Bold and Spicy Gingerbread

Name: Bold and Spicy Gingerbread
Yield: Serves 12
Ingredients: 2 1/2 cups (12½ ounces), all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons, baking powder; 3/4 teaspoon, baking soda; 3/4 teaspoon, salt; 16 tablespoons (2 sticks), unsalted butter; 2 tablespoons, ground ginger; 2 teaspoons, ground cinnamon; 1 teaspoon, ground allspice; 1/4 teaspoon, pepper; 4 large, eggs, room temperature; 1 1/2 cups (10½ ounces), sugar; 4 teaspoons grated, fresh ginger; 3/4 cup, molasses, robust or dark; 3/4 cup, stout beer; 1 3/4 cups (7 ounces), confectioners' sugar; 3 tablespoons, ginger ale; 1 teaspoon, ground ginger

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Appears in Cook's Country December/January 2009

Desserts or Baked Goods

Cakes

Most gingerbread cake is dull and dry. We set out to infuse this old-fashioned dessert with enough "oomph" to make it count.

SERVES12

TIME1½ hours, plus 2 hours cooling

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

For Bold and Spicy Gingerbread, the standard liquid combination of mild molasses and water seemed lackluster, so we switched to robust molasses and stout. The beer gave the cake a deep malty tang that tasters loved. Powdered ginger gave the...

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