Made Melinda's Ginger bread this weekend and it came out very good and moist. A very easy recipe to make, and a nice change of pace too. Just thought I would share it with the group. I would like to try making some type of Gingerbread cookies, some thing with a chewy texture not a hard cookie. Any suggestions.

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OLD-FASHIONED GINGERBREAD For many of us, gingerbread carries with it the ineffable comfort and almost inexplicable delight of a well-loved childhood dessert. That goes a long way toward explaining why gingerbread, which has been around in more or less its present form for over three hundred years, has surged in popularity. This version delivers all the traditional flavor and cozy appeal and is easy to make.

MAKES ONE 9-INCH SQUARE PAN OF GINGERBREAD

2 cups, all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon, baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons, ground ginger
1 teaspoon, ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon, ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon, salt
1 stick (8 tablespoons), unsalted butter - softened
3/4 cup, packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup, molasses (milder - not robust or blackstrap)
2/3 cup, hot water


Place the oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan.

Sift together into a bowl the flour, baking soda, spices, and salt.

In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat together the butter and brown sugar at medium-high speed until the mixture becomes pale and fluffy - 3 to 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in the molasses (the batter may look separated). Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture, then add the hot water and continue mixing until the batter is smooth - about 1 minute.

Pour the batter into the buttered baking pan. Bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean - 35 to 40 minutes. Cool the gingerbread in its pan on a rack for about 20 minutes and serve warm.


COOK’S NOTE: Gingerbread is especially delicious served with sweetened whipped cream (possibly with a sprinkling of mace beaten in) or with ice cream.


Recipe adapted from: The Gourmet Cookbook, edited by Ruth Reichl (Houghton Mifflin)

As a matter of fact; I may be able to help you out here. My wife makes these, and they are one of my favorites. They have a nice ginger flavor, and will not destroy your dental work.

Mrs. Suszczynski's Molasses Cookies

3/4 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon

Melt shortening, stir in sugar and molasses. Add egg, beat well. Add baking soda,flour, cloves, ginger and cinnamon. Mix until well blended. Chill dough a few minutes. Shape dough into size of small walnuts, and roll in sugar. Place on greased baking sheet about 2" apart.

Bake at 375 deg about 10 - 12 minutes

Cool two minutes before removing from baking sheet. Place cookies on rack to finish cooling.

Makes about 3 dozen. (I can mow these in about three days flat)

Who is Mrs. Suszczynski?

Guts, here's another one. I have been baking these for a long time now, especially for the holidays. They're chewy, moist and buttery.

Molasses Ginger Cookies

Note: These cookies bake up very flat. Be sure to let them cool on the foil-lined baking sheet before removing.

12 T. butter
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Preheat oven to 350.

Melt butter; add sugar and molasses and mix thoroughly. Lightly beat egg and add to butter mixture; blend well.

Sift flour with spices, salt and baking soda, and add to first mixture; mix. Batter will be wet. Cover and chill for at least one hour...or until batter is chilled enough for easy handling.

Lay a sheet of nonstick foil on a cookie sheet. Form batter into balls about the size of walnuts. Place balls on foil, leaving 3 inches between the cookies...they will spread during baking.

Bake until cookies start to darken, about 12 minutes. Remove from oven while still soft. Let cool on foil.

Maynard,

I make the same recipe as your wife, but mine calls for chilled bacon fat instead of shortening. . Nice smokey flavor. Always a fun surprise to take to a party.

Just thought I'd toss that into the mix here

Marlene

MsMarm

I don't make the news, I only report it. Mrs Suszczinsky was the person attributed to the receipe in a newspaper article, which my wife cut out. I have a vivid imagination. I would like to think that she was a "gold rush era" madam, who shot a rival in a saloon. She had an epiphany about the error of her ways, and started a school for wayward boys. It was there, she developed her cookie receipe; and hence, her name is famous to this day...... (You asked).

Maynard, you are absolutely too much. I'm still laughing!!!

Gingerbread reminds me of my mom. About 28 years ago when I was dating my husband, we went to my mom's for dinner and she had made gingerbread cake. He told her how much he enjoyed it...raved about how good it was. Well, from that time on, most times when we went to my mom's and she knew we were coming, she would have a gingerbread cake baked for my husband. Years later my husband told me that he actually didn't like gingerbread at all...he was just trying to be nice to my mom! Oh, well!

Thanks, all, for posting the recipes. I have copied and pasted them.

My mom used to make gingerbread often when we were kids. She always served it with whipped cream on top. My dad is a big practical joker and would occasionally replace someone's whipped cream with shaving cream. I think about that everytime I hear about gingerbread.

MsMarm you JUST had to ask didn't you? And Maynard, all I can say is that you have a very inventive and vivid imagination.

I Love gingerbread almost as much as I love Maynard's answer.

Think I have to dust off my whipped cream maker and give the recipe a shot.

If you do I'll trade a FabDog for some gingerbread.

I'll let you know!

Thank you for the replies, I should have said this days ago.. sorry. but I wanted to take make them, and take some pictures. I used both Maynard's and Champagnes recipes. They were very close to the same, and I will post the way I did them. First the cookies come out Great! just what I was hoping for. A soft but still firm cookie, if that makes any sense. This is the way I did it, just worded different, I like to measure in grams rather than mixing cups. Less things to clean up and comes out the same every time. The small things as Tbs/tsp I do measure. These are Not going to last very long, I can see that...

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12 Tbs Butter (salted)... [added no salt to recipe] 169.5 g
1 cup sugar 200 g
1/4 cup molasses 80 g
1 egg
2 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour 320 g
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Yield [35] 3" inch cookies.

Melt butter; add sugar and molasses and mix thoroughly. Lightly beat egg and add to butter mixture; blend well.

Add flour with spices, salt and baking soda, and add to first mixture; mix. Chill for at least one hour...or until batter is chilled enough for easy handling. Lay on cookie sheet. Form batter into balls about the size of walnuts (I used a food baller.) Place balls leaving 3 inches between the cookies...they will spread during baking.

Bake in preheated oven (350°) cookies start to darken, about 12 minutes.


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Guts, thanks for the great pictures. They look perfect...I want some!!!

Thank you champagne for helping me with my request.
Kim