Gingerbread Recipe

This is the recipe they hand out at the Scovil Bakery in Nauvoo. I like it the best because it isn't so heavy on the molasses. I do prefer the gingerbread fresh out of the oven. Once it has cooled off it isn't as good in my opinion.

1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Molasses
3/4 Cup oil or lard
1/2 Cup hot water

Combine - rinse molasses out of the cup with the hot water.
Add: 2 eggs

Mix together the following:
1 tsp soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 heaping tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves (this isn't actually in the recipe but I like the flavor)
6 or 7 cups flour (use 1/3 whole wheat - I don't because I don't have a wheat grinder I can use right now)
Use more flour if needed

Add dry ingredients to the egg/sugar mixture. Refrigerate dough. Roll out and cut with cookie cutter. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

You can also use the recipe to make cookies to hang on the tree. If making a house cut out the peices of your house with a pattern and bake them for 5 minutes. Remove the gingerbread from the oven and use the pattern pieces to trim off the excess cookie that has expanded during baking. Then return the gingerbread to the oven and finish baking for another 5 minutes. This will help when putting your house together so the pieces are close to the size and shape of the pattern. I forgot this step last year and it was kind of tricky getting the roof to stay because it no longer linged up with the walls.