[Sca-cooks] gingerbred

[devra at aol.com]

This is a version I've used successfully with kids and adults.

Gyngerbred (from the redaction of Ruth Frey, out of Two 15th Century Cookbooks)

2 C honey
2 t cinnamon
1 t ginger
.5 t ground black pepper or long pepper
.25 t ground cloves
3 - 5 threads of saffron
4 C dry bread crumbs (commercial crumbs are fine)

topping : mixed cinnamon and sugar, plus bay leaves

1. Bring spices and honey to a boil in a good-sized pot.
2. Turn off heat and stir in bread crumbs a cup at a time.
3. Spread mix on large rectangle of waxed paper. Top with similar piece, and roll to approximately .25 inch thickness.
4. Remove top piece of paper, sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar mix, and score with sharp knife into 1 inch squares. *Alternatively, cut out with cookie cutters dipped into sugar mix. Let cool a bit first if you do this.*
5. When cool enough to handle, cut or break squares apart and complete cooling on rack. You may want to turn the pieces to dry on both sides.
6. Line a cookie tin with aluminium foil or waxed paper and place gyngerbred therein, sprinkling each layer with cinnamon/sugar and placing 1 - 2 bay leaves on top. Put more waxed paper and continue to layer. Cover box with lid.
7. Let cookies stand at least a week in moderately cool place so that the crumbs can absorb moisture from the honey.

DON'T boil the honey after it comes to boil, or you'll have hard-crack bricks.? When dough cools, you can also?form it into walnut-sized balls and roll them in the sugar. Cookie cutters work nicely with kids, but make sure the cutters are medium sized, as gigantic?cookies will fall apart.

Devra