To prepare the gingerbread, we need sugar - I suggest to use Small brown sugar TM Mistral. Mix tomato juice (or diluted tomato paste) with sugar.

The point is not easy, so it will be good if at this stage You will help someone from home))

Add in to the mix the butter, cinnamon and slaked soda.

Then, inserting parts of flour, the dough will zamechaem.

The batter should be cool but soft and elastic, pinkish color. IMPORTANT: do not overdo it with the cinnamon and flour.

Let the dough stand for 20 minutes, then roll out to a thickness of about 5 mm and cut curly carrots. Bake in a preheated 180 degree oven for 12 - 15 minutes. Will not overdry it!

Decorate gingerbread cookies can be different. For my taste they are a perfect mix of the classic lipstick. So the bonus recipe of cooking) Take a saucepan, mix sugar in it with cold water and put on medium heat. Heated, while stirring, until the sugar is dissolved and allow to boil. As well comes to a boil - remove from heat, remove the foam and drops with crystals from the sides of the pan. This is done to ensure that the lipstick was homogeneous during solidification. Again, put on fire, already strong, and boil 4-5 minutes.

Then add to the syrup the lemon juice, stir and continue to boil. Ovarium to approximately 115 degrees or until "test on soft ball" - to do this, spoon a tea spoon a little syrup, put in cold water, and then try to roll a ball. During the trial the pan from the heat remove, so as not to overcook the syrup. Cooking time approximately 3 to 5 minutes.

Next, you need the syrup to cool to 40 degrees and beat well. I did it in a deep bowl from a stationary mixer - do not repeat my mistakes. You need to stir them in wide flat container, preferably by means of hooks to the test. The photo shows how I got out of the situation: poured in a pot of ice water, put it in a container for whipping, there poured the syrup on top, just put pieces of ice. It is generally a chic! Ideally, the ice completely melts, and it can easily be drained. In practice, in a deep casserole it's all very awkward and not very good)))

Once the syrup has cooled it should beat. Whip it long enough, from 10 to 30 minutes, depending on correctness of preparation of the syrup and the capacity of the mixer. The photo shows how the syrup gradually blurs, brightens, and in the end it needs to sharply turn white and thicken very much, so it can be gathered into a ball. I got this time was not perfect - did not govorila syrup, or water left from the ice in the syrup... But even in this form it is very tasty! In the future, the lipstick stored in the refrigerator and before use is heated in the microwave or in a water bath.

In this photo, right gingerbread covered with lipstick)