The Gingerbread Gazette | Gingernuts Launch Issue

read more about gorgeous gingernut heritage we unveil the brand new hawkens gingernuts!

easy gingernut recipe inside

gingernut special edition The ultimate bitesize magazine for gingerbread lovers

issue 5 launch edition

CONTENTS 03

LET'S TALK GINGERNUTS Because we simply cannot launch our new gingernuts without appreciating its history.

06

BEAUTIFUL BRUNKAGER RECIPE Gingernuts with almonds, what's not to love? A danish recipe, oozing with lip-licking flavours.

07

HAWKENS GINGERNUTS Discover why we decided to bring you a stunning batch of handmade gingernuts

05 LET'S GET SOCIAL Get to know what our Hawkens Gingerbread fans are saying about our biscuits!

☎ 01476 501740

✉ alastair@granthamgingerbread.com @hawkensgingerbread

The Gingerbread Bakery 28 London Road Grantham, Lincolnshire NG31 6EJ

greetings!

Hello and welcome to our special edition of The Gingerbread Gazette, dedicated to gingernuts! A famous biscuit devoured across the world, gingernuts have always been a favourite amongst the Hawkens Gingerbread team, which brings us great pleasure in announcing the arrival of our very own handmade, artisan Hawkens Gingernuts.

In this issue we discuss the history of gingernuts; share a danish gingernut recipe and talk about why we have introduced a brand new range for our ever growing Hawkens Gingerbread fans.

Happy reading folks, until next time!

LET’S TALK GINGERNUTS DEVOURED ACROSS TH

BY GENERATIONS AND TAKE A LOOK AT THIS DELICACY, WE IN THE ‘GINGERNUTS.’

E WORLD, ENJOYED LOVED BY ALL, WE GORGEOUS UK CALL

That first bite, often followed by the lick of your lips when indulging in a gingernut biscuit is a moment to never forget; some of us prefer them alone, whilst others reach for a cup of tea - the perfect hot drink for gingernut dunking. Gingernuts are well renowned for their concoction of sweet and spicy taste; not too sweet, not too spicy, the perfect balance of flavoursome goodness, of course. We may call them gingernuts or ginger biscuits, but across the world, they go by a diverse range of names, whilst still staying to their true gingernut taste. In the United States, these delectable delights are called ‘ginger snaps,’ the ‘snaps’ referring to the texture of the biscuit once biting into as well as them being a ‘snap’ to make (simple, straightforward recipe with minimal effort). Gingernuts and ginger snaps are generally the same biscuit, often ⅛-¼ inch thick; ideal for dunking did we mention?

However, once arriving at the Scandinavian and Nordic territories, the

biscuit is thinner, leaving a crispier bite.

Gingernuts also go by different names, depending which country you are in. Whilst Sweden, Finland, Estonia and Norway call ginger nuts using similar phonetic spellings and sounds; ‘pepparkakor,’ ‘piparkakut,’ ‘piparkoogid’ and ‘pepperkaker’ respectively, Denmark in fact refer to ginger nuts as ‘brunkager.’ Whilst pepparkakor, piparkakut, piparkoogid and pepperkakers follow the familiar gingernut recipe of flour, sugar, golden syrup and butter, brunkager biscuits follow a similar recipe, however with the addition of almonds - delicious! For nut lovers, the brunkager dunked into a hot cup of great British tea sounds like a dream; the perfect synergy of two different countries and their excellence in both food and drink!

When discussing the wonderful world of

gingernuts, we must not forget to mention Australia’s Arnott’s - mass gingernut bakers who produce gingernuts specifically tailored to each individual state, adhering to each state’s historical recipe of the gingernut. Australia, alongside New Zealand are enormous fans of gingernuts, with recipes being handed down through multiple generations. In fact, gingernuts are understood to be New Zealand’s most favourable biscuit, with over 60 million gingernuts produced annually - that’s a whole lot of gingernuts if you ask us!

As British bakers and lovers of our own heritage associated with our Original Grantham Gingerbread, it goes without saying that learning the history surrounding the famous ginger nut is indeed tantalising. The first ever gingernut recipe was published in 1805, by

"...leaving a lingering hotness in the mouth, but a hotness leading your hands to reach for just one more."

British baker Mrs H L Webster; comprising the traditional and common recipe of butter, flour, sugar, golden syrup and often additional spices, such as clove - a beautiful taste of both sugar and spice, leaving a lingering hotness in the mouth, but a hotness leading your hands to reach for just one more. On a commercial level, gingernuts were first truly loved by the general public in the 1840s (a century after the revelation of the Grantham Gingerbread).

Gingernuts quickly became the best selling biscuits of famous biscuiteers, Huntley & Palmers, particularly from 1933 up until the end of the second World War, due to their large scale gingernut promotion. By 1900, Huntley & Palmers were the largest biscuit manufacturers in the world, exporting their array of biscuits across the USA, Africa and Asia; because of this, gingernuts were

well received across the continents and enjoyed amongst war travellers, families and more.

During the gingernuts’ infancy, indulgers in the biscuit would choose either a cup of tea or a glass of milk to drink whilst also dunking, however as decades and generations have passed, food lovers are open to experimenting with whatever teases their taste buds. Gelato, mousse or perhaps a cup of rich hot chocolate, the options are endless and for many people, gingernuts now form a delicious pudding to cleanse the palate.

As the festivities get nearer and nearer combined with the colder autumn and winter days, we know that biscuit lovers around the world will be indulging in this gorgeous delight we like to call gingernuts. Parents, grandparents,

children and quite frankly anyone who enjoys baking, come together during this time of year to bake their favourite goodies, ready to devour whilst relaxing by the fire.

Gingernuts are in fact commonly consumed during the festive period, no matter where you are in the world; people simply cannot get enough of the gingery, spicy and christmassy flavours that the biscuit brings.

In normal circumstances, whilst walking through the Christmas markets, we'd inhale the aromatic fumes of gingernuts, however, we understand that this year, life itself is particularly unusual, therefore many are resulting to baking their own treats gingernuts should most certainly be on your list, especially the brunkager recipe that we have included within this month’s Gingerbread Gazette!

LET'S GET SOCIAL! TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT OUR INSTAGRAM FOLLOWERS HAVE BEEN SHARING WITH US!

@sarjeantsmess

@amyseeksnewtreats

@socialchange_uk

@whoizhannah

To feature in our next issues, tag us in your social media posts!

DANISH BRUNKAGER RECIPE! A TANTALISING TWIST TO THE USUAL GINGERNUT RECIPE, INCLUDING ALMONDS!

MAKES 50!

INGREDIENTS 2 tsp ground cardamon 2 tsp ground cinnamon ½ tsp ground cloves ½ tsp ground ginger 25g blanched almonds, finely chopped ½ tsp finely grated orange zest 125g butter, cubed 125g golden syrup 60g dark brown sugar ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

method Sift flour and spices into a large bowl, and stir in almonds and zest.

Stir butter, golden syrup and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat until melted. Whisk in bicarbonate and remove from heat. Stir the syrup mixture into the dry ingredients until combined. Cover and set aside to cool, then chill until firm enough to roll and stay in a round shape (30 minutes). Form into a 4cm-diameter log, wrap, and holding ends of wrap, roll along bench to form a smooth cylinder. Freeze until firm (1 hour). Dough will keep frozen for 1 month.

Preheat oven to 180°C and line two oven trays with baking paper.

Unwrap dough and slice into rounds about 4mm wide (if dough is too firm, leave to soften slightly before cutting). Place rounds on trays, leaving about 3cm between each round. Bake in batches until light golden (5-6 minutes; biscuits should be slightly soft when cool, cook for 1-2 minutes longer if you prefer them crisp).

DO YOU HAVE A RECIPE THAT YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE WITH US AND OUR MONTHLY READERS? IF SO, PLEASE DO SEND THEM THROUGH TO ALASTAIR@HAWENKSGINGERBREAD.COM!

HAWKENS GINGERNUTS AVAILABLE TO PURCHAsE now VIA WWW.HAWKENSGINGERBREAD.COM

BRAND NEW! As artisan bakers of over ten years of serving the taste buds of gingerbread lovers across the globe, it brings us great pleasure to announce a brand new addition to the Hawkens Gingerbread collection. After months of perfecting the recipe, mastering the ingredients and hundreds of taste tests, we can assure you that a batch of our hand crafted, truly delicious Gingernuts will leave you longing for more.

So why have we decided to introduce our very own Gingernuts to our biscuit lovers, old and new? We know that gingernuts are enjoyed, loved and devoured across the world; from the UK to Australia, people reach for a gingernut to dunk into their cup of tea all around the world. We also understand the importance of preserving heritage - the gingernut itself possesses centuries of history, which we simply could not ignore. Because of this, combined with the sheer joy gingernuts bring when biting into, founder Alastair decided to get his hands dirty, presenting you with the most beautiful batch of sweet, spicy and moreish batch of Hawkens Gingernuts.

As you take your first bite, you will experience a feeling of jubilance as you slowly begin to taste the perfect combination of both sugar and spice, and of course‌ everything nice! You will hear the crunch as its crumbly texture melts in your mouth, leaving your taste buds tingling for more. You will finish with a lick of the lips, whilst your hands rummage the box for just one more, because one just simply isn’t enough.

Hawkens Gingernuts are available to buy from our online store, now! www.hawkensgingerbread.com

A delicious bite for your tastebuds awaits...

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