“Christmas for me is all about spending time with my family. I cherish any chance we have to spend all day together making gingerbread houses, baking cookies, or sitting around and watching movies.”— Blake Lively

This house is four inches taller than 2018’s.

Allan Meneer and “Jazz”

Side view of the structure.

The Wednesday Challenge on partner Susan and my site was CHRISTMAS MAGIC.

This is the time of year when scads of salted butter sticks begin to disappear from grocery store refrigerated shelves as many “at home chefs” stock up on their supply of the essential baking ingredients that make the upcoming holiday season one filled with aromas, tastes and visual creations that add to the holiday magic.

Not only are mothers and great grandmothers preparing their larders for the upcoming holiday season but the folks at one Safeway bakery have also used their creative skills to add to the visual enjoyment of the season.

After a two year unavoidable hiatus the ever busy bakery department at the Safeway Callingwood Mall outlet in north West Edmonton has once again created a gingerbread house that is four inches taller and displayed in a more prominent store location than it’s predecessor was in 2018.

According to Al Meneer it has been two years since the  bakery department has created a gingerbread house for the public to enjoy.

“This Safeway location was hit with a double whammy:(1) total store reconstruction inside and out and (2) the untimely appearance COVID 19 virus in the world” .

The last such house was placed in a location that many customers failed to take notice of. The front entrance of the store was crowded and workmen traipsed back and forth as the store remodeling was taking place.

This past weekend the bakery department created the display of a structure that is four inches higher than the previous one in 2018. The construction of the house itself was handled by “Jazz” the bakery’s talented associate.

“The house is 18 by 24 Inches  and 16 inches height.  Jazz decorated the whole thing and Allan built the structure. We will not auction it this year because I built a “recyclable” house,  as most stores are doing now “.

If you look closely you will discover it is built of pressboard,  like pegboard without the holes. Much lighter and they  will store it till next year. If it doesn’t store well they will hit it with a hammer a couple times and everything should just fall off and then they redecorate it. 

Have you ever tried to assemble on of those ready made gingerbread house assembly kits? Well a few years ago I tried and it failed miserable because the pieces of the house crumbled very easily.

“Real gingerbread does not crumble as readily as some of the ingredients that the kits provide” Meneer said.

He also added “it’s hard to believe that two full years have passed since the last house was presented.”