Chocolate Stout Gingerbread Served with Chocolate Whipped Cream
Ingredients:
For Gingerbread:
2 ½ cups sifted all purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ginger, ground
1 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
1 teaspoon allspice, ground
2 ounces (2 squares) German chocolate
½ pound (2 sticks) sweet butter cut into small pieces
1 cup boiling Alaskan Stout (measure after boiling)
1 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup light molasses
4 eggs
Chocolate Whipped Cream
2 Tablespoons Hershey’s cocoa
4 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup heavy whipping cream
Instructions:
Adjust rack one third up from the bottom of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees. Butter a shallow 9x13 inch baking pan, dust it with fine, dry bread crumbs and invert it over paper to shake out excess crumbs. Set aside.Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon and allspice and set aside. Melt the chocolate in a double broiler or microwave, stir as not to burn. Set aside to slightly cool.Place the butter in the large bowl. Add the boiling beer and mix with electric beaters until the butter is melted. (Careful as this can be messy, the larger the bowl, the better)Add the brown sugar and mix well. Then mix in the molasses. Add the eggs all together and beat until well mixed. Mix in the chocolate. ON low speed, gradually add the sifted dry ingredients and beat only until they are incorporated. Mixture will be thin.Pour it into the prepared pan and tilt the pan to level the batter. Bake for about 50 minutes or until the top of the cake springs back when it is gently pressed with a fingertip.For Frosting:Mix cocoa with sugar and stir in vanilla. Very slightly stir in the whipping cream. Cover and let stand for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator – the longer the better. Whip to desired thick consistency. Serve on the side, or cover gingerbread with bananas (optional) and whipped cream.