Nigella Christmas: Sticky Gingerbread

 "I can't disentangle the smell of gingerbread from the smell of Christmas...", Nigella Christmas, p 201

And so, I couldn't help myself.  I love the smell of ginger.  And with the weather being so wet and cold recently, ginger is so beautifully warming. This gingerbread is just calling out to be made.  Nevermind the fact that I have only attempted gingerbread once before, with V, when I was about 13.  It was a dismal failure.  But of course, then, we had no Nigella to guide us through the steps.

First, you melt the butter, golden syrup, black treacle, sugar and spices all in pan, then add the milk, eggs, baking soda.  You get this black fizzy gloop.

Then you mix the liquid into the flour.  I had some difficulty here because the mixture became lumpy and impossible to mix well.  Nigella did not say anything about the mixture being lumpy.  But because we are instructed to mix it well, I pour the lumpy mixture through a sieve to smoothen it out.  I read up on it later, and some recipes say that the lumpiness is part of the deal, that you should not overhandle it or the cake will be tough (i.e. treat it like muffins).  Others have tricks to ensure the batter remains smooth.  

Whatever the case, I don't think the sieving had a negative effect, because the gingerbread came out beautifully soft and moist.  

You are supposed to wait till it cools down before cutting it.  I couldn't wait, so I had a piece while still hot.  My first impression was that it was awfully sweet and that it could do with a bit more spiciness.  

But when I tried it again the next day, the flavours really popped! It wasn't as sweet and the spices really filled the mouth.  It was still as moist and tender.  It went really well with a cup of coffee.  I brought it for my bible study group and some had seconds, and even thirds...

While Nigella is quite happy having it on its own, for those looking for more prettiness, she suggests a sharply contrasting icing of icing sugar and lemon.  I didn't bother, though I think the acidity of the lemon would have really contrasted nicely with the sweet spiciness of the gingerbread.  Maybe next Christmas!