The Gingerbread House(s)

This week is all about making gingerbread houses. I don't know what it is about gingerbread houses that makes them so appealing, whether it's because they're tasty,fun, gorgeous and edible. This year I'm making a few small ones, which I already tried a few years ago. I liked the way each house had it's own theme. And who wants to share? This is the first recipe I found when I made my first gingerbread house, when I was 5, and the recipe was fine, my architectural skills were not. this recipe comes form the food network channel, something I remember watching as a kid, although I never watched the episode where this recipe was featured.
Ingredients:

• 2 sticks butter
• 1&1/2 cups light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup molasses
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 6&1/4 cup cake flour
• 4 teaspoons ginger
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoons salt

Method:

1. Cream together the sugar and butter until light and fluffy. 

2. Add the eggs, one at a time beating until incorporated.

3. Add the vanilla extract and molasses, and mix until incorporated. 

4. Add the flour,baking soda,cinnamon,ginger,cloves and salt and combine until a dough forms.

5. Chill the dough until needed or at least 2 hours.

This is only the initial step, it's just making the dough, because really that only as far as I got. This weeks post is about all of it, the templates,baking, gluing, decorating and all the rest of it.