Four Winds Casino in New Buffalo, MI unveiled this year’s incredibly detailed and festive gingerbread house village. On display in the front entrance, this showstopper is the warm welcome this season needs.
With a team of 12 pastry cooks and facilities engineers, Executive Pastry Chef Michael Diamond spent three months planning and designing the 2021 showcase piece. Featuring 10 intricately decorated houses, one wreath-adorned, cranberry-red barn, and a single village church perfectly placed in the center of town, this edible and creative project took hours upon hours to create. Previous years’ projects have included a Christmas-themed train and a full-sized castle.
“Villages seem to be what everybody likes, so we tend to stick to that now,” said Diamond.
Four Winds Casino’s Executive Chef Brandon Smithson is proud of his staff and Diamond for doing such a fantastic job this year.
“Mike pointed out to me it’s chocolate, cookie, sugar, anything and everything that’s edible. He hand-made the Santa with chocolate, the trees, the cookie roofs, and the cobblestone dirt road,” Smithson said.
An ice-skating rink made of sugar Isomalt with gleeful snowmen and one of the many adorable little gnomes and mushrooms standing by, the rink sits at the bottom of a hill that might be used for sledding.
Snowcapped trees of all sizes bring in the right amount of Christmas green to the scene. Santa sits and waits patiently alongside his snowman pal. He happily anticipates little friends on their way to give him their special Christmas wishes. Luckily, this winter setting is cold enough for Santa and his frosty friends to not melt, as he is made entirely of edible, delectable chocolate.
“Finishing it up, putting the roofs on, and seeing the final product is my favorite part. It’s fun to watch everybody have their two cents then when it’s all finished, they have a sense of pride,” said Diamond.
Buildings and homes are made of various edible treats. Grandma’s favorite Christmas butter cookies create one home’s roof, while some other roofs are made of the ever-traditional choice—actual gingerbread.
The team carefully worked for two days to assemble and place the little village with many hours of work invested prior to assembly.
“It took twelve people two or three hours a day for a couple of weeks,” said Diamond.
New techniques were implemented this year. Fondant was used for the first time ever, and a lovely gold dust was added to a couple house roofs. The luminescent shimmer adds yet another speck of magic to the scene.
“At sunset, it really lit up the other day when I was putting it up. I think this is the perfect spot for it with that shine,” said Diamond.
This year’s village even has brand new residents. Friendly gnome townspeople can be spotted enjoying their holiday season among friends.
With such a skilled eye and talented team of pastry chefs, Chef Diamond brings the dream of a peaceful, Christmas town to life, causing many onlookers to stop in their tracks and admire every detail and all the hard work it took to create such art. Diamond already has ideas for what next year’s magical holiday creation will be.
For more information about Four Winds Casino, visit its website here.
