Miniature Cookie Houses

This is the base dough for building tiny holiday cookie houses, smaller and less finicky than a full gingerbread cottage. One batch makes enough walls and roofs for several miniature houses, perfect for perching on a mug of cocoa or lining the mantel.

The dough is designed for structure, not for eating straight. Two cups of sugar and 4 ½ cups of flour give you a firm, almost biscotti-like cookie that holds crisp edges when cut. Decorate-forward, not chew-forward.

Chilling for several hours is a must. Warm dough tears when you try to lift cut-out walls off the counter. Cold dough cuts cleanly around your cardboard templates and transfers to the baking sheet in one piece.

Before you roll anything, cut your cardboard templates. Two rectangular sides, two triangular ends (one with a door cut-out, if you want), and two roof panels at a gentle slope. Trace them on the rolled dough with a paring knife.

A simple royal icing (egg white and powdered sugar) glues the walls together and holds the roof on. Pipe it on, hold each wall in place for a minute, and the structure sets fast.

Kitchen Tips

• Roll the dough between two sheets of parchment paper. It keeps flour off the walls and makes transfer clean.
• Roll ¼ inch thick. Too thin and walls snap; too thick and they look clunky.
• Bake until edges are light golden brown. Undercooked walls stay soft and bow under the roof weight.
• Let the baked pieces cool completely on the sheet before moving. Warm cookies warp, and once they warp your whole house goes crooked.
• Build on a flat, sturdy base: a cookie square, a piece of cardboard covered in foil, or a sturdy cookie plate.

Variations

• Press small candies or raisins into the walls before baking to become windows and doors.
• Add a teaspoon of ground cinnamon and ½ teaspoon of ginger to the flour for a spiced, gingerbread-scented house.
• Dust with powdered sugar after assembly for a snow-dusted cottage effect.