Old-Fashioned Gingerbread

Gingerbread is classic Christmas fare. Most people think of cookies shaped like little men when they hear the word gingerbread – but ever since I discovered the old-fashioned kind, I’ve given up the little men with gumdrop buttons. This stuff is just so much better! This recipe is really versatile – you can make this in a loaf pan, 9 inch square, cupcake tins or (like I did) a bundt pan…which turns it into an absolutely gorgeous cake. I just like making bundts – because it reminds me of my favorite scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding.

Ha! Cracks me up every time.

You will find several different kinds of molasses at the grocery store – they are not all the same. They vary in sweetness greatly. Starting with the most sweet you have unsulphured molasses, then sulphured, then blackstrap. I used Mother’s unsulphured molasses. I would not recommend using blackstrap, but sulphured would be alright. Your gingerbread would just be less sweet and have a more pronounced molasses flavor. I mixed a little milk with some powdered sugar to drizzle on top. The perfect sweet companion to the rich pungent cake. Mmmmmm. Delicious.

1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 egg
1 cup molasses
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot water

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour the pan of your choosing.
In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the egg, applesauce and mix in the molasses.
In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Blend into the creamed mixture. Stir in the hot water. Pour into the prepared pan.
Bake 45 minutes (cupcakes will take less time about 20 minutes) in the preheated oven, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan before serving.