Today is National Gingerbread House Day.
I’ve always felt that the thin dough baked to make the house pieces are really cookie, not bread. Same with gingerbread men — cookie dough; not really bread. Yet back in the Middle Ages, gingerbread was a hard “bread” with honey and spices, sometimes elaborately decorated and given to knights entering tournament battle. In colonial (and modern) U.S., gingerbread is known as dark, thick, fragrant and moist, sometimes gooey, and as much about the holidays as the houses and cookies we decorate.
There are old-fashioned versions, low-fat versions, some made with different ingredients than usual or in different utensils. Whichever recipe you choose, gingerbread is a welcome addition to holiday breakfasts, buffets, or afternoon tea. Try it topped with lemon sauce or lemon curd, or a light whipped cream. Why settle for a gingerbread “house” when you can have a house filled with fragrant gingerbread?
Quick 1-egg Gingerbread
An old-fashioned treat with butter substituted for the traditional shortening, this recipe from “Fresh &Fast” by Marie Simmons makes about 8 servings. It takes only about 15 minutes of preparation, plus baking.
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 cup dark molasses
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2-3 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter a 9-inch square pan or a round cake pan. In a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer until very light. Beat in the egg until blended. Gradually beat in molasses, scraping sides of bowl. On a piece of waxed paper, sift flour, baking soda, ginger, cloves and salt. Slowly stir into molasses mixture, just until blended; do not overmix. Gradually stir in boiling water. Pour into prepared pan; bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, and edges begin to pull away from sides of pan, 35-45 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Gingerbread with Fresh Ginger
Added pizzazz from ginger root instead of ground ginger makes this recipe a standout for a party. Recipe from “Café Beaujolais” by Margaret S. Fox &John Bear; makes 12-16 servings.
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup dark corn syrup
1 egg, beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2-ounce knob of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
In a bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add molasses, corn syrup, egg and salt; beat until smooth. In separate bowl, mix flour and baking soda; whisk in half of dry mixture, then half the buttermilk, and repeat. Stir in ginger until well mixed. Pour into an 8-inch square buttered pan; bake in preheated 350-degree oven for 35-40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, with lemon curd or whipped cream.
Banana Gingerbread
There’s almost no fat in this great flavor combo. Recipe from “Secrets of Fat-Free Baking” by Sandra Woodruff; makes 16 small slices at just 89 calories each.
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
1 teaspoon each: baking powder, baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups mashed very ripe banana (about 3 large)
1/4 cup molasses
In a bowl, combine flour, wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda and spices; stir to mix well. Add remaining ingredients and stir just until ingredients are moistened. Coat an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread mixture evenly in pan; bake in preheated 325-degree oven for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove bread from oven, let sit for 10 minutes, then invert loaf onto a wire rack. Turn right side up and cool before slicing.
Gingercake
in a Blackened Skillet
Claiming this is the “best gingerbread known to man or woman” the innkeepers at Dairy Hollow House in the Ozarks use a good, old-fashioned cast iron skillet for their gooey creation. Recipe from “Tea Time at the Inn” by Gail Greco; makes 12 to 16 tea-time-size slices.
1/2 cup port
1/2 cup raisins
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
3 tablespoons dark molasses
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small saucepan over medium-high heat, bring port to a boil; drop in raisins. Simmer 1 minute, remove from heat, and allow raisins to soak in port. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, ginger and cinnamon. Cut in shortening until mixture is crumbly. Reserve 1/4 cup of mixture, adding walnuts to it; set aside. Drain port into a 2-cup measure, reserving raisins in another bowl. Add buttermilk to the port to equal 1 cup of liquid, total. Stir baking soda and salt into buttermilk mixture until dissolved. Combine the larger portion of flour/butter mixture (without nuts) with egg, molasses, and port mixture; stir well. Add raisins and pour batter into a well-greased 8- or 9-inch iron skillet. Sprinkle reserved flour/nut mixture over top. Bake 30 minutes. Serve warm, cut like a pie.
