Granny Peggy’s Iced Gingerbread

Photo: Daniel Whiting Photography

This gingerbread recipe is from my mum (otherwise known as Granny Peggy). I don’t know where the original recipe came from but Mum has made several adaptations of this version. It reminds me of Scotland, and my home and family there – any Scottish bakery worth their salt has iced gingerbread, and for me, it’s the ultimate in comforting and satisfying home baking. My children love its sticky deliciousness and it always gets us talking about loved ones far away. I enjoy making it for friends, family as it always goes down well. And it’s a really simple bake whose end result far exceeds the effort!

Ingredients

• 350g self-raising flour
• 1 cup canola oil
• 1 cup caster sugar
• ½ cup golden syrup
• ½ cup treacle or molasses
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1 teaspoon mixed spice
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup boiling water
• 75g crystallised ginger, chopped (optional)

Icing:

• icing sugar
• lemon juice

Method

Preheat the oven to 160°C fan-bake. Line the long sides and base of two large loaf tins or a 30cm x 20cm cake tin.

Sift the flour into a large bowl.

Add the oil, sugar, syrup, treacle or molasses, ginger, mixed spice and eggs.

Dissolve the baking soda in the boiling water and stir in.

Beat the ingredients together well with an electric mixer.

Pour into the tin(s).

Add the crystallised ginger if using by dropping pieces, evenly spaced, into the mixture – this makes for a stickier gingerbread.

Bake for approximately 50 minutes, checking after 40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. If cooking in a single large tin, extend the baking time slightly.

Cool slightly in the tin before transferring to a wire rack.

Make the icing by adding lemon juice to the icing sugar until you have a pouring consistency – not too thick but not a drizzle either. Ice the cooled gingerbread.