Chocolate Gingerbread Squares Food

CHOCOLATE GINGERBREADS

Steps:

• Beat 1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar and 1 stick butter until fluffy, then beat in 1 egg and 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1/4 cup molasses, 2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger and a large pinch each of ground cinnamon and cloves with the egg. Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, 1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, 3/4 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon baking soda; stir into the butter mixture. Do not chill. Drop by tablespoonfuls, sprinkle with coarse sugar and bake 8 to 12 minutes at 350 degrees.

CHOCOLATE GINGERBREAD BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Line bottom with a strip of parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides; butter paper. Dust paper and sides of pan with cocoa; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together cocoa, flour, ginger, pumpkin-pie spice, and baking soda; set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk together butter, brown sugar, molasses, egg, and sour cream until smooth. Add flour mixture; stir just until moistened (do not overmix). Stir in chocolate chips. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. Using paper overhang, lift gingerbread from pan. Transfer to a cutting board, and cut into 16 squares. Before serving, dust bars with confectioners sugar, if desired.

CHOCOLATE GINGERBREAD BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F Butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Line bottom with a strip of parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides; butter paper. Dust pan and sides of pan with cocoa, set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together cocoa, flour, ginger, pumpkin-pie spice, and baking soda; set aside.
• In a large bowl, whisk together butter, brown sugar, molasses, egg, and sour cream until smooth. Add flour mixture; stir just until moistened (do not overmix). Stir in chocolate chips. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top.
• Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 30-35 minutes. Transfer to wire rack; let cool completely. Using paper overhang, lift gingerbread from pan. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into 16 squares. Before serving, dust bars with confectioners' sugar, if desired.
• To store, keep in an airtight container at room temperature, up to 3 days.

CHOCOLATE GINGERBREAD SQUARES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, line the bottom with parchment paper and butter the parchment. Dust with flour and tap out any excess. Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, gingerbread spice and salt in a medium bowl. Beat 1 stick butter and the brown sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on low speed until incorporated, then increase the speed to medium and beat until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the whole egg and egg yolks and beat 1 minute. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the water. Beat until just smooth, being careful not to overbeat (the batter may look curdled).
• Spread the batter in the prepared pan. Bake until the cake springs back when pressed, 25 to 35 minutes. Let cool 5 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a rack, remove the parchment and let cool completely.
• Beat the remaining 4 tablespoons butter and the ginger jam in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until pale, about 1 minute. Gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.
• Carefully cut the cake in half crosswise with a serrated knife and spread one half with the ginger filling. Top with the other cake layer and cut lengthwise, then crosswise into 6 equal rows, making small cubes. Freeze the cubes until firm, about 1 hour.
• Melt the chocolate and shortening in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (do not let the bowl touch the water), about 5 minutes. Remove the bowl from the pan. Hold each cake square over the bowl on a fork and spoon chocolate over the top until evenly covered. Let the excess drip off, then transfer to a rack set on a baking sheet. Top with crystallized ginger. Let set, about 2 hours at room temperature or 30 minutes in the refrigerator; before completely set, loosen with a spatula.

CHOCOLATE GINGERBREAD BROWNIE BARS WITH FUDGY ICING

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease a 20 x 30cm cake tin, and line the base and sides with baking parchment. Melt the chocolate, cocoa, sugar and butter together in a saucepan over a very low heat. Once the chocolate and butter have melted and sugar dissolved, remove from the heat and stir in the ginger and almonds, followed by the egg yolks, one at a time.
• Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks. Using a metal spoon, stir a couple of spoonfuls of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture to loosen before very gently folding in the rest.
• Gently scrape into the tin. Bake for 30-35 mins until the top looks set and the centre doesn't wobble too much. Sit the cake tin on a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
• Once cool, make the icing. Put the butter, chocolate, cocoa, icing sugar, ground ginger and 4 tbsp water in a pan. Gently heat, stirring, until you have a smooth icing. Pour over the cake (still in its tin), leave for 1-2 mins to cool slightly, then scatter over the ginger. Cool completely (you can also store in the fridge if you bring out to room temperature about 20 mins before serving) before cutting into bars.