Hope that this will have been worth the wait! Warm gingerbread, topped with butter, is one of my favourite childhood desserts, the deep sweetness of cinnamon, ginger and cloves enhanced by rich molasses and contrasted with the cool, slightly salty butter that I top mine with – divine! I found this recipe which I hadn’t made for years but have made three times in the past week. Yes, I do love it, but am running out of children, friends and neighbours to help eat it – as Daughter #1/Child #3(D1/C3) shrieked last night “you’re making gingerbread again?!“.
The sad truth of why I had to make it three times before I could, in good faith, publish this post? Well, sit down for this one, guys and gals! SIZE MATTERS! Yup, when it calls for a 9-inch square pan, that is just what it means; not an 8-inch square pan (First attempt – outside two inches beautiful, centre raw), not a 9-inch round pan (Second attempt – had to bake 15 – 20 minutes longer than recipe specified and was slightly dried out). So out I sallied to a local cookware store and am now the proud owner of an authentic 9-inch square cake pan, so I’ll be looking for recipes with which to recoup and justify my expenditure, okay it was only a $15.99 investment, not really that extravagant. And what a difference that right sized pan made.Yum, yum! See for yourself…
This recipe was published in the North Shore News, the North & West Vancouver community newspaper, in February, 1990, when we lived on the West Coast and I’m sure the name grabbed me as I was often homesick for the East Coast – now I live on the East Coast and miss the West Coast.
Begin by creaming softened butter and sugar, easier in a mixer, but if you’re missing those gym workouts can also be done by hand. Then add the beaten egg and molasses and beat until fluffy and lighter in colour.
Sift the dry ingredients together in bowl, add to the creamed mixture and beat until combined, batter will be quite stiff but will loosen up when you add hot water. The recipe specifies that you heat the water in a kettle and don’t use hot water from the tap, not sure why, but probably because your hot tap water has been sitting in your hot water tank, better for bathing and doing dishes than making gingerbread. So take the time to draw cold water from your tap and heat it in the kettle!
Beat the batter until smooth and pour into your greased and floured 9-inch square pan.
Note: see second paragraph above if you’re feeling improvisational about pan size and proceed at your own risk!
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 30 – 35 minutes, let cool on a rack for about 5 minutes, while you gather plates, butter, (or whip some cream or make a lemon sauce if you’re feeling in that kind of a mood). Cut gingerbread into squares while warm, top as desired and serve with a lovely cup of tea. Enjoy!
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Nova Scotia Gingerbread
This recipe is adapted from one that appeared in Barbara McCreadie's column, September 5, 1990 in the North Shore News.
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 cup molasses
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp cloves
- 1 cup hot water (boil in a kettle, not from the hot tap)
Cooking Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Using a mixer, cream butter and sugar.
- Add egg and molasses and beat together until fluffy.
- Sift dry ingredients together and add, blending briefly, batter will be stiff.
- Carefully, add hot water and beat until smooth.
- Pour into greased 9 inch square pan and bake for 30 - 35 minutes.
- Cool slightly, cut into squares and serve warm.
- (Also good when cold, if any left!)