Gingerbread Loaf
Introduction
Serves: Makes over 20 slices
Ingredients
1 heaped tsp ground ginger
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
50g (1½ oz) crystallised ginger, chopped
125g (4¼ oz) butter
170g (5½ oz) brown sugar
75g (2½ oz) golden syrup
120g (4 oz) black treacle or date syrup
1 medium (size 6) free-range egg
300ml (10 ½ fl oz) milk
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda dissolved in 1 Tbsp milk
Method
1 Set a shelf in the oven so the loaf will be in the middle of the oven in its tin. Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F).
2 Sift dry ingredients into a large bowl and stir in crystallised ginger.
3 Warm butter, sugar, golden syrup and black treacle or date syrup in a small pan until dissolved; stir often and don’t boil.
4 Beat egg and milk together. Pour melted ingredients into dry ingredients, add egg and milk and mix gently; don’t beat. Dissolve bicarbonate of soda in milk, add to batter and gently mix everything together until combined but DON’T BEAT.
5 Turn into a loaf tin (23cm long x 12-13cm wide x 7cm deep / 9” long x 5” wide x 2-3” deep) lined with baking (parchment) paper on the bottom and up the sides.
6 Bake for about 1½ hours, or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the loaf comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn onto a cooling rack. Store in a tin wrapped in baking paper.
Recipe Notes
Gingerbread is made using the warming method (the fats and sugars are warmed to combine them, which is different to the creaming method where fat and sugar are whipped together, usually with eggs) which is one of the easier cake-making methods.
Crystallised ginger adds a sweet gingery bite to the loaf but you can omit it if preferred.