Entertain the children with some history as you bake. Apparently, an Armenian monk brought gingerbread to France more than a thousand years ago and it spread to Germany and then Scandinavia. The spicy bread used a lot of ginger, which was believed to aid digestion. I guess they needed it, for history indicated that medieval recipes were heavy and stodgy. We can only imagine.

When the gingerbread finally migrated to the United Kingdom via various Teutonic ancestors, it was embraced with great enthusiasm, and there is, according to Wikipedia, even a town that uses a gingerbread sign to welcome visitors.

These days, gingerbread seems to hibernate in various recipe folders until the year-end festivities come around. And then you see elaborate gingerbread structures in hotel lobbies, and prettily packaged ginger cookies in the bakeries.

It seems a rather bewildering choice, since the gingerbread house always triggers memories of the horrific tale of Hansel and Gretel, who were lured into a witch's den precisely because it was a gingerbread cottage decorated with candies. The thought-association boggles the mind.

Better to use gingerbread as Christmas tree decorations. The gingerbread smells delicious, and when it is warmed by the Christmas lights, it's natural aromatherapy. Choose a theme for your tree and decide if you want stars, flowers, snowflakes or even bones.

Just get the appropriate cookie cutters from specialist bakery suppliers in your area, or as I do, from the online shops.

【教你做甜美辛香的冬日姜饼】相关文章：

★ 安倍晋三当选日本首相

★ 施瓦辛格重返影坛

★ 新加坡：世界上最富的国家

★ 美国外交的困局

★ 美国制造业即将复兴？

★ 孟加拉警方逮捕发生火灾的工厂官员

★ 让骨髓活检不再痛苦的发明

★ 中国投资为美国人带去2.7万个饭碗

★ 教你做甜美辛香的冬日姜饼

★ 饲料涨价迫使美国养殖业限制产量