Pumpkin Gingerbread

This recipe from Simply Recipes was the basis for the pumpkin gingerbread I made last weekend with a lot of changes to suit my preferences, the ingredients on hand, and my mistakes.  The result was a very dark, thin dry crust encasing a fabulously rich and moist center inside - almost chocolately, although there is no chocolate in pumpkin gingerbread.

• Instead of white flour, used a gluten-free baking mix
• Instead of 1/2 cup brown sugar, added an additional 1/2 cup mixture of blackstrap and Barbados molasses
• Instead of butter, used coconut oil
• Used 2 jumbo eggs and no water
• Used an unmeasured amount more of coconut oil and more gluten-free mix to fix the coconut oil error
• Added 1/4 tsp cardamon 
• Instead of a loaf pan, baked in an 8x8 pan
• Baked for only 40 minutes, not 45-60 minutes. 

When I checked at 40 minutes, the gingerbread was dramatically dark (due to the molasses) and toothpick clean (overcooked?  luckily no).  Any worry that I might have ovemixed the batter - due to forgetting to add the coconut oil until after I mixed the wet and dry ingredients, and then forgetting to measure the melted coconut oil (guestimating an extra Tbsp or two), and then having to mix in several tablespoons of flour incrementally to soak up the oil - proved to be unnecessary.  The additional coconut oil and flour was just right for the square pan.   

(Note to self: if a recipe is worth writing about, write it down the day you make it.)
(Another Note to self: if a recipe might be worth writing about, remember to take a picture before most of it has been eaten.)  

Since I made so many changes, I guess it really isn't the same recipe at all, thus my Fool-Proof Pumpkin Gingerbread Recipe below.  Any variations from liquid to dry sweetener, size of eggs, liquidness of the pumpkin puree can be adjusted by adding water (3T in the Simply Recipes recipe that used brown sugar and normal size eggs)

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Grease 8x8 ceramic glass pan with coconut oil

1. Combine the 7 dry ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (200 g) Gluten-free baking mix, plus about 1 -2 more Tbsp ??? ( or all-purpose flour) 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt 
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger 
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamon 

2. Combine the 5 wet ingredients

• 1 cup (240 ml) pumpkin purée (roasted pie pumpkin- was very thick, but could also use canned) 
• 1/2 cup coconut oil, melted (plus 1 or 2 Tbsp)??? 
• 1 cup (240 ml) of mixed blackstrap and barbados molasses 
• 1 Tbsp finely grated fresh ginger 
• 2 Jumbo eggs, beaten 

3. Mix the dry mixture with the wet mixture

• Adjust as needed with flour or water 

4. Bake for approximately 40 minutes

• Check with toothpick at 35 minutes 
• Cool and then cut in small squares

Pizza

Growing up on part of LI that had fantastic, huge, foldable pizza sold from independent pizza parlors in every strip mall, when I went to college in Albany, I was shocked and dismayed to discover Pizza Hut pizza.  I didn't actually recognize the pan pizza as pizza. Knowing I would never be able to reproduce the pizza parlor crust, I never even tried making pizza dough until two days ago.

To make sure there was no comparison to real pizza, and to add to the challenge, I make gluten-free pizza dough.  I am not an experienced gluten-free baker either - it was only a week ago that I made my first gluten-free baked good and I can't say I was thrilled with the result.

No way was I going to try to compete with the traditional tomato sauce and mozzarella pizza either.  I had enough dough for two pizzas.  Sunday's pizza was topped with basil pesto, roasted red pepper, goat cheese, chicken sausage with spinach.  (pesto and pepper homegrown and prepared last summer and frozen, goat cheese from Cohoe's R&G Cheese).

The only part of tonight's pizza that was cooked was the sliced red onions cooked on the pizza dough. After crust was baked, a sour cream/dill/lemon/red onion mixture was spread on it, followed by capers, and smoked sockeye salmon. Knowing this was going to be a crispy crust and nothing like the soft foldable pizza of my youth, I cut this pizza in appetizer size squares.  

Does anybody still can you neighborhood  pizza place a pizza parlor?