Baking memories
From houses to cupcakes it’s the season for gingerbread
This holiday season, Tracey Deschaine has visions of gingerbread dancing in her head – make that lemon and gingerbread.
“That’s a classic Southern combination,” said the owner of Dixie Picnic in Malvern, who features the tastes in her signature “Upcake,” an upside-down, icing- covered cupcake just like her great-aunt used to make.
“It has triple ginger: candied ginger, ground ginger and fresh ginger in the cake. It’s a really delicious flavor,” she added. “You’ll be surprised by an extra pop of ginger when you’re eating the cake.”
Gingerbread cupcakes delight customers at Dia Doce in West Chester too. Thais Viggue even tops them with a homemade gingerbread man.
“We’ve been doing it since the very beginning. It’s like the epitome of the holidays,” said the “Cupcake Wars” winner. “I think it’s just a nostalgia thing. It’s a childhood thing.”
So is the quintessential gingerbread house, decorated with gumdrops, candy canes, licorice and lollipops.
As a kid, “of course, there was a lot of eating out of the bag, which was my favorite part,” recalled Meg Marcozzi, marketing manager for Hagley Museum and Library, where intricate gingerbread displays wow visitors every year.
“I think everyone appreciates a piece of art when they see it,” she said.
Past creations included a nearby church and a replica of Hagley’s Belin House Organic Café. The latest labor of love: a 4-foot gingerbread Christmas tree surrounded by a gingerbread train.
“It’s a lot of geometry. You know, I paid attention in geometry,” explained chef Roy Eckbold. “You have to build the whole thing out of cardboard first.”
He then spent three weeks baking 170 pounds of “structural gingerbread.”
“The first piece was 25 inches round, so I had to have the maintenance department here build me a special sheet pan,” said Eckbold, who’s all about the details. “I like them to be whimsical. I like them to be funny.”
“I love the creative process,” agreed Nancy Miller of the Station Bistro in Kimberton. “For me, it’s trying to find the right colors, the right textures – the whole picture.”
An engineer by training, she sells special-order gingerbread houses at the restaurant.
“I take my engineering out on houses!” Miller joked.
Prefer gingerbread cook-
ies? Try a chewy version from Foodservice Solutions in Chester Springs.
“I don’t like crisp gingerbread. That’s why I love this cookie,” said chef Blake Swihart, an instructor at Cooking Spotlight in Phoenixville.
The surprise ingredient: ground pepper.
“Ginger is very peppery, so that sort of doubles the flavor of the cookie,” he said. Plus, “I sometimes will grate some fresh ginger into it, which I really, really like.”
Chewy Ginger Cookies
Yield: 2dozen large cookies or 4dozen regular size
INGREDIENTS
4½ cups all-purpose flour
1tablespoon ground ginger 2teaspoons baking soda 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon 1teaspoon ground cloves ½ teaspoon salt ½ teaspoon ground pepper 1½ cups solid shortening (1½ sticks) 2cups granulated sugar 2large eggs ½ cup molasses ¾ to 1cup granulated sugar
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a sheet of wax paper, sift together flour, spices and salt. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl or standing mixer with paddle attachment, beat shortening until softened. Gradually add sugar and beat until fluffy. Mix together eggs and molasses; add to sugar mixture and mix well. Add half the flour and mix well. Add remaining flour and just mix to combine. With a ¼ -cup ice cream scoop (for the larger size), or melon-ball scoop (for the smaller size), shape cookies into balls. Roll cookies in sugar and place on parchment-lined sheet pan about 2inches apart. Bake cookies 12to 14minutes or until fluffy and brown. Cool cookies 2to 3minutes on sheet pans before transferring to wire rack to cool. Cool cookies in a plastic container to keep them chewy for up to 2 weeks until ready to serve.
RECIPE COURTESY OF KATHLEEN SANDERSON, FOODSERVICE SOLUTIONS
Gingerbread Cupcakes
Yield: 18cupcakes
INGREDIENTS
8tablespoons salted butter 1cup water 1½ teaspoons baking soda 2⁄3 cup packed dark-brown sugar 1cup dark molasses 1tablespoon freshly grated
ginger (optional) 2large eggs (use local farm eggs for the richest flavor) 2½cups all-purpose unbleached flour 2teaspoons ground ginger 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon ½ teaspoon ground cloves ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg ½ teaspoon salt 2teaspoons baking powder Classic cream cheese frosting
INSTRUCTIONS
Heat oven to 350degrees. Line 18cupcake tins with liners. Melt the butter into the water in a small saucepan and add the baking soda. (Mixture will foam.) In a large bowl, beat the butter mixture with the dark brown sugar, molasses and fresh ginger (if using). Mixture will be warm instead of hot at this point. Mix in eggs until just combined. Sift dry ingredients over wet and mix together until just combined. Scoop batter into tins; bake for 20to 25 minutes. Once cool, top with frosting (and perhaps a gingerbread character) and enjoy!
RECIPE COURTESY OF DIA DOCE
Construction advice
“You can’t rush a gingerbread house,” cautioned Nancy Miller of the Station Bistro, who uses soup cans to brace the sides. “You can’t put a roof on a wet wall,” agreed chef Roy Eckbold of Hagley’s Belin House Organic Café. “Take your time. Enjoy it. Enjoy the journey to it.” And when that journey hits a bump, remember: “If you need to trim the gingerbread once it’s formed, a bread knife works very well, but go slowly,” Miller said.