Gingerbread by Jana

These gingerbread products are fully edible (with the exception of the clear window panes, which are made of gelatine sheets), but can be also used as decoration.

The gingerbread is made in a kitchen where nuts, dairy and other common alergens are present. The ingredients traditional gingerbread is made of specifically include flour, sugar, eggs, honey, baking soda, baking powder, butter, and a mix of spices (ginger, cloves, cinnamon, anise and allspice). In gluten free gingerbread, I use gluten free flour. In dairy free gingerbread, I use vegan butter.

Battery operated candles are used for safety reasons. Although using tealight candles is theoretically possible, specific safety recommendations would have to be followed and would be the responsibility of the customer. Gingerbread can be heated to some extent, but of course is flammable. As in other situations, the space directly above the flame must be clear. From personal experience - I placed the tea candle directly onto the gingerbread base (without icing) and let it burn completely (while I was present!). The base wasn't at all affected and there was a lovely gingerbread scent in the air.

I am a small scale baker, so the quantities I am able to offer are limited. Nevertheless, you can pre-order items or you can always contact me and we can discuss your custom order in more detail. The very minimum amount of time it takes to produce gingerbread is 3 days.

Unfortunately, we don't offer shipping option at the moment. It might be offered in the future for the smaller items, but many of the more detailed items are simply too fragile to ship. You can pick up your purchased items at 2224 Oakwood St, Pasadena CA 91104, or we deliver within a 10 mile distance from that address free of charge if the item is above $40.

All of the items I make are inspired by things I saw or dreamed up. We can definitely discuss such a custom order, I actually really like design challenges!

Gingerbread actually keeps for a long time, for several weeks at least and up to a couple of years if stored appropriately (well wrapped, cool dark place, no fridge). If you use a gingerbread item as a display for some time, the only concern would be how the common household impurities affected it, but it's up to you to decide what you're comfortable with. I probably wouldn't recommend eating the gingerbread after approximately 4 weeks or if it was placed uncovered in higher dust area for more than a few days.

Gingerbread should be stored at room temperature, away from direct sunlight. Refrigeration or temperature fluctuation is harmful to its quality and durability. It is not generally recommended to store your gingerbread till next year, but you can certainly try, I had friends who succeeded without an issue. If you decide to try, special attention must be paid to wrapping the item really well and placing a couple of silica packets inside to control moisture.

I haven't tried it yet, but if there's a customer specifically interested in such an option, we can certainly discuss that further and I can experiment with a vegan option. Nevertheless, structural integrity is especially important in gingerbread construction and since traditional gingerbread contains butter and eggs as main ingredients, it might prove tricky. I do offer gluten free and dairy free option though.

The products I offer range from couple of inches to 10" tall and wide. Making bigger items would be possible, but limited by the size of the parts I am able to bake in a standard oven.

Absolutely! A message or a name can be written on gingerbread item at any point.