Tuesday, December 4, 2012

BWJ - Gingerbread Cake - Definitely Not a Baby


This week's Baking with Julia recipe, hosted by Karen of Karen's Kitchen Stories, is Gingerbread Baby Cakes.  Now until this recipe cropped up, I had never heard of "baby cakes" before.  Apparently they are little cakes about 4" in diameter, not mini muffins as I first thought.  No baby cake tins - no worries.  I made two x 9" cakes, one of which I froze for later.

I substituted golden syrup for molasses (it used up an entire bottle!), and subbed much of the brown sugar for white sugar as I had run out of brown.  I don't see that it made much difference in the end - I ended up with a very full bodied gingerbread cake that was moist  and flavoursome.  That fresh ginger added quite a bit of kick!

If I was hankering for gingerbread, I'd make this again - it was good.  I think it would be terrific iced with a lemon glaze.

To see what the other BWJ bakers thought, visit the LYL section of the website.

26 comments:

Finla said...

Wish i could taste a slice.

Flourchild said...

You can look at it as a BIG baby! Nice job! I was pleased with the way mine looked , but way to strong for me..and I love molasses!

Cher Rockwell said...

I made a half recipe and had and 8" baby...
This was a good cake, wasn't it?

Kari said...

Nope, definitely not a baby! But it sure does look delicious - what a great outcome.

Cindy said...

I'm sure the Golden Syrup saved your cakes. The molasses was just too strong. It over powered the ginger. Glad you found a winner.

Not Quite Nigella said...

I've never heard of baby cakes before! I have a tin about that size and I just call it a mini cake. Who knew!? :P

Choc Chip Uru @ Go Bake Yourself said...

Mmmm I would eat it all... baby right ;)

Cheers
Choc Chip Uru

Have Apron....Will Bake said...

Your cake looks big and lovely! Perhaps I would have liked mine more if I had used syrup instead of the molasses. Lemon would be nice with it.

smarkies said...

Interesting that you used golden syrup instead. I should try that again as I found that I do not like the taste of molasses.
Glad you liked them!

Andrea_TheKitchenLioness said...

Your cake looks moist and has a lovely warm color and I like the idea of baking "a whole cake" rather than Baby Cakes, it does make for a nice presentation too - it is nice that you enjoyed this Gingerbread Cake so much!

Anonymous said...

Lemon glaze sounds like a good idea!

Jessica of My Baking Heart said...

My new favorite recipe for gingerbread - so glad you enjoyed it! :)

Unknown said...

I love Lyle's! Your cake looks delicious.

Anonymous said...

I was also out of molasses and used cane syrup instead. These were perfect. My new go-to.

Inge and Gillian said...

Your cake looks delicious. Like you, we loved the flavor and will definitely make it again for the holidays.

Jill said...

Lemon glaze on gingerbread sounds good! I was scared off by all the molasses and spice in this recipe, so I skipped it.

Elaine said...

Your cake looks so good and moist. I wish I had thought of subbing the molasses with golden syrup. I bet it gave your cake a much more subtle flavor.

Kris' Kitchen said...

Good job on the substitutes. I used to run out and buy every item I did not have in my pantry of fridge and follow the recipes closely, but the bad economy hit and I actually like being a little different from everyone else...and I love using what I already have. We really loved this cake and I'm ready to bake it again.

Anonymous said...

I wish I had thought of substituting the molasses for golden syrup! I think it would have made a huge difference and made it more palatable.

Mary Hirsch said...

I didn't know what baby cake pans were either, Gaye, so I used my mini-bundt molds. Since the mini-bundt molds hold ALOT of batter, it has taken me three days to eat just one of them. Although I love this gingerbread, a little goes a long way. So I actually think your 9" cake pans are better,. I also believe that this rather robust gingerbread would be great as mini-muffins on a buffet table during the holidays. Just a bite is yummy. Happy Holidays and I sent a card off to you anyway. I have enjoyed reading your Posts the past 2 years and learning more about your country. Plus, my younger daughter is a lawyer so it makes me think I know you better than I do. Go figure.

Cakelaw said...

Happy holidays to you too Mary, and thank you for such a lovely message. I pulled out of the cards as I thought we'd be matched to send just one card. Postage in Australia is very expensive.

Marlise said...

I also substituted out the molasses. I think that helped make the cake better. Great job!

steph- whisk/spoon said...

i wish i'd subbed golden syrup for some of the molasses in my cakes. all molasses was way to much. i like the look and texture of yours better.

Kathy said...

Your cake looks great…nice to know you can make those changes and still have a lovely cake! Glad you enjoyed!

Cathleen | My Culinary Mission said...

Mmmm... lemon glaze sounds wonderful!

Kayte said...

Your gingerbread cake looks rich and delicious! I figured you had done baby cakes before because I always think of you as the cake baker! They are fun and I have made them a lot as we are not cake lovers here (well I am, but the guys are not for some reason), so if I make a baby cake and eat most of it, the damage is far less than say a larger cake...lol!