In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter, shortening, and brown sugar until light and fluffy – about 2 minutes.

Next add the molasses, egg, and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and mix to combine.

With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients. Mix just until the dry ingredients are combined.

Divide the dough in half and shape each half into a 1” thick disc. Wrap the discs in plastic and place them in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.

When the dough has chilled, lightly dust your work surface with gluten free flour.

Working one at a time, roll a dough disc until it is ¼” thick. Cut out one pentagon wall, one side wall, and one piece of roof, as well as any additional shapes that will fit (stars, gingerbread men, chimney, etc.)

Reroll any unused dough and cut out extra shapes or walls, just in case!

Place the cookies in the freezer to chill for 15 minutes. While the cookies chill, preheat the oven to 350F.

Bake the cookies until they are browned and crisp around the edges. For the big pieces of the house (walls and roof) this will take 20-22 minutes. For the small pieces of the house (chimney, stars, etc.) this takes 12-14 minutes. Allow the cookies to cool completely on the tray before assembling.

Add the vanilla and mix to combine.

With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the powdered sugar 1 cup at a time. When all of the powdered sugar has been added, scrape down the sides of the bowl and then turn the mixer up to medium high.

Beat the icing for 2 minutes, or until it reaches stiff peaks and has a thick, toothpaste-like consistency.

To assemble the gingerbread house, pipe a line of icing on your serving platter and place one of the side walls into the icing.

To attach the roof, pipe a ring of icing along the walls and gently place a piece of the roof on one side. Repeat on the second side.

With the last bit of icing, continue adding water 1 tablespoon at a time until it reaches flood consistency. You’ll need about 3 more tablespoons. The icing is flood consistency when it flows smoothly off of the whisk. Transfer the icing to a piping bag.

Using the piping consistency icing, decorate the gingerbread house by adding a door, windows, and chimney, if using.

Using the piping consistency icing, add peppermints, gumdrops, and any other decorations that you want to the gingerbread house.

Using the flood consistency icing, drizzle the top of the gingerbread house with icing to create the snowy effect. Decorate with sprinkles while the icing is still wet, if desired.

Allow the icing to set completely at room temperature (about 1 hour) before enjoying.