Spicy Gingerbread Food

THE SPICIEST GINGERBREAD COOKIES EVER

Steps:

• Make the cookies: Whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, black pepper, salt, baking soda, allspice, nutmeg, cayenne, and baking powder in a medium bowl.
• Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes (scrape down the sides of the bowl, as needed). Beat in the molasses until combined, then the egg (the mixture will look curdled). Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until the dough comes together. Divide the dough in 2 pieces, flatten each half into a disk and wrap each disk in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to overnight.
• Position 2 racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Keeping one disk refrigerated, roll the other disk on a well-floured work surface to 1/4 inch thick, sprinkling flour on and under the dough as needed and sliding a spatula underneath every so often to prevent sticking (If the dough looks crackly or breaks apart, press it back together from the outside edge in). Using cookie cutters, cut out gingerbread shapes as close together as possible. Pull away the extra dough around each shape then use a small offset spatula to transfer the shapes to the prepared cookie sheets, spacing them 1 inch apart. Reroll the scraps and cut out more cookies. Freeze the cookies until firm, about 15 minutes.
• Bake the cookies, rotating the baking sheets from top to bottom and from front to back halfway through cooking, until they are slightly firm to the touch but not browned at the edges, about 12 minutes. Repeat the rolling, cutting and baking with the remaining dough disk.
• Cool the cookies for 5 minutes on the baking sheet then transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes (The cookies will continue to firm as they cool).
• Make the icing: Combine the confectioners' sugar, meringue powder and 3 tablespoons water in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the frosting thickens, trying not to incorporate too much air. (The icing should be pure white and thick, but not fluffy and bubbly.)
• Scrape the icing into a resealable plastic bag and snip the corner to the desired size. Pipe the icing onto the cookies to decorate, as desired, sticking the candy onto the icing while it is still wet. Let the cookies stand at room temperature until the icing hardens, at least 1 hour.

GINGERBREAD SPICE MIX

Steps:

• Stir together the cinnamon, ginger, allspice, nutmeg, black pepper and ground cloves in a small bowl until thoroughly combined. Use accordingly in your favorite gingerbread-spiced recipes. The spice mix can be stored in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

SPICY GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Sift flour, baking soda, salt and spices in large bowl; set aside. Mix dressing and granulated sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Blend in eggs. Gradually add sifted dry ingredients alternately with molasses, mixing well after each addition.
• Pour into greased and floured 13x9-inch baking pan.
• Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool; cut into squares. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

BOLD AND SPICY GINGERBREAD WITH A KICK

Steps:

• CAKE:.
• Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees.
• Grease and flour 12-cup nonstick Bundt pan.
• Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in large bowl.
• Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat until bubbling.
• Stir in ground ginger, cinnamon, allspice and pepper and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
• Remove from heat and let cool slightly.
• Whisk eggs, sugar, and fresh ginger in large bowl until light and frothy.
• Stir in melted butter mixture, molasses and stout until incorporated.
• Whisk flour mixture into egg mixture until no lumps remain.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and gently tap pan on countertop to release any trapped air bubbles.
• Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
• Cool cake in pan 20 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack set inside rimmed baking sheet and let cool completely.
• GLAZE:.
• Whisk confectioners' sugar, ginger ale, and ginger in bowl until smooth.
• Pour glaze over cooled cake.
• Let glaze set 15 minutes.
• Serve.
• Cake can be stored at room temperature, covered in plastic wrap, for 2 days.

SPICY GINGERBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl sift together first three ingredients.
• With your electric mixture and the paddle attachment, cream the softened butter and sugar. Add the spices, then the eggs and molasses. Slowly add flour mixture; combine at a low speed. Divide the dough in to thirds; wrap in plastic wrap. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350°. Flour your work surface, roll dough to about 1/8 inch thick. Cut with your favorite cookie cutters into desired shapes. Transfer to ungreased baking sheets; refrigerate until firm, approximately 15 minutes.
• Bake until crisp but not darkened, usually 8 to 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on wire racks, decorate if you desire, we like ours plain. Eat and enjoy!

SPICY GINGERBREAD THINS

Steps:

• Into a bowl sift together flour, pepper, ground ginger, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. In a small bowl stir together molasses and coffee. In a bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed beat together butter and brown sugar until light and creamy. With mixer at low speed beat in gingerroot. Beat in flour mixture alternately with molasses mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Divide dough into thirds. Form each third into a ball and flatten to form disks. Chill disks, wrapped separately in plastic wrap, at least 4 hours and up to 3 days.
• Preheat oven to 350°F and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Break off egg-size pieces from 1 disk (keep remaining 2 disks chilled) and with heel of hand smear each piece once in a forward motion. Gather pieces together and give dough a few smears to bring together. Repeat procedure with remaining 2 disks.
• On a lightly floured work surface roll out one third of dough into a 22- by 8-inch rectangle (about 1/8 inch thick), making sure dough is not sticking to surface (use a pastry scraper to lift dough; sprinkle surface with additional flour if sticking). With a 2-inch gingerbread man cutter or 3 1/2-inch candy cane cutter cut out shapes, transferring with a spatula to baking sheets and arranging about 1/2 inch apart.
• Bake cookies in batches in lower third of oven 6 to 8 minutes, or until crisp (do not let cookies get too dark). With spatula transfer cookies to racks to cool. Make more cookies with scraps and remaining two thirds of dough in same manner. Cookies keep, in airtight containers at room temperature, 1 week.

FAVORITE OLD FASHIONED GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9-inch square pan.
• In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the egg, and mix in the molasses.
• In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Blend into the creamed mixture. Stir in the hot water. Pour into the prepared pan.
• Bake 1 hour in the preheated oven, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan before serving.

SPARKLY GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, salt and spices. Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or hand-held electric beaters, beat brown sugar and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add egg, molasses and fresh ginger, and mix until well combined.
• Reduce speed to low and gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just incorporated.
• Divide dough in half and scrape onto two pieces of plastic wrap, wrapping each piece separately into a flat disk. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 5 days.
• When ready to bake, heat oven to 350 degrees. Use parchment paper or nonstick liners to line 3 baking sheets, or lightly grease them with nonstick cooking spray. (You may need to bake the cookies in batches.)
• On a clean, lightly floured work surface, roll one disk of dough 1/8-inch thick. Using cookie cutters, cut out all the dough. With a small metal spatula, place the gingerbread cut-outs onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 1 inch between cookies. Repeat with remaining dough. You can reroll the scraps once. Collect them from both pieces of dough, smush them together into a disk and chill before rerolling again.
• Bake small cookies for 8 to 12 minutes, and larger ones for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cookies are firm to the touch and their edges are slightly darker in color. Rotate cookie sheets halfway through for even baking.
• Let cookies cool on baking sheets until firm enough to lift, about 5 minutes. Using a metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack to cool completely before decorating.
• To decorate, thin the royal icing with water until it's as thick as heavy cream (thinner than you'd use for piping). Divide it into small bowls (or a muffin tin), and use food coloring to tint it different colors. Use a brush to paint the cookies with icing, and, if you like, use toothpicks to apply more icing to make patterns. Sprinkle with colored sugar or other decorations, if you like, while the icing is still wet. Put the decorated cookies on baking sheets to set, then move them to tins or other airtight containers with parchment between the layers.

GINGERBREAD CAKE (SPICY)

Steps:

• Butter a 10-inch (10- to 12-cup) bundt pan well and dust with flour, shaking out excess.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Generously butter bundt pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
• Bring stout and molasses to a boil in a large saucepan and remove from heat.
• Whisk in baking soda, then cool to room temperature.
• Sift flour, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl.
• Whisk together eggs and both sugars.
• Whisk in oil, then molasses mixture.
• Add to flour mixture and whisk until just combined.
• Pour batter into bundt pan and bang pan sharply on counter to eliminate air bubbles.
• Bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out with just a few moist crumbs adhering, about 50 minutes.
• Cool cake in pan on a rack 5 minutes.
• Turn out onto rack and cool completely.
• You can serve the gingerbread immediately, dusting lightly with confectioners sugar, and/or adding whipped cream.
• You can also hold the gingerbread for a day before serving, as the flavors develop with some time.