Gingerbread Cake

There is a charity auction and lunch tomorrow and I thought a gingerbread cake would be seasonal.  It freezes well that I decided to make it yesterday.  Thank heaven.  This stove in my housesit is the worst.  I didn't realize that it decided to shut off half way through baking.  And I don't have a bundt or tube pan.  So I had this fallen cake that I could not take out of the house.

So I decided to do it over again today.  It wasn't a lot better.  I stood in front of the stove for the entire half hour and 4 times the oven just quit!  I had to keep turning it back on!  How frustrating.  Well, good or bad, that is what they are getting.  The caramel sauce will make anything taste better.  It's actually a great recipe though.

Warm Gingerbread Cake with Caramel Sauce

This cake is dense and moist, so it keeps very well. You can refrigerate or freeze it. To serve, heat the cake for 30 seconds in the microwave and serve warm. Stashed away for emergencies, it makes a great backup dessert. Serve it with vanilla ice cream.

Makes 3 cake rings

Gingerbread Cake

3 cups water

2 cups molasses

1 Tbsp. baking soda

2 cups brown sugar

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 large eggs

5 cups of flour

1 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. ground ginger

1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

2 pinches ground cloves

2 Tbsp. baking powder

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 7 x 3 ½ inch spring form or tube pans. In a saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the molasses and baking soda. Let cool until lukewarm. In a bowl, use a wooden spoon to cream together the brown sugar and butter until smooth. Mix in the eggs one at a time. In another bowl, sift together the flour, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves and baking powder. Slowly, alternately add the dry ingredients and the molasses mixture to the butter and sugar. Be sure to mix in the sides and bottom. Pass the batter though a sieve to remove any lumps. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until a wooden skewer comes out clean. Remove and let cool. While the cakes are still slightly warm, carefully remove them from the pans. Serve with caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream.

Caramel Sauce

2 2/3 cups sugar

1 cup water

2 cups whipping cream

To make the caramel sauce, dissolve the sugar in the water, in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Turn the heat to high and caramelize the sugar until golden. Remove the saucepan from the heat and carefully add the whipping cream a little at a time. Once all the cream is added, stir over medium heat until dissolved. Pass through a sieve and let cool. Serve at room temperature.  Note:  If you are experienced at melting and carmelizing sugar, you can do it without using the water.