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Show C-12 The Park Record Wed/Thurs/Fri, December 11-13, 2019 Gingerbread rocket takes flight Photos by Tanzi Propst Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, pipes royal icing onto snowflake-shaped sugar cookies as he prepares decorative pieces for the gingerbread rocket on Monday, Dec. 2. After frosting the cookies, Garcia used an air compressor with silver, gold and copper lusters to put a finishing touch on the cookies. JEFF DEMPSEY The Park Record W Candy gummies, peppermints, licorice and decorative cookies are scattered on the outside of the gingerbread rocket, revealing a decorative door on the side of the ship, in the reception area of Stein Eriksen Lodge on Monday, Dec. 9. Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, pipes royal icing onto a structural gingerbread piece as he creates the base layer of the rocket on Friday, Nov. 29. This year’s creation needed gingerbread coverage on nearly 350 square feet of surface area, which runs more than the length of a football field. alk into Stein Eriksen Lodge and you’ll be greeted by the rich, warm smell of gingerbread. Follow your nose and, next to the gorgeously lit, stories-tall Christmas tree, you’ll find it: a gingerbread rocket, the “Rudolph 2,” this year’s holiday gingerbread creation, an annual tradition at the lodge. You know who won’t smell it, though? Executive Pastry Chef Jeremy Garcia, the artist behind the creation. “People tell me how great it smells, but after spending weeks baking the pieces basically non-stop, I can’t smell it at all anymore,” he said with a laugh. Each year the lodge’s gingerbread creation is something new and unique — a sailing ship, even an AT-AT walker from “Star Wars” — and this year Garcia said the team settled on a rocket. “Well first, it works well in the space, which is more vertical than horizontal,” he said. “And we also wanted to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the moon landing and the first all-female spacewalk this year.” Garcia said there are quite a few cooks in the kitchen, proverbially speaking; several parties have a say in the design, from the executive culinary team to the engineering department, which is tasked with assembling the gingerbread structure in the lodge. And Garcia said there are “quite a few” changes along the way. “We go from rough ideas, to solid design drafts, but then those change as necessary for support and construction needs, and the design is organic and changes daily,” he said. The rocket includes about 25 gallons of royal icing and 400 pounds of gingerbread. Including the wooden frame interior, Garcia said the weight of the rocket is in the thousands of pounds. “It’s heavy,” he deadpanned. After more than two weeks of hard work, Garcia said he is glad to be finished with the project for a couple of reasons: First, he now gets to enjoy the reactions of guests as they lay eyes on the rocket; and second, because he can finally stop baking gingerbread. “Next year’s display is going to be a 2-square-foot gingerbread box,” Garcia said, laughing. “Instead of two weeks I’ll be done with it in two hours.” Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, pipes royal icing onto a structural gingerbread piece as he creates the base layer of the rocket on Friday, Nov. 29. The annual creation is covered first in pieces that are more structural, such as the rectangular one pictured here, to cover the skeleton of the creation before decorative cookies, candies and lights can be added. Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, adds ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and clove to a bucket of flour as he makes another batch of gingerbread dough in preparation for the annual holiday gingerbread creation at the lodge on Saturday, Nov. 23. Garcia and his staff begin baking gingerbread for the figure two weeks in advance of its unveiling. Romie Fisher, lead line cook at Stein Eriksen Lodge, carries a tray of decorative gingerbread cookies to the oven, where they will bake for a mere 6 minutes on Saturday, Nov. 23. Chefs cut out a variety of shapes, from the rectangular structural pieces to more decorative pieces, including candy canes, leaves and dinosaurs. Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, uses a spatula to fill a piping bag with royal icing as he prepares to frost decorative gingerbread and sugar cookies on Monday, Dec. 2. The decorations on the final structure are a mix of cookies and various candies. Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, uses a piping bag full of royal icing to add a decorative ring on the seams of the rectangular gingerbread pieces on Friday, Nov. 29. Garcia estimates that he and the team made and used 25 gallons of frosting on the gingerbread structure. Romie Fisher, lead line cook at Stein Eriksen Lodge, mashes a batch of gingerbread cookie dough onto a baking sheet before placing it in a refrigeration room to set Saturday, Nov. 23. Stein Eriksen Lodge unveils this year’s gingerbread creation — a rocket standing more than 20 feet tall — in the reception area of the lodge on Monday, Dec. 9. Jeremy Garcia, executive pastry chef at Stein Eriksen Lodge, estimates the structure displays nearly 350 pounds of gingerbread. |