Gingerbread house

Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan, 350°F, gas mark 4). Line 2 baking trays with non-stick baking paper. Cut out a gingerbread template in thick card.

Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and cinnamon into a bowl. Rub in the butter and then stir in the sugar.

Lightly beat the egg and golden syrup together, and then add to the flour and mix to make a dough. Leave to rest in the fridge for 15 minutes.

Lightly flour a work surface and roll out the gingerbread to ½ cm thick. Cut out the sections using the templates, and then slide the gingerbread onto the baking sheets. Any leftover dough can be cut into Christmas trees or little gingerbread men.

Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. Leave on the tray for 10 minutes before moving onto a wire rack to finish cooling.

Put the egg whites in a large bowl, and sift in the icing sugar. Stir to make a thick, smooth icing. Spoon some of the icing into a piping bag with a medium plain nozzle. Pipe generous lines of icing along the wall edges, and join the walls together. Use small cans or bottles to support the walls, and then allow to dry, ideally for a few hours or over night in a dry environment.

Once dry, fix the roof panels. Pipe thick lines of icing along the edges of the walls and place the roof sections carefully onto the wall panels. Dry completely, ideally overnight.

Cover a cake board with white icing using a palette knife, lifting the knife to form as many peaks as you wish. Keep a section in the middle of the cake board smooth and stand the gingerbread house on it. Decorate with coloured icing using the food gels and sweets.