Fuel My Festive: Redfern's Gingerbread Family Fun

After achieving back to back Paralympic SB13 100m Breaststroke silver medals with her Tokyo podium in the summer, Rebecca Redfern has some special memories to look back on from 2021. One of her biggest supporters back home was her son, Patrick, and the Worcester SC swimmer is looking forward to celebrating his second Christmas with the whole family.

Some festive fun in the kitchen is part of the plans, as we pass over to Becky to share her #FuelMyFestive...

Making gingerbread shapes is something I'm looking forward to doing with my little boy Patrick this year. I imagine it could get a bit messy when we do the decorating but that's half the fun!

Ingredients:

• 100g salted butter
  
• 3 tbsp golden syrup
• 100g dark muscovado sugar
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tbsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 225g plain flour

• Icing (to draw and help things stick!)
• Currents
• Chocolate chips
• Jelly tots etc.

1. Place golden syrup, butter and sugar into a large saucepan over a medium heat, stirring frequently until melted. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
2. Combine the flour, bicarbonate of soda ginger and cinnamon in a large bowl, before pouring into the buttery syrup mixture.
3. Stir to combine, then bring together to form a soft dough using your hands.
4. Between two sheets of baking paper, roll the dough out to a thickness of around half a centimetre. Leaving between the baking paper, place on a tray and chill in the fridge for 45 minutes to let the dough firm up.
5. Preheat the oven to 190°C (fan 170°C). Take the dough out of the fridge a begin cutting into shapes using your chosen festive cookie cutters.
6. Spread the shapes out on baking trays lined with baking paper, leaving space for them to spread a little, and bake in batches for 10 mins until golden brown at the edges. Leave to cool for 5 mins on the trays, then carefully transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
7. Once cooled it's time to have fun decorating your festive shapes before eating as a treat - enjoy!