Name: Gingerbread Cake with Date Syrup Bourbon Sauce
Yield: Serves 12/ makes one 9 in [23 cm] square cake and 2 cups [480 ml] sauce
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: ¼ cup [85 g] honey; 1 cup [320 g] unsulfured molasses or sorghum; ½ cup [120 g] crème fraîche; 2 oz [55 g] crystallized ginger, chopped; ¼ tsp Fine sea salt; ¼ cup [50 g] sugar; 1 cup [240 ml] date syrup, homemade or store-bought; 2½ cups [350 g] all-purpose flour; ¾ cup [165 g] unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing; 1½ tsp baking soda; 1 tsp ground black pepper; 2 Tbsp honey bourbon or whiskey; 1 cup [240 ml] heavy cream; 1 tsp lime zest; 1 Tbsp ground ginger; 1 cup [240 ml] water warmed to 158°F [70°C]; 1 tsp ground green cardamom; 2 Tbsp unsalted butter; 2 large eggs, at room temperature; Fresh lime zest; ½ tsp Fine sea salt; Lightly sweetened crème fraîche

Preparation info

Serves
12
/ makes one 9 in [ 23 cm ] square cake and 2 cups [ 480 ml ] sauce

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Flavor Equation

By Nik Sharma

Published 2020

About

I’m of the opinion that all gingerbread cakes must have ginger in both the ground spice form and a bit of the crystallized form. The Date Syrup Bourbon Sauce gives it that extra edge of smooth richness and is inspired by one of the top-ten desserts I’ve eaten: the date cake with whiskey sauce at Gjelina in Los Angeles. Use a Microplane zester for the lime zest to get a fine grate.