With the holidays approaching, people are always finding ways to get into the spirit, and one of the most popular ways is making gingerbread houses. What goes better with gingerbread houses than a little competition? With this in mind, Adam and Luke set out to see who can make the best gingerbread house,Adam and Luke had to bring their gingerbread houses to school to be judged by their teacher Ms. Suchy and their fellow classmates. Without further ado, let’s see who wins!

Criteria:

-Graham Crackers 

-Frosting 

-Candy of your choice 

Luke’s Gingerbread House

•  Coconut 
•  Gummy Bears
•  Kit Kats
•  DOTS
• Hershey Kisses
• Marshmallows
• Snow Caps

Adam’s Gingerbread House 

• Peanut M and Ms 
• Twizzlers 
• Hershey Kisses 
• Pretzel rods 

Adam’s Gingerbread House 

I started by sticking together three graham cracker halves for the two length-wide sides of the house, covering them in frosting then stacking pretzel rods from the bottom to the top. Then I used two half graham crackers to build the front and back of the house followed by stacking pretzels with frosting on the wall to keep the pretzels from following off. After that, I put three full graham crackers on top, using frosting to keep them from falling off. I then put two half graham crackers on the front and back of the house to create a pitch, then I put full pretzels attached using frosting and stacking them to form a roof. I then froze it for about two hours. Once I took it out of the freezer, I attached the peanut M&Ms with frosting, on the corners of the walls and around the top of the house. I also attached the Hershey kisses using frosting, on the top of the pitch of the house and on the sides of the house. I also put the Twizzlers around the bottom of the house. After that, I put the house in the freezer to make sure everything stayed in place.

Luke’s Gingerbread House

I started with a pre-made plain gingerbread house. First, I used frosting and shredded coconut to simulate snow on the roof. On the top of the roof, I lined up marshmallows along the entire top of the roof. I then used what was supposed to be the chimney as Santa’s sleigh. I put the sleigh on the ground and put a gummy bear on the sleigh; this would be Santa. I then used eight Hershey Kisses as reindeer and put them in front of the sleigh in rows of two. I also placed gummy bears in front of the door of the gingerbread house, along with a Snow Cap walkway. While using an ice cream cone, I made Santa’s hat using frosting and red M&Ms. Using two Kit Kats and three orange gumdrops, I was able to craft a fireplace. After all of my decorations were complete, I let the house sit and let the frosting harden.

Judge Sheet 

Ms. Suchy’s Scores

Adam – 4, 4, 3.5, 3 = 14.5

Luke – 3.5, 4, 3.5, 3.5 = 14.5

In the end it was a tie; both Luke’s and Adam’s house had their positives and negatives. Luke’s was more stable and had a variety of materials used, but Adam’s was more visually appealing and was very creative with a log cabin holiday feel. According to multiple impartial classmate judges, it was a tie due to these stipulations. But in the end, it isn’t about a competition, it’s about celebrating the holidays and being festive. While making these houses, Luke and Adam both had good times with their friends and family, and that’s the most important part of the holiday season.