GINGERBREAD

Gingerbread biscuits have been part of our cooking heritage for centuries. The flat, sweet biscuit is easy to mould and shape – whether into houses, people or animals – before being iced and studded with currants and other decorations. Nuremberg, in Germany, considered itself the Gingerbread Capital in 1395 and its medieval bakers used curved boards to create elaborate designs. Later, Queen Elizabeth I had some made to resemble the dignitaries at her court. These festivals came to be known as Gingerbread Fairs, and the biscuits served there were known as ‘fairings’. A Cornish manufacturer started selling fairings by mail order in 1886 and the company is still proudly baking today. Makes at least 12

• 230g (8oz) plain flour, plus extra for dusting

• 1tsp salt

• 1tsp bicarbonate of soda

• 1½tsp ground ginger

• 1tsp ground cinnamon

• 100g (3½oz) unsalted butter

• 100g (3½oz) soft brown sugar

• 100g (3½oz) golden syrup

To decorate

• Icing

• Currants or dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/gas 4. Take the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon, and sift into a mixing bowl. In a heavy-based pan over a medium heat, warm the butter, sugar and syrup, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and pour into the dry mixture, stirring with a spoon until you form a dough. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface and cut with a shaped cutter – we normally do about 5mm thick but don’t overwork the dough.

Place the cut-outs on a baking tray lined with parchment and bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. When they are cooled, have a fun time with the children (or adults behaving like children) decorating them with icing, currants or dried cranberries. You can store them in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for up to 2 weeks.

Christmas At Highclere: Recipes And Traditions From The Real Downton Abbey by The Countess of Carnarvon is published by Preface, £30. © The Countess of Carnarvon. To order a copy for £24 (20% discount) call 01603 648155 or go to mailshop. co.uk. Free delivery. Offer valid until 14/12/2019.