edible notables
IT TAKES A VILLAGE
Local gingerbread creations come to life this season.
WRITTEN BY ANN LINDEMANN
One fashions intricate European-style chateaus with Old World influences, while the other crafts an elaborate holiday tableau that just might include a replica of the general manager.
Chefs at both Resort at Squaw Creek in Squaw Valley and Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa, Casino in Incline Village create holiday magic each year with copious amounts of gingerbread, royal icing, cookies, and candies.
The Resort at Squaw Creek culinary team starts planning its annual display in early October. Each year’s extraordinary holiday-village theme is closely guarded until the grand unveiling near Thanksgiving. Typically, it includes five, 8-foot-tall gingerbread houses spanning a 40-foot-long space in the hotel’s lobby.
“We estimate it takes about 600 bake shop hours to create it,” says Jason Friendly, the resort’s executive chef.
According to Friendly, the houses are constructed with between 500 and 1,000 gingerbread “bricks” and 40 gallons of royal icing that serves as mortar, snow, icicles, and other decorative pieces.
“It also requires about 800 pounds of candy,” Friendly says. “Kids always sneak pieces of candy off the houses, so we have a person on staff whose job it is to replace the candy daily.”
Beloved Tradition
Gingerbread houses are a beloved tradition throughout Europe, says Guido Landolt, the Hyatt’s executive pastry chef. A native of Switzerland, Landolt recalls using beautiful old wooden molds for the gingerbread villas in his homeland.
“My gingerbread houses are very precise, with towers and architectural details that you’d find in a chateau or villa,” Landolt says.
Does this gingerbread guru have any advice for mere mortals who’d like to try their hand at this holiday pursuit? You bet!
“To get a precise cut, first refrigerate the dough for a couple of days,” he advises. “Roll it out and then refrigerate again before cutting.”
Landolt has another tip that might mean the difference between structural success and failure: Don’t whip the royal icing too much, as air molecules will cause the icing to be unstable.
“It will have a limited shelf life and end up pulling away from the gingerbread,” he warns.
Hungry for more gingerbread guidance? Nothing To It Culinary Center in Reno is offering a gingerbread house class at 6:30 p.m. on Dec. 19. Also, Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno offers a gingerbread house class at 10 a.m. on Dec. 15 at the TMCC Meadowood Center. For details, visit http://www.Nothingtoit.com or http://www.tmcc.edu.
A frequent contributor to edible Reno Tahoe, Ann Lindemann is impressed with gingerbread masterpieces. She admits her one and only gingerbread creation was more of a dilapidated shack than an elegant chateau.
