Ginger Train Base Recipes

Steps:

• Make the gingerbread: In a medium saucepan, combine the brown sugar, molasses, water, ginger, cinnamon, and cloves. Melt over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved, 1-2 minutes.
• Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the butter until completely melted and the mixture is glossy. Let cool completely.
• Add the flour and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed to combine for 30 seconds. Pour in the wet ingredients and mix until the dough comes together, about 2 minutes.
• Remove the dough from the bowl and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
• While the dough is chilling, make your templates for the train pieces. The gingerbread will fit snugly over your mechanical train. Find template here: https://tasty.co/article/tasty/gingerbread-train-template
• Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to ⅛ inch thick. Cut out the shapes from the template. Transfer the shapes to the prepared baking sheets.
• Bake for 24-28 minutes, until the shapes are stiff to the touch. Let the shapes cool completely, about 45 minutes.
• While the gingerbread is cooling, make the royal icing: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the powdered sugar, meringue powder, and water. Mix on medium-low speed for 1 minute, until no lumps remain and mixture is shiny and glossy.
• Transfer ¼ of the icing to a piping bag fitted with a small round tip. This will be the icing to decorate the outside of the train.
• Add the brown food coloring to the remaining icing in the mixer and mix until homogenous in color.
• Using the brown icing, assemble the train pieces according to the template. Let dry for at least 2 hours.
• Once all 5 pieces of the train have dried, use the white icing to decorate the train as desired. Let the icing set until hardened.
• Gently slide decorated gingerbread pieces over the cars of the mechanical train and place on the track.
• Fill the cargo cars with the gum drops, peppermints, and truffles.
• Enjoy!

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two 9-by-13-inch pans with parchment paper; coat with cooking spray. Prepare the cake mixes as directed; divide between the pans and bake as directed. Let cool, then unmold.
• Stack the 2 cakes with chocolate frosting in between. Mark the middle with toothpicks as shown, then cut in half crosswise. Stack the 2 halves with frosting in between to make a 4-layer cake. Freeze 30 minutes.
• Put the cake on cardboard with a short side facing you. Mark the middle with toothpicks as shown. To form the roof, shave off the top 2 layers of cake at an angle, starting 1/2 inch to the right and left of the toothpicks.
• Crumble about 2 cups of the cake trimmings and mix with just enough chocolate frosting so it sticks together. Moisten your fingers, then gently mold the top of the cake to form the tip of the roof.
• Cut the graham crackers by scoring with a small serrated knife, then snapping along the scored line. You will need 16 graham cracker squares, 4 large triangles and 2 small triangles to cover the cake.
• Cover the cake completely with the remaining chocolate frosting. Gently press the graham crackers into the frosting to cover the whole cake except the angled roof.
• Cut 1 whole graham cracker into 4 small rectangles for the chimney. Insert into the roof as shown, making sure the tops of the graham crackers are aligned.
• Arrange the cereal on the roof in rows, starting from the bottom and working your way up; overlap the rows so they look like shingles.
• Decorate the house with vanilla frosting, candies and sanding sugar. To make icicles, pipe a dot of frosting, then drag the pastry bag downward. Top the chimney with cotton candy. Dust with confectioners' sugar.

Steps:

• Put the sugar, syrup, butter and a pinch of salt in a saucepan set over a medium heat and bubble for 1-2 mins, stirring to combine. Remove from the heat and set aside. Tip the flour, bicarb and spices into a large bowl, pour over the warm syrup mixture and egg, stirring to combine. The dough will seem soft, but will firm up in the fridge. Cover and chill for at least 30 mins, or overnight. Will keep wrapped in the freezer for up to two months.
• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and line two baking trays with baking parchment. Dust the work surface with a little flour and divide the dough into two large balls. Roll each ball out to the thickness of a £1 coin and use the downloadable template to cut out the train parts A-D. You will need two A pieces, one B piece, two C pieces and three D pieces, plus 10 small wheels (about 2cm in diameter) and two larger wheels (about 4cm in diameter). Use biscuit cutters or the wide end of a piping nozzle to stamp out the wheels. Use what remains for gingerbread stars or people, if you like. Transfer all the pieces to the prepared trays.
• Bake for 10-12 mins, swapping the trays around halfway through, until slightly risen and golden brown. The gingerbread will expand as it bakes, so trim back into shape while still warm using a small sharp knife and the templates again. Leave to cool completely on the trays.
• For the decorations, mix the icing sugar with just enough water to make a thick icing the consistency of melted chocolate. Spoon into a piping bag and snip off the end, then draw windows on the A pieces, spokes on the wheel pieces and any other decorations you like, adding the sprinkles and balls while the icing is still wet.
• To assemble the driver's carriage, use the icing to glue the two A pieces to the B piece (for the taller back of the carriage), then glue one of the D pieces to the front. For the second carriage glue the two C pieces together with two D pieces. Use cans to support the sides while the icing sets, if needed (at least 30 mins). Glue three small wheels to both sides of the second carriage. Glue one large wheel at the back of the driver's carriage, on both sides, then two small ones beside those. Leave to set for another 30 mins.
• Use any leftover icing to decorate the train, sticking sprinkles and silver balls to its sides. Leave to set for a final 30 mins, then fill the carriages with the wrapped sweets. The assembled train will keep in an airtight cake tin or on display (covered overnight to protect from dust) for up to four weeks.