My Favourite Season Takes Hold

I have The Visit by Loreena McKennit on the CD player, a naked and shameless Christmas tree (6'5" Fraser fir) dominating the living room, and the intoxicating scent of just-made gingerbread dough in the air. My favourite track on this CD is "Greensleeves". According to the liner notes, she sings it the way she imagines Tom Waits might sing it. It's haunting and always present on my mp3 player.

Tomorrow is the real start of the Christmas season for me - with a visit to Trinity College Chapel for the Service of Lessons and Carols, followed by eggnog and sherry in Seely Hall afterwards. Once back home, we'll decorate the tree, watch Raymond Briggs' magical The Snowman, eat sausage rolls and bake gingerbread.

In the picture you see the naked tree. I think it's lovely just as it is. Under the drinks cabinet you see a bit of Tibby's sheepskin. On top of the cabinet are four little wooden rounds. When I bought my tree yesterday, I asked the young guy to let me have the little trimmed bit off the bottom when he cut it. I get so intoxicated by the scent. When he realized this he very sweetly went around getting other trimmed bits and recutting them for me.

Here is my gingerbread recipe, culled years ago from Gourmet magazine, and slightly amended by me. It's a very forgiving, easy-going, lovely, silky dough that is sturdy enough to make houses, and tasty enough to nibble on. I make lots of gingerbread people (anatomically correct, kind of like fertility symbols) for the tree. Sometimes I ice, sometimes I don't, depending on how rushed I am. I don't like to get too busy. If stress rears its ugly head at Christmas, I back off - that is not what it is about for me.

Gingerbread

This dough is good for a gingerbread house, gingerbread people, or any other shapes you fancy.

6 cups all-purpose flour

4 tsp. ground ginger

4 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground cloves

1 tsp. baking soda

2 cups soft butter

2 cups brown sugar

1 cup fancy molasses

To make the dough:

In a bowl, sift together flour, spices and soda. In another bowl, cream butter and sugar together until well blended. Add molasses and continue to beat until smooth. Stir in flour/spice mixture a cup at a time, blending well after each addition, until a stiff dough forms - not all the flour may be needed. Do not let the dough get dry. Roll the dough into manageable balls and keep it in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap until needed.

To bake:

Preheat oven to 350F. Roll out a dough ball onto a lightly-floured surface, to a 1/4" to 1/3" thickness. This is a matter of preference. Cut out shapes, transfer to a baking sheet. Bake for 15 minutes until the gingerbread is just firm to touch and lightly browned. Watch it closely, as it tends to brown very quickly during the last few minutes. Again, this is a matter of personal preference - depending on how crisp you like them. I suggest baking them in small batches to experiment with timing, the first time you make them. Let the cookies cool for a minute on the baking sheet once it is out of the oven, as they are quite fragile at first, but quickly harden. Transfer onto racks to cool completely before icing or assembling into a house. Store in an airtight tin. Enough for one gingerbread house or 12 to 18 large gingerbread men.