Gingery Gingerbread Recipe

Gingery Gingerbread Recipe

Ingredients

Makes 24 Servings

• ½ cup (1 stick) butter, plus a little extra for the pan
• 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon powdered ginger
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• 3 tablespoons (3 to 4 ounces) grated fresh ginger
• 2/3 cup (packed) brown sugar
• ¾ cup molasses
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1½ cups buttermilk

Method

1. About an hour ahead of time, unwrap the butter and place it in a large bowl
2. Use a table knife to cut it into 1-inch pieces, and let it stand at room temperature to soften
3. Adjust the oven rack to the center position and preheat the oven to 350°f (325°f if you’re using a glass pan)
4. Put a little soft butter on a paper towel, a piece of waxed paper, or a butter wrapper, and lightly grease the bottom and corners of a 9-by 13-inch pan
5. No need to grease the sides
6. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, powdered ginger, and cloves in a medium-sized bowl
7. Whisk slowly to blend, and then stir in the grated fresh ginger, whisking until it’s distributed
8. Set this aside
9. Crumble the brown sugar into the bowl with the softened butter
10. Use a handheld electric mixer at high speed (or if you don’t have one, use a whisk, with enthusiasm) to beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy
11. Add the molasses and then the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition
12. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl a few times during this process
13. Add the vanilla extract, and continue to beat for another minute or two, until everything is well combined
14. Add about a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, slowly whisking just enough to mostly blend
15. Then pour in approximately a third of the buttermilk, and stir it in
16. Continue with another third of the flour mixture, and another third of the buttermilk
17. Then repeat with the remaining flour mixture and buttermilk
18. As you do this, switch to stirring with a spoon when the batter thickens, and mix from the bottom of the bowl after each addition-just enough to thoroughly blend without overmixing
19. It’s okay if the finished batter is not completely smooth
20. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, taking care to scrape all of it in with a rubber spatula
21. Then use the spatula to spread the batter evenly
22. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the top is springy to the touch and/or a toothpick inserted all the way into the center comes out clean
23. Remove the pan from the oven and allow the gingerbread to cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before cutting it into 24 rectangular pieces
24. Serve warm, at room temperature, or cold

Full List of Dessert Recipes
Full List of Gingerbread Recipes