils, cook it, stirring, for 10-15 minutes.
- The glaze should be thick, with small pieces of marmalade.
- It is perfect for decorating and applying to cookies and is most often used in filling.
