Christmas Gingerbread House By SOPHIE JONES The gingerbread house is made of a brittle, spicy Christmas cookie dough. The recipe is a very old, traditional German one. It was part of a collection of old German recipes given to me on my wedding day by my aunt in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany. BAKING THE GINGERBREAD The house is constructed of four walls baked individually like four large cookies. They are cut from the rolled cookie dough with a sharp knife and a cardboard pattern. The two pattern pieces are shown below. (Two of each pattern are cut.) Gingerbread cookies and confections are baked from the same dough. They are used to decorate the walls, roof and base of the finished house. GERMAN HONEY-SPICE COOKIES (for 5 houses) Regular all-purpose flour 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1-1/2 teaspoons ground cloves 1-1/2 teaspoons ginger 2-1/4 cups sugar 4 large eggs (7⁄8 cup), slightly beaten 1/2 cup liquid honey 1. Sift flour and measure 6 cups back into sifter, spooning lightly into cup and leveling off with spatula. Add spices and sift into large bowl. Add sugar. Combine eggs and honey and add to dry ingredients. Mix with hands until ingredients cling together in a ball. 2. Turn dough out onto tabletop or wooden board. Knead with hands until very smooth and workable. 3. Put ball of dough in a bowl, cover with cloth or an inverted plate and let stand at room temperature a few hours or overnight so the honey can be absorbed completely by the flour. 4. On a lightly floured board, roll dough, about a fifth at a time, to 1⁄8" thickness. Cut four walls from each fifth with a sharp knife, following patterns. Cut a square window from the piece that will be the front. Keep the piece that has been cut from the window and cut it in half lengthwise to make two benches. Cut a rectangular doorway from the piece that will be the left side wall. Keep the door. (continued on page 112) A puff of smoke from the chimney, tiny doorknob, colored windowpane—nothing is forgotten in this delectable Hansel and Gretel creation WOMAN'S DAY