Gyngerbrede

This recipe belongs to the family of boiled honey recipes that use the liquid nature of hot sugar as the entire liquid ingredients. This makes this a potentially dangerous recipe for the newbie because hot liquid sugar retains heat and can stick to the skin. It is very important to know your heat tolerances before starting and, if possible, work with someone else the first time that you do this recipe.


Gyngerbrede- Take a quart of hony, & seethe it, & skeme it clene; take Safroun, poudir Pepir, & throw ther-on; take gratyd Brede, & make it so chargeaunt that it wol be y-lechyd; then take pouder Canelle, & straw ther-on y-now; than make it square, lyke as thou wolt leche yt; take when thou lechyst hyt, and caste box leaves a-bouyn, y-stykyd ther-on, on clowys. And if thou wolt have it red, coloure it with Saunderys y-now.

Gingerbread- take a quart of honey and bring it to a boil and skim the top. Add saffron and ground pepper and stir it in. Bring it back to a full boil and add breadcrumbs, then add ground cinnamon and stir it in. Pour into a square mold and cut into squares while hot, decorate with box leaves held on with cloves and if you want it red add sanders with the saffron.

Box leaves = myrtle



4 cups bread crumbs
2 cups honey
½ tspn. Saffron
1 tspn. Black pepper
1 tablespoon cinnamon

In one bowl with a pour spout mix the breadcrumbs and cinnamon. Be generous with the spices because it is a counterbalance to the sweetness of the honey. In a pot with high sides put in the honey and bring to a boil. Modern honey has already been pasteurized and cleaned so skimming should be unnecessary. Once the honey is at a boil add the saffron and black pepper and stir to combine. Take off the heat. Allow a moment to activate the saffron and then add the breadcrumbs in a steady stream stirring with a heat resistant (wood or silicon) spatula to make sure that there are no dry pockets in the mix. The mixture should have the consistency of wet sand and should not hold shape. It will also be to hot to handle.
While the mixture cools, lay out wax paper sheets or a mold for holding the mixture. If you are shaping by hand have a bowl of cold water on hand to wet your palms to keep it from sticking. If you are using a mold line it with plastic wrap, wax paper or use silicon to make sure that the product releases cleanly.
Now touch the mixture, it should be uncomfortably but not burning hot. Take a small amount and compress, if it holds together like a good snowball and be malleable. Place in the mold, compress tight, cut along the service lines while hot and unmold onto waxpaper. Separate into pieces and do any decoration while still warm. If hand molding, take walnut size pieces, shape into a ball and then flatten onto the waxpaper. You can make holes for holding decorations or add decorative pieces at this time while the honey is still partially fluid. As the mass cools the mixture will become more solid and less malleable.

These can be made well ahead and stored in a cool, dry place to allow the spice flavor to build.