While you can find premade dough in most supermarkets at this time of year, it is also easy to make at home.

"It's actually good for gingerbread dough to rest for a week or at least a couple of days, as this allows the spices to develop their full flavor, the dough to reach the right consistency, and makes it easier to roll out," she explained.

Some techniques are riskier than others. "For a more complex approach, you would start by toasting and grinding the spices, but I recommend simply buying gingerbread spice mix. The tricky part is making the sugar syrup, as it involves caramelizing sugar," she said.

Aavik does not recommend families with children caramelize sugar as the syrup becomes very hot. The technique also requires adding water, which increases the risk of burns. Alternatively, you can buy very good sugar syrups at the supermarket.

"The key ingredient I never compromise on is high-quality butter. For six kilograms of gingerbread dough, one kilogram is butter — that is five packs of butter to make six kilograms of dough. You start by creaming the butter, sugar, and eggs, and then gradually knead in the flour," Aavik instructed.

"For each kilogram of butter, I add half a kilogram of sugar, half a kilogram of sugar syrup, and two and a half kilograms of flour. The sugar can also be replaced with honey, but that gives it a slightly different flavor," she told the show.

The dough first needs to be mixed in a food processor and then kneaded by hand.

It can then be put in the refrigerator to cool before being rolled out. Cooling the dough makes it easier to work with.

Aavik recommends flavoring the dough with additional flavors, for example, herbal liqueur, cognac, brandy, crushed nuts or crushed almonds. Alcohol can create a deeper taste and aroma.

However, different flavors can also be added to the gingerbread after baking, not just the traditional piped icing. The sweet treat can also take on savory notes, for example when paired with blue cheese and pear or roasted beetroot cream.

"I do not recommend adding savory ingredients to the dough," Aavik said. "First, it affects the dough's shelf life, and added Parmesan, for instance, can start to burn in the oven. It's also important to ensure the dough does not become too runny," she stressed.

The dough can be kept in the fridge for around three weeks.

Speaking about the historical routes of gingerbread, which date back to the Middle Ages, Aavik said it was eaten all year round and was a pastime for the rich.

"At the time, it was a honey spice cake made from honey, spices, and flour. These cakes were easy to transport because they had excellent shelf life. Nowadays, honey has largely been replaced with sugar syrup," the baker added. 

"Champagne and gingerbread have something in common: both were invented by monks."

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