Cupcakes & Cookies

Recipe for gingerbread, these cookies are traditionaly baked around the holiday's in the United States and Europe, they are mostly decorated with Royal Icing and sweets

After checking the best recipes on the net I found this cookie recipe the easiest and tastiest.( http://www.simplyrecipes.com/)

Ingredients
Cookies
3 1/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter (room temperature, softened)
1/2 cup dark-brown sugar, packed
1 Tbsp ground ginger
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup unsulfured molasses (דבשה)
Optional raisins, chocolate chips, candy pieces, frosting

Royal Icing
10 gram pasteurized egg white powder (can be purchased at www .mrcake.co.il)
60 ml boiled cooled down water
300-500 gr confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)

Method
1 In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, and spices.
Set aside.

2 In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream
the butter. Add sugar and beat until fluffy. Mix in eggs and molasses.
Gradually add the flour mixture; combine on low speed.
(You may need to work it with your hands to incorporate the last bit of flour.)
Divide dough in thirds; wrap each third in plastic. Chill for at least
1 hour or overnight. Before rolling out, let sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes. If after refrigerating the dough feels too soft to roll-out, work in a little more flour.

3 Heat oven to 350°. Place a dough third on a large piece of lightly floured parchment paper or wax paper. Using a rolling pin, roll dough 1/8 inch thick. Refrigerate again for 5-10 minutes to make it easier to cut out the cookies. Use either a cookie cutter or place a stencil over the dough and use a knife to cut into desired shapes. Press raisins, chocolate chips, or candy pieces in the center of each cookie if desired for "buttons".

4 Transfer to ungreased baking sheets. Bake until crisp but not darkened, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Let sit a few minutes and then use a metal spatula to transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Decorate as desired.
Makes 16 5-inch long cookies.

After checking the best recipes on the net I found this cookie recipe the easiest and tastiest.( http://www.simplyrecipes.com/)

Royal Icing
The traditional way to make Royal Icing is to beat egg whites and lemon juice together, adding the powdered sugar until the mixture holds stiff peaks. With modern concerns about salmonella from raw eggs, I like to use powdered pasteurized egg whites.

1. Mix a part of the confectioners sugar with the egg white powder in the mixer bowl.
2. While mixing with with whisk attachment add the water.
3. mix at a low speed
4. keep mixing until you get the right consistency (not to runny not to stiff)

If the icing is too runny, add more powdered sugar until you get the desired consistency.
If the icing is too stiff, add more water until you get the desired consistency

Fill a piping bag with the icing to pipe out into different shapes. (Or use a plastic sandwich bag, with the tip of one corner of the bag cut off.) Keep the icing covered while you work with it or it will dry out.