Preparation method

Gingerbread:

• Pre-heat oven to 180 C
• Sift flour, ginger, cinnamon and sugar
• Add butter to flour and incorporate until it reaches breadcrumb texture
• Whisk golden syrup, hazelnut syrup and eggs
• Add liquid ingredients to dry ingredients
• Knead dough until smooth and glossy
• Divide dough into 500g pieces
• Allow to chill for 30 minutes

Sugar glue:

• Melt sugar until amber in colour, stirring with a wooden spoon
• Dip the edges of the gingerbread into the melted sugar and join to form the structure

Royal icing:

• Beat egg whites until light foam appears
• Sift icing sugar and cream of tartar
• Gradually add icing sugar, cream of tartar and mandarin juice to egg whites
• Divide icing into 6 equal parts
• Add one colour per icing, which gives you 6 royal icings
• Transfer icing to 6 piping bags, each filled with a different colour
• Set aside until ready to use

Long walls:

• Pre-heat oven to 180 C
• Divide gingerbread dough into 4 x 250g rolls
• Use 1 x 250g gingerbread dough and roll out to 1cm thickness
• Use template one to cut out 1 rectangle, 12cmx6cm
• Chill the gingerbread rectangle for 10 minutes
• Repeat the above three steps with the remaining 3 pieces (250g each)
• In total, you need to have 4 rectangle walls
• Bake for 20 minutes, until golden in colour and firm to touch
• Allow to cool completely

Square roof:

• Roll out 250g of gingerbread dough, 1cm thick
• Use template 2 to cut out a 12cmx12cm square
• Chill the gingerbread square for 10 minutes
• Bake at 180 C for 15 minutes
• Allow to cool completely

Short walls:

• Divide 396g into 6 equal pieces, 66g each
• Roll out each of the 6 pieces of gingerbread dough to 1cm thickness
• Use template 3 to cut out 6 rectangles, 8cmx6cm
• Chill rectangular walls for 10 minutes
• Bake at 180 C for 15 minutes

Hexagon roof:

• Roll out 250g of gingerbread dough, 1cm thick
• Cut out 2 x 1cm thick hexagons, using template 3
• Chill the gingerbread hexagons for 10 minutes
• Bake at 180 C for 15 minutes
• Allow to cool completely

Pillars:

• Roll out 125g of gingerbread dough, 1cm thick
• Using template 4, cut out 4 rectangles, 10cmx2cm
• Place gingerbread rectangles on well-greased baking pillars
• Chill the gingerbread pillars for 10 minutes
• Bake at 180 C for 10 minutes
• Allow to cool completely

Round wall:

• Roll out 125g of gingerbread dough, 1 cm thick
• Using template 4, cut out 1 rectangle, 12cmx2cm
• Place gingerbread rectangle around the base of a greased 5cm mini dome-shaped cake tin
• Chill the gingerbread rectangle for 10 minutes
• Bake at 180 C for 15 minutes
• Allow to cool completely

Dome:

• Roll out 114g of gingerbread dough, 1 cm thick
• Using template 4, cut out a 9cm circle
• Wrap the gingerbread circle over a well greased 5cm mini dome-shaped cake tin
• Chill the gingerbread dome for 15 minutes
• Bake at 180 C for 15 minutes
• Allow to cool completely

Arabic lettering:

• Roll out 125g of gingerbread dough, 5mm thick
• Trace around the template with a knife
• Chill each of the 2 Arabic pieces
• Bake both pieces for 15 minutes

Floor base:

• Roll out dough 20cmx20cm
• Chill
• Bake

Cobblestone:

• Roll out dough into a medium square
• Press dough into cobblestone dough
• Cut strips 2cmx6cm
• Bake at 180 C
• Allow to cool, then paint with gold lustre dust

Assembly:

• Begin by using the turquoise royal icing to outline each of the long rectangle walls
• Pipe a 2cm turquoise border on each of the 4 long walls
• Fill the centre of 2 of the long rectangle walls with yellow royal icing
• Fill the centre of 2 of the long rectangle walls with orange royal icing
• Cover the square roof with orange royal icing
• Allow each of the gingerbread walls and roof to dry completely
• Pipe a 2cm red border on each of the 6 short walls
• Fill the centre of each of the 6 short walls with turquoise royal icing
• Cover the Arabic lettering with turquoise royal icing
• Cover both of the hexagon roofs with navy blue royal icing
• Allow each of the gingerbread walls and roof to dry completely
• Cover the round wall with yellow royal icing
• Use the orange royal icing to secure the Arabic lettering onto 2 of the long walls
• Once all the gingerbread walls and roofs have dried completely, begin to assemble
• Dip the edges of each long wall into the sugar glue and position on the cake board
• Place the sugar glue onto the top edges of the long walls and place the square roof
• Use the wooden spoon to place the sugar glue in the centre of the square roof
• Place the hexagon roof onto the square roof
• Glue the short walls edges and position on each 6cm side of the hexagon roof
• Glue the top of the short walls and place the hexagon roof onto the top
• Dip the round wall into the sugar glue and attach to the hexagon roof
• Dip the dome into the sugar glue and attach to the circle wall
• Glue edges of the 4 pillars and attach to one of the long walls
• Use the yellow royal icing to secure one or 2 sugar veil flowers
• Pipe finer details onto walls and the dome
• Place the metallic turquoise and gold dragée to the dome and on all 4 pillars