Liquorice Gingerbread

Over at Cookbook Of The Day, we featured Cosmic Cuisine and the recipe for Liquorice Gingerbread.

Since I first read the recipe, I was fascinated with what it would be like. I love liquorice, but I am not that fond of gingerbread. Well I was pleased all around. I tweaked the recipe a bit, as I find all that "scant" and "generous " cup directions to be silly. I added a bit more liquorice. I also made a bit of a liquorice glaze for my cake. And finally, I cooked in a Lucinda's Wood Cake Box.

The directions tell you to add all the dry ingredients, then the eggs, then the milk. I did it that way, but it was quite sloppy. In the end, however, the cake was light and delicate with just a hint of liquorice. All in all it was a great cake.

Liquorice Gingerbread

4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons molasses
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground liquorice root
pinch salt
3 eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda


Grease an 8 inch square cake pan with butter. In a bowl, cream the butter, sugar and molasses. Sift the flour, baking powder, spices and salt into the bowl and beat well. Add the eggs. Warm the milk, dissolve the bicarbonate in it and add that to the mixture. Beat until it starts to bubble slightly. Pour into the cake pan. Bake in a preheated oven at 325 F for about 1 hour, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Leave the gingerbread undisturbed for the first 40 minutes in the oven. Take the cake out of the oven and leave to cool in the pan. When cool, turn the gingerbread out and store it in a container and do not eat for 24 hours. Makes one 8 inch square cake.

Liquorice Glaze

1 cup confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon liquorice powder
1/4 cup milk

Blend together until smooth. Pour over warm cake.

P.S. I did not wait the requisite 24 hours and all was well.