Upside Down Zucchini Gingerbread Food

GINGERBREAD REINDEER

Steps:

• Whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, allspice, nutmeg, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl until well blended.
• Beat the granulated sugar and butter with an electric mixer in a large bowl starting on low speed and increasing to medium, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the molasses until combined, then beat in the egg (the mixture will look curdled). Reduce the speed to low and beat in the flour mixture a little at a time until the mixture comes together. Then increase the speed to medium and beat until well incorporated and a sticky dough forms. Divide the dough in half, flatten into 2 disks and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
• Position oven 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 surface to a thickness of 1/8 inch, 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. With a 4-inch gingerbread man cookie cutter, cut out cookies as close together as possible. Pull away the extra dough around each shape and use a small spatula to transfer them to the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Gather together the scraps, leaving behind the excess flour, knead a few times to form a smooth dough again and reroll in the same way. (If there are any pieces of stuck dough on your surface, scrape them away with a spatula, flour the surface again and then continue to roll the dough.)
• Bake the cookies in the center of the oven racks, rotating them from top to bottom and front to back halfway through, until slightly firm to the touch but not brown, about 12 minutes. Cool the cookies 5 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to a rack to cool completely before icing. The cookies will continue to firm as they cool. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.
• Meanwhile, make the royal icing for decorating. Combine the confectioners' sugar and meringue powder in a large bowl. Add 6 tablespoons water and beat with an electric mixer on low until the icing thickens. The icing should be pure white and thick, but not fluffy and bubbly. (If overbeaten, it will get aerated, which makes it harder to work with. If this happens, let the icing sit for a bit to settle, then use a rubber spatula to vigorously beat and smooth it out.)
• Spoon about 1/3 cup of icing into each of 3 separate bowls (cover any remaining icing with plastic wrap and reserve in case you need more). Leave 1 bowl white. Dye the second bowl black and the third light brown. Thin out the light brown icing with 1 teaspoon water. Transfer the icing to separate resealable plastic bags. Snip a very tiny hole in the corner of the white and black icing bags, and snip a larger hole in the corner of the light brown icing bag.
• Place each cookie right side up in front of you. With the black icing, pipe an outline around the head of each cookie, around the arms and across the chest with a bowed line. Turn the gingerbread man upside down so it is standing on its head; now you can see the shape of the reindeer's head. Pipe black antlers coming out of the top of the head, over the gingerbread man's legs and feet.
• Using the loose light brown icing, flood each reindeer's head, using a toothpick to nudge the icing into any tight spots. Place a red cinnamon candy in the center of each face for the nose. Dry until set, 40 minutes to 1 hour.
• Once the brown base has dried, pipe on the rest of the face. Pipe 2 white dots above the nose for the whites of the eyes, and 2 white dots on the underside of the ears for downy fur. Use the black icing to pipe a smiling mouth and eyebrows. Once the white icing has slightly dried, pipe in black pupils. Give your reindeer some personality! Let the icing dry until hardened, 1 hour or ideally overnight.
• The cookies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days, but are best eaten fresh.

UPSIDE DOWN ZUCCHINI GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Coat sides of 9x13x2-inch baking pan (or 2 8x8-inch pans)with nonstick cooking spray.
• Place pan on low heat on burner and melt margarine in bottom of pan. Remove from burner and spread brown sugar over bottom of pan, dissolving in the melted margarine.
• Mix 1 1/2 cups zucchini and coconut together, layer over brown sugar and pat down gently.
• Mix oil, egg, molasses, and honey; beat.
• Add buttermilk and beat.
• Add dry ingredients and beat well. Stir in 1/2 cup zucchini and pour batter over coconut and spread carefully. Bake for 35-35 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Turn out on a platter while hot. Cut into squares. Serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

ZUCCHINI GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Spray 2 9x5-inch loaf pans with cooking spray.
• In a large bowl, mix together the brown sugar, molasses, vegetable oil, vanilla yogurt, and eggs until thoroughly combined. Stir in the cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Gently mix in the shredded zucchini, and stir in the flour. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pans.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the loaves are browned and springy to the touch, 50 to 60 minutes. A toothpick inserted into the center of a loaf should come out clean. Allow to cool in pans for about 10 minutes before removing to finish cooling on racks.

UPSIDE-DOWN PEAR GINGERBREAD CAKE

Steps:

• Make topping:
• Peel and core pears and cut each into 8 wedges.
• Melt butter in skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides. Reduce heat to low, then sprinkle brown sugar over bottom of skillet and cook, undisturbed, 3 minutes (not all sugar will be melted). Arrange pears decoratively over sugar and cook, undisturbed, 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Make cake:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt in a bowl. Whisk together molasses and boiling water in a small bowl. Beat together butter, brown sugar, and egg in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes, then alternately mix in flour mixture and molasses in 3 batches at low speed until smooth.
• Pour batter over topping in skillet, spreading evenly and being careful not to disturb pears, and bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes.
• Cool cake in skillet on a rack 5 minutes. Run a thin knife around edge of skillet, then invert a large plate with a lip over skillet and, using pot holders to hold skillet and plate tightly together, invert cake onto plate. Replace any pears that stick to skillet. Serve warm or at room temperature.

SUPER EASY: ZUCCHINI SIDE DISH

Steps:

• Slice up zucchini cross wise in thin slices about 1/8" thick.(Does not have to be precise). Set aside.
• In skillet on medium low heat, add 1 tablespoon butter and saute onion, stirring frequently until tender about 3-5 minutes.
• Add zucchini stirring frequently to lightly saute for 2 minutes.
• Add 1 tablespoon butter and then sprinkle dill weed. Stir the dill evenly throughout.
• Remove from heat and serve. Enjoy!

LEMONY GLAZED PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Spray an 8" round baking dish with cooking spray. In a small saucepan or in a microwave safe bowl, combine the brown sugar and margarine. Heat on low heat (or in the microwave on med/low power for 30 seconds at a time) just until the margarine melts and the sugar starts to dissolve. Add the lemon juice. Pour into the bottom of the prepared 8" dish.
• Place pineapple slices on top of the brown sugar mixture in a decorative manner. You may cut a pineapple slice in 4 to fill in the smaller places. Fill the middle holes of the pineapple slices with raisins. Sprinkle the rest of the raisins over the pineapple. Set dish aside.
• In a medium bowl combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and allspice. Set aside.
• In a larger bowl, beat together margarine and brown sugar. Whisk in the egg, molasses and milk.
• Add the bowl of dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring just until mixed. Fold in the grated apple.
• Bake at 350°F for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. As soon as the cake is out of the oven, place a serving plate over the cake and turn the cake over. Remove the dish. If any pineapple pieces stick to the dish, gently place them back in their place.

ZUCCHINI GINGER CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Bake cupcakes:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Line muffin cups with liners.
• Pulse crystallized ginger in food processor until finely ground, then add flour, ground ginger, cinnamon, zest, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and pulse until combined.
• Whisk together zucchini, oil, honey, eggs, and vanilla in a medium bowl, then stir in flour mixture until just combined.
• Divide batter among muffin cups and bake until golden and a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, 20 to 24 minutes.
• Cool in pan on a rack 10 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pan and cool completely, 1 hour.
• Make frosting:
• Beat together frosting ingredients with an electric mixer at high speed until combined well and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Frost tops of cooled cupcakes.

GLUTEN FREE ZUCCHINI GINGERBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Grease and flour an 8" x 8" glass baking pan.
• Shred zucchini and squeeze out excess moisture.
• Use a mixer to beat the eggs and add the sugar, molasses, oil and vanilla.
• Sift together the dry ingredients.
• Slowly pour flour mixture into wet ingredients and mix until well blended.
• Mix in the zucchini by hand.
• Bake at 350F degrees for 27 minutes. Let cool.
• Can be served with a sprinkling of confectioner's sugar or sweetened whipped cream.

TUSCAN STYLE CORNBREAD (POLENTA BREAD)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F In a medium bowl combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Add 1 tablespoon oil to a 10 inch cast iron skillet or 9-inch round cake pan and place in oven for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and swirl oil around to coat bottom and sides.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine half-and-half, eggs, and remaining oil. Crumble in bacon, then stir in tomatoes, shallot, and rosemary. Add dry cornmeal mixture and stir just until moistened. Pour batter into skillet or cake pan. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean.
• Cut into wedges and serve with softened butter.