Preparation method

Gingerbread:

• Preheat oven to 180 C
• Line 2 baking trays with tinfoil and one with baking paper
• Sift flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and spices together
• Beat all wet ingredients together and add to dry ingredients
• Mix until very stiff dough forms
• Roll dough out to 0.5cm thick, cut with a knife around the templates
• 2 x 10cmx25cm roof rectangles
• 2 x 15cmx21cm wall rectangles, with 3 x crushed sweets stained glass windows in each
• 2 x gable ends 22cmx15cm, with a stained glass rose window
• 2 x doors
• 4 x bell tower squares
• 4 x small triangles
• 1 x cross
• Bake pieces with stained glass candy windows on foil
• Leave space for spreading between cookies and bake for 11-13 minutes
• Bake until edges start to turn brown
• Cool for 5 minutes and move carefully to a wire cooling rack

Stained glass:

• Crush boiled sweets according to colours
• Fill windows generously to above the level of the dough
• Bake on foil and only peel off when completely cool, to avoid breaking

Royal icing:

• Mix all ingredients together until icing is smooth and can be piped
• Do not leave the icing exposed, keep extra in an airtight container until needed
• Make a second batch of icing and divide into 4 batches
• Colour each batch with the gel food colours
• Leave some white icing for the edges of the windows

Assembly:

• Fill a piping bag with white royal icing and fit a medium round nozzle
• Use a cake board as a base and start to assemble
• Pipe along the bottom that will join the sides of the church to gable end walls
• Use boxes or tins to support until dry, about 30 minutes
• Assemble bell tower by joining with icing and leave to dry
• Decorate roof with candy strips, whilst flat. Allow drying before attaching to walls
• Pipe grass around church walls and decorate with royal icing flowers
• Pipe doors with red icing and attach in the open position
• Surround base of church with coconut coloured green, to look like grass
• Make a path from the front door with chocolate bars