ginger 2012 – group 1

UPDATE: WINNER DECLARED! The Yehling Family’s Buckingham Palace will be moving on to the Ginger 2012 Finals! Congrats, Yehlings! And thanks to all of the Group 1 competitors – you’ve made this holiday season just a little sweeter…

. . .

Here is your first grouping of Ginger 2012 competitors – yippie! Cast your vote at the bottom of the page.

* * *

lynne & unnamed daughter’s ginger house

This year’s first entry comes from my pal, Lynne, and her unnamed daughter. I mean, I’m sure her kid has a name, it’s just that Lynne didn’t mention it. Also, it sounds like Lynne’s daughter did all of the work, unless you count the effort Lynne put into attaching the photos to an email and hitting send.

Lynne sent the following note with “her” entry:

Don’t shoot me. I have THREE photos. Do you need a STORY too? I will require more coffee to do that.

And then, after I yelled at her for sending three photos and threatened to make up a story for her:

My oldest daughter ( I have 4 kids, oh my gawdddd) made it. She literally made a ‘blueprint’ of our house. Then she made a complete disaster of my kitchen for 2 days. It looked like a flour bomb went off in it. I had flour in my hair and I didn’t even touch the damn thing. She spent days on it… I think she only lasted because of the non stop sugar high from eating the candies. She baked all the ginger from scratch and I ate all the remnants when she wasn’t looking. I gained 5 lbs that week. 

I think this is the best sort of ginger house – I want to bite right into it. Gobs of icing, liquorice detailing, brightly coloured candy everywhere, and Kit Kat bars! I can’t tell you how much I loves me some Kit Kat bars. I have been entranced by the photos since the day they hit my inbox – they make my tummy growl. Way to go, unnamed daughter, way to go. A vote for this house is a vote for candy! AND if this kid wins, I bet Lynne will let you name her.

You might want to consider checking out Lynne’s blog here – she’s a famous designer and stuff. Kinda makes you wonder why she didn’t design her own damn gingerbread house, doesn’t it?

* * *

alison’s glowing yeti-inspired ginger-meringue scape

You might remember Alison from Pumpkin Carve-Off 2012 – she carved the corgi that you all loved. Sure, you didn’t love it enough to stop my sister from winning that competition, but whatever. Also, Alison blogs, and does crafty stuff – she’s way cool.

Alison sent the following note with her entry:

Hey Movita,

I’m not a huge fan of gingerbread, but I have a story for you. One day, a team of ninjabread researchers traveled to the Canadian North to study the elusive yeti. Days passed with no sign of the mythical creature, until one night, not one, but TWO invaded their meringue igloo camp and wreaked havoc and destruction.  Despite their years of ninja training, their ninja stars and kung fu were no match for the mighty googly-eyed yeti.

So that’s what I made for you. It doesn’t look that great in the light of day, but that’s not the point: the point is that it FREAKING GLOWS IN THE DARK. I’m not sure anyone can beat that. I mean really. 

And no, it’s not a gingerbread structure, but there are gingerbread elements and rules are for chumps.  

You can see how I made it here: http://alidoesit.wordpress.com/2012/11/18/meringue-igloo/ 

You might as well just mail me those cookbooks now.  It’s in the bag.

Have a great day!

 – Alison

Alison is right – rules are for chumps, and you know movita hates her some rules. So, I embrace you, glow-in-the-dark meringue masterpiece with ginger accents. Also, did you know that I am obsessed with meringue? Yup. When I was in France, I ate about 4 million meringues. I even considered writing a book called Meringues of the World, but my brother insisted that I was the only person who would be interested in the meringues of the world. Wait… where was I? Right. THIS ENTRY GLOWS IN THE MOTHER FREAKIN’ DARK. And there is fighting. Win win. Those yeti look soft yet strong – I’d like to curl up in bed with one. I might even be able to resist biting its head off…

Hey, you can read more about Alison doin’ stuff over here on her blog!

* * *

sarah’s dragonfly inn

Sarah sent the following note with her entry:

This is my entry in a local competition in Myrtle Beach, SC this year, and won first place. Everything above the board is made of edible ingredients. The trees are a combination of pretzels, spaghetti, and rosemary glued together with isomalt. You can find my business website at http://thegingerbreadladies.webs.com, or find The Gingerbread Ladies on Facebook.

I know what you’re thinking, because I thought the same thing: MOTHER OF PEARL! This is next level gingering if I’ve ever seen it. Look at that water – the ripples, the cascades falling from the wheel. The landscaping is perfection – the little bridge and rosemary trees! Did you notice the rocks under the water? The little Dragonfly Inn sign over the door? The details are exquisite. When I opened Sarah’s email I knew that I was in big trouble. Big ginger trouble.

* * *

sharon’s ginger mansion

Sharon sent the following note with her entry:

This house won 1st Place in the professional category at Benjamin’s Calabash Seafood in Myrtle Beach, SC. This was my 3rd win and they moved me to the professional division after my 2nd win even though I have no chef or pastry training at all.

Yup. You read right. No training. And doesn’t Sharon sound a little surprised about getting moved into the professional category? Hey, Sharon? Your house? IT’S FREAKIN’ INSANE. There’s some serious curb appeal happenin’ here. Look at that wee wrought iron fence! The black accent pieces! The walkway dusted with snow! The welcome mat, candles in the windows, and wee wreaths along the porch railing? COME ON! Sharon, those ginger pros should be quaking in their boots…

* * *

the yehling family’s buckingham palace

Here’s to the family that gingers together! Yehling patriarch, Glenn, sent the following note with this entry:

I wanted to share our family’s annual holiday tradition of creating something spectacular out of gingerbread. This year’s theme is the magnificent Buckingham Palace. This project took 5 days to complete and is made entirely of gingerbread and candy. Please share our tradition for the holidays.

What the? Who makes the Buckingham Palace out of gingerbread? The Yehlings, that’s who. I’m betting William and Kate will be naming the Yehlings as godfamily to their unborn child. Look at that thing! Those candy windows are mesmerizing. Seriously – I can’t stop looking at them. Did you see the Beefeaters? The fountain? The piped scrollwork? I bet if you locked Queen Elizabeth in a room with this palace, she’d eat at least one of the 19 State rooms. I know I’d eat at least two…

. . .

There you have it – cast your vote below! And please feel free to leave a festive shout-out for your favourite entry in the comments section below…

The winner from this grouping will go on to compete in the finals on Friday, December 21st. For more information on how the voting will go down, click here. Don’t forget to cast your votes for Group 2 and Group 3!