MORE ABOUT GINGERBREAD

I cleaned under the coffee table last week and rediscovered my copy of America's Best Lost Recipes from the editors of Cook's Country Magazine (recipes tested and approved in America's Test Kitchen). So, I sat right down (after I dusted it off, of course) and checked for a gingerbread recipe. Yes, there was one, and an interesting note from the Test Kitchen:

We were very curious about this recipe since it called for blackstrap molasses, which we generally shy away from as it is so strongly flavored that any spices are completely overpowered by it. Its potency comes as a result of a third round of boiling during the cane sugar refining process -- the two earlier rounds yielding mild (light) and robust (dark) molasses. With each successive boiling the molasses grows more bitter or pronounced in flavor as more sugar is extracted. Much to our surprise, we found that the hearty blackstrap molasses stood up to the spices and gave this cake a distinctively smoky note we liked. That said you can certainly use robust molasses (which is easier to find) and this cake will still be delicious.


Molasses is quite expensive, you know. (Or we could use the old-fashioned word and call it "dear.") Last month I bought several different varieties. Undoubtedly there are other brands, but in the local market I only know of "Grandma's" and "Brer Rabbit."

Grandma Nina Portfors (1886-1955)

Anyway, rather than post the recipe from the cookbook, I decided to post this one from my Grandmother Portfors' recipe box:

Grandma Portfors' Ginger Cake
1 egg
1/2 cup sugar - fill with molasses. Beat
1/2 cup shortening -- fill with hot water
1 tsp soda
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cup cake flour
salt
Beat with egg beater.

There you have it. Obviously Grandma wrote the recipe for her own use, and I had to search my memory banks in order to figure out how to make this cake. Here's my interpretation:
Beat one egg with 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup molasses. Add 1/2 cup shortening and 1/2 cup cup hot water. Beat again. Mix dry ingredients (I used regular flour instead of cake flour) and add to first mixture. Bake 30 minutes at 350 in prepared 8-inch square pan.

I haven't tried the recipe yet. I'll let you know when I do. KW