JAMAICAN Gingerbread recipe:
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Hello everyone!. This week we have to cook again ... and not just anything, no, we have one of my favorite cakes. ¡Bieeeeeeen !. It's more than good, I assure you, it's juicy, soft, spicy ... delicious! A cake with honors, which can not stop eating: "A cake 4 quarters of gingerbread (Gingerbread)".
In the Anglo-Saxon world they call "Gingerbread" (gingerbread) any sweet, from the typical Christmas cookies to a cake, which is flavored with molasses and ginger, although they usually include more spices and some use honey instead of molasses.
The use of ginger is ancestral, using it already the ancient Chinese and Egyptians, possibly in religious ceremonies and as a medical treatment, since it has properties that help digestion and eliminates nausea. It is not very clear how this root came to Europe. Some believe that the ancient Greeks already used it, others think that it was introduced from Asia through the silk route and others that the Crusaders brought it upon returning home.
Be that as it may, gingerbread is a recipe that is known throughout the world. A fairly widespread theory about its origin is that it was brought to Europe by the Armenian monk Grégoire from Nicopolis, when he came to live in France.
From there it spread throughout Europe, where we can find similar recipes in each country: such as the French "Pain d'épices", the German "Lebkuchen", the Polish "Piernik" or the "Peperkoek" of the Netherlands. Finally, it was the British settlers who took this recipe to the new world.
There are millions of gingerbread recipes. I have developed mine so that we can continue practicing with the technique of light beaten doughs. As you can see in the detail of the recipe, the basis of it is the 4 ingredients of any 4-quart cake, all of them in equal quantities: eggs, sugar, flour and butter.
To those who are added the typical ingredients of a gingerbread: molasses and spice mixture (after trying several mixtures, this was found on the page of King Arthur Flour, and for me it is the best I've tried so far ). Including, in addition, other materials that help provide juiciness and lightness to the texture, such as the impeller, baking soda and yogurt or sour cream.
JAMAICAN GINGER CAKE Ingredients:
- For the cake
Eggs L - 5 units
Brown sugar - 300 g
Molasses - 150 g
Greek yogurt or sour cream - 125 g
Flour - 300 g
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Baking soda -1/4 tsp
Impeller - 1 tsp (Chemical yeast)
Spice Mix - 2 tbsp
Butter - 300 g
- For the spice mix
Ginger powder - 2.5 tsp
Ground cinnamon - 1'5 tsp
Ground nutmeg - 1 tsp
Ground clove - 1/2 tsp
Ground allspice allspice - 1/2 tsp
JAMAICAN GINGER CAKE Elaboration:
We start by organizing all the ingredients and let them temper at room temperature. Meanwhile, we prepare the spice mixture. If necessary, we pass through the grinder or mortar those spices that we do not have ground. Once measured, mix them well and separate the 2 tablespoons that we will need for the cake. We reserve
Melt the butter and set aside to temper while preparing the rest of the dough. Preheat the oven to 180 ºC, with the heat up and down and the rack a little below the middle of the oven. We encamped a hoop mold about 24-26 cm in diameter or similar, greasing and flouring it.
We clear the eggs and begin to assemble the egg whites. When they start to spike, we add a little less than half of the sugar and finish them until they are firm and bright. We booked in a separate bowl.
We mount the yolks with the rest of the sugar until they triple their volume and the mixture turns pale. With the help of a tongue, we add yogurt and molasses. We sift all dry ingredients, that is, flour, salt, baking soda, booster and spices. We incorporate them with enveloping movements, being careful not to beat vigorously so that the yolks are not lowered. Add the melted but cold butter. We finish the dough by adding the whites mounted in 2 or 3 batches. We transfer the dough to the mold and smooth the surface.
Bake about 35-40 minutes or until a flat toothpick sticks clean. If you use a non-hoop mold, it may take longer to cook, because there will be less dough in contact with its walls. When removed from the oven, let it temper about 10 minutes inside the mold and then unmold it on a rack until it cools completely.
It is better to prepare it from one day to another, since it gains in juiciness and the aromas of the different spices are better appreciated. Keep it in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap.
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