Chocolate Drizzled Gingerbread Cake

This cake has very strong flavor of gingerbread, made extra potent by the use of blackstrap molasses. The topping counters that just perfectly, though, so you'll have a good balance of sweet and bitter.

Yield: 16 servings

Ingredients

• Cake
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup molasses
• 1/3 cup blackstrap molasses
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 1 cup water
• 8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted & tempered
• Topping
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tbsp confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger

Directions

1. Cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add the eggs, molasses, and blackstrap molasses, mixing well.
2. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, ginger, salt, and cloves.
3. Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter & sugar mixtures, alternating with the water. Mix well.
4. Pour half of the batter into a greased 9" square baking pan. Drizzle half of the chocolate on the top. Pour the remaining batter over the top.
5. Bake at 315°F for 45-50 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.
6. For the topping, combine the whipping cream, confectioners' sugar, and ground ginger. Whip with a hand mixer on high speed until peaks form.
7. Serve the cake at room temperature and top with the whipped cream mixture.

Adapted from Taste of Home.