by Carlene Phillips ·
Friday, December 5, 2025
Bolton resident Lyn Slade (left) and Judy Baumhover demonstrate how to make a stronger gingerbread house with the help of Anna Frantzdale at a Nov. 15 workshop on building a better gingerbread structure. Royal icing and 90 degree corners are essential and Baumhover uses some cans to keep things in place. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
Fivesparks is hosting the Gingerbread Showcase: Competition and Exhibit on Saturday, Dec.13, and Sunday, Dec.14, in what the organizing committee hopes is the start of another great community tradition in Harvard.
Chair Jane Biering said the event will be a chance for people to show off their baking skills, craftsmanship, and creativity and to have fun individually or as part of a team. Those not interested in competing for one of the three prizes, which Biering said are “top notch,” can still have fun and be part of the exhibit. Registration for all entries closes Dec. 8.
Making a gingerbread house has become a popular holiday tradition in many families, and its roots go way back. Most online references cite Germany as the country where gingerbread houses originated in the 17th century, when they were first made only by professional bakers. Gingerbread was a material strong enough for complex structures. It was with the story of Hansel and Gretel in the 1812 publication of the Brothers Grimm tales that gingerbread houses became popular and also the association with Christmas became widespread. In the story, siblings Hansel and Gretel stumble upon the witch’s gingerbread house in the forest, “a house made of bread, with a roof of cake, and windows of clear sugar.” Her plan to fatten up the children, boil, and eat them is foiled by Gretel. A potentially gruesome story turns out happily, good conquers evil, and the witch’s house is devoid of negative associations.
Biering said the Fivesparks board had been considering the idea of a gingerbread contest for a while, but no one took it on until she, a fairly recent member, raised her hand. She said she could picture Fivesparks as the perfect place to exhibit these popular holiday creations for the community. She noted that many towns have such an event, including Boothbay Harbor in Maine, where it has been a tradition for 10 years.
Decorative flourishes can be traced and transfered to the gingerbread house. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
Biering formed a diverse committee, whose members have different skills, from baking to architecture, and who have strong community connections. The members agreed they wanted both competitive and noncompetitive entrants, and that the former would set themselves a high bar, enticed by really good prizes. They wanted to present a challenge for different talents—baking, designing, engineering, and decorating. And not just houses: “We want cool stuff,” said Biering. Any creation, from a structure to an animal to a mode of transportation will be welcome—as long as it fits on an 18-inch square of wood, which will be provided by Fivesparks, courtesy of Biering’s husband.
There are three categories for the competition: Individual Adult, Individual Teen, and Team. While kids under 13 can’t be individual entrants in the competition, they can be valuable members of a team. And they can create something for the exhibit, with fewer restrictions than those for the competition. The committee is hoping for lots of entrants—“We’re going for people’s best effort,” Biering said.
The judges, said Biering, are people with impressive talents, highly qualified to measure the entries against established criteria. Elizabeth Hoorneman is an artist and teacher of art at Bromfield. Riaan Kotze is an architect, focused on multifamily residential architecture. There are two bakers: Taryn O’Connor is a culinary professional with a strong foundation in baking and pastry arts, and Kaitlin Segars is the current owner of Harvard Sweet Boutique, with a passion for creating artistic confections. Entries will be judged on four criteria: overall appearance, creativity, neatness and precision, and difficulty. Submissions will have a title but not the name of the creator.
Generous sponsors gave us the “world’s greatest prizes,” said Biering, adding that the event is “lucky to be starting out strong.” In the Individual Adult category, the prize is a $200 gift card from Kitchen Outfitters in Acton. The winner in the Individual Teen receives two glass art lessons of two-and-a-half hours each from Periwinkle Art & Glassworks in Groton. In the Team category, the prize is a three-hour, chef-led cooking and dining event for eight from Third Space Kitchen in Groton.
The committee has made every effort to make the debut Gingerbread Showcase a success. There has been personal outreach, and the publicity has been widespread and well ahead of the event, giving people plenty of time to think of a theme and figure out the execution of their entry. To further encourage entrants, two retired bakers on the committee, Judy Baumhover of Harvard and Lyn Slade of Bolton, gave a free demonstration at Fivesparks on Nov. 15 to share some tips and tricks for building with gingerbread. While a noncompetitive entrant may use a kit for making the basic structure, competitors need to make the gingerbread from scratch. And the magic is all in the dough, the two women agreed.
Along with hilarious stories of their own baking disasters, the women had many helpful suggestions, including: pick a recipe that says construction gingerbread and follow it exactly (“You can’t wing baking.”); chill the dough after every step, “chill, chill, chill;” make a template of cardboard for every piece of your structure and tape it together to be sure it’s going to work; use generous amounts of royal icing to cement everything together—dye it brown if you don’t want it to show; use artist palette knives for icing; decorate while the structure is flat and then assemble; store in a clear plastic bag or tub in a cool, dry place; bring a repair kit when you deliver your entry to Fivesparks.
Biering said while the event will be fun and rewarding for the participants, it will also be great for members of the community to enjoy their neighbors’ talents. Viewing by the public is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Dec. 13, with awards from 2 to 3:30 p.m., and noon to 4 p.m. on Dec. 14. There will be cider and, of course, ginger cookies. A donation to the Loaves & Fishes food basket will be appreciated.
Full instructions and resources are on the Fivesparks website.