Print Options:

Justine Picardie’s gingerbread

Cooking Method
Cuisine
Courses ,
Ingredients
  • 150 grams unsalted butter
  • 1 jar organic blackstrap molasses (I use a 350g jar from Meridian)
  • 175 grams dark muscovado sugar
  • 3 tablespoons fresh ginger (finely chopped)
  • 1 tablespoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg (or ground cloves)
  • 250 milliliters milk
  • 2 large eggs (beaten)
  • 1 tablespoon bicarbonate soda (dissolved in 30ml of warm water)
  • 300 grams plain flour (I use Marriage’s Golden Wholegrain Plain Flour, produced in East Anglia)
  • 1 dash of dark rum (A dash of dark rum or two or three tablespoons of The King’s Ginger, a traditional alcoholic spirit that always has its place on the grog tray!)
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat the oven to 170°C / 325°F or Gas Mark 3

  2. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over a low heat. Add the molasses then stir in the muscovado sugar, finely chopped fresh ginger, ground ginger, ground cinnamon, and the ground nutmeg or ground cloves. 

  3. Take off the heat and stir in the milk, eggs and the bicarbonate soda. Then stir in plain flour. Finally, if you have it, add a dash of dark rum.

  4. When everything is stirred together well, pour the mixture into a prepared baking dish, lined with baking paper – I use a square cake tin and bake for around 45 minutes, until it is risen and firm on top. It may take a little longer, perhaps another ten minutes, but I take it out when it is still a little sticky inside, as this is what makes the gingerbread so delicious.