Non-Traditional Christmas Gingerbread House

• Beat together flour and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in molasses and orange juice. Stir together flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon and salt in a separate bowl, and add half of this dry mixture to molasses mixture, beating until smooth. Add remaining flour and beat until it comes together; knead by hand until completely smooth and workable. Wrap dough tightly in plastic and let rest in a cool place (but not the refrigerator) for an hour or two.
• Meanwhile, cut out patterns using lightweight cardboard. For the roof, cut two 6 1/2by 7-inch rectangles. For the front and back, cut two 12-inch high by 5 1/2-inches wide rectangles; to create a triangle at the top, fold the sides until they meet exactly in the middle of the top, 2 3/4 inches in, and cut along the fold marks. For the sides, cut two 7 1/2-inch high by 5-inch rectangles.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Divide gingerbread dough in half; cover one half with plastic, and place other half on a large sheet of parchment paper. On the paper, roll dough to 1/4 inch thickness. Rub dough surface very lightly with flour, and place any many patterns on dough as will fit. Use a sharp knife to cut them out. Use paper underneath to transfer them to baking sheets, cutting it away from other pieces as necessary. Re-roll dough as necessary, though work quickly to keep it moist.
• If desired, cut a skylight into one of the roof pieces. Press a rectangle "door" cookie on front piece, and a larger rectangle "garage" cookie on back piece. Cut out windows as desired on front, side and back pieces. Bake pieces just until sides begin to darken, 10 to 15 minutes.
• To put house together, it's helpful to have two people. Prop up the front and a side, and use stiff icing to seal (stiff icing recipe below). Repeat with back and other side, and then seal the two pieces together. Assemble inverted v-shape roof by itself, and then attach it to house. (If it's not important that the house be edible, it's an easy alternative to construct a house first out of the cardboard pattern pieces, using heavyweight tape to attach them, and then glue the gingerbread pieces over it.)
• Place the house on a piece of foil-covered heavyweight cardboard, and decorate from there, using stiff icing to attach candies and cookies as shingles, roof decorations, trim, stepping stones, bushes, and perhaps a driveway and some garden adornments.

For the Stiff Icing:

• Beat together 2 2/3 cups confectioners sugar, 2 tablespoons powdered egg white and 1/4 cup water until stiff. Cover tightly and store up to two weeks; this dries to be very firm and makes a good "glue" for gingerbread houses.