Spiced Gingerbread Loaf
December 04, 2016
Quondam:
[kwon-duh m]
adjective
1. former; onetime
-----
I dislike icing... I've probably said that before. I used to be really good with icings, but that skill seems to have gone away.
I did not make the glaze thick enough, so it went everywhere and ruined the aesthetics of the loaf, but I'm not rebaking it just to re-glaze the cake.
Oh well, the look shouldn't ruin the taste. Also I do not like the smell of molasses in the morning. I learned that today before 6am while making this.
Recipe for those interested:
Ingredients:
Loaf
- 2 cups of all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of ground ginger
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1/8 teaspoon of fresh ground pepper (I omitted this from the recipe)
- 3/4 cup of unsulphured or dark molasses (I could only find fancy molasses, so that's what I used)
- 3/4 cup of hot water
- 1/2 cup of unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/3 cup of packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Icing
- 1 cup of confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 2-3 Tablespoons of orange juice (I recommend using a lot less... to thicken the icing and avoid the chaos that you see pictured.)
Direction:
01. Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Set aside.
02. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, salt and pepper together until combined. Set aside.
03. In a separate bowl or dish, whisk the molasses and hot water together.
04. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy - about 1 minute.
05. Add the brown sugar and beat on high speed for 1 minute until creamed together fairly well. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
06. On medium-high speed, beat in the egg and vanilla extract until combined. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed.
07. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in three additions alternating with the hot water/molasses and mixing each addition just until incorporated. Avoid overmixing. Batter will be thin. Whisk out any big lumps. (I did this by hand)
08. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for around 50-60 minutes or until the gingerbread loaf is baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the gingerbread loaf. If it comes out clean with only a couple moist (not wet) crumbs, it is done.
09. Allow to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack before removing from pan.
10. Make the icing: Whisk the confectioners' sugar and orange juice together. Drizzle over cooled loaf.
Hope everyone has had a good day.
Click "L" for a larger view.
Spiced Gingerbread Loaf
December 04, 2016
Quondam:
[kwon-duh m]
adjective
1. former; onetime
-----
I dislike icing... I've probably said that before. I used to be really good with icings, but that skill seems to have gone away.
I did not make the glaze thick enough, so it went everywhere and ruined the aesthetics of the loaf, but I'm not rebaking it just to re-glaze the cake.
Oh well, the look shouldn't ruin the taste. Also I do not like the smell of molasses in the morning. I learned that today before 6am while making this.
Recipe for those interested:
Ingredients:
Loaf
- 2 cups of all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of ground ginger
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1/8 teaspoon of fresh ground pepper (I omitted this from the recipe)
- 3/4 cup of unsulphured or dark molasses (I could only find fancy molasses, so that's what I used)
- 3/4 cup of hot water
- 1/2 cup of unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1/3 cup of packed brown sugar
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Icing
- 1 cup of confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 2-3 Tablespoons of orange juice (I recommend using a lot less... to thicken the icing and avoid the chaos that you see pictured.)
Direction:
01. Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Set aside.
02. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, salt and pepper together until combined. Set aside.
03. In a separate bowl or dish, whisk the molasses and hot water together.
04. In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy - about 1 minute.
05. Add the brown sugar and beat on high speed for 1 minute until creamed together fairly well. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
06. On medium-high speed, beat in the egg and vanilla extract until combined. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed.
07. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in three additions alternating with the hot water/molasses and mixing each addition just until incorporated. Avoid overmixing. Batter will be thin. Whisk out any big lumps. (I did this by hand)
08. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake for around 50-60 minutes or until the gingerbread loaf is baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the gingerbread loaf. If it comes out clean with only a couple moist (not wet) crumbs, it is done.
09. Allow to cool completely in the pan set on a wire rack before removing from pan.
10. Make the icing: Whisk the confectioners' sugar and orange juice together. Drizzle over cooled loaf.
Hope everyone has had a good day.
Click "L" for a larger view.