Laurie Colwin’s Gingerbread Recipe (2024)

I used the old trick of adding 1/2 Tbsp. of apple cider vinegar to 1/2 cup of milk and allowing it to stand undisturbed for 5 minutes. The milk clabbers, giving the same effect as buttermilk - a good substitute when you don't have buttermilk or yogurt.

I used dark blackstrap molasses instead and got the traditional dark colored cake. Really delicious and easy! I might try adding some lemon zest next time.

This is delicious. Laurie Colwin was a wonderful writer who is missed. Her pot roast recipe is terrific, just made it yesterday. Miss you Laurie and your novels, very thoughtful writer.

I love Laurie Colwin and her recipes. They are completely trustworthy. But nothing, in the gingerbread universe, will ever surpass Gramercy Tavern’s gingerbread recipe, where you simmer Guinness Stout with the molasses. It is insanely wonderful. And if you deign to drizzle a lemon sauce over it (confectionary sugar and fresh lemon juice), you may take a bite and, briefly, lise consciousness.

I love all of Laurie Colwin's recipes for gingerbread (Damp Gingerbread is my favorite). She was a wonderful writer and spoke of food with a kind of ease and sweet authority that were charming. Everybody should read both volumes of her HOME COOKING columns, which originally appeared in Gourmet Magazine. Colwin clearly loved her domesticity with her daughter and husband. It allowed her to write the kinds of wonderful novels she produced and made her a vivid if brief presence in our lives.

Followed as written - though did milk+ yogurt to substitute for buttermilk (I don't like buying quart containers for a small amount and not needing later, all that is available to me). Delicious. Whipped cream with sugar and vanilla. Grand-daughter baked w/me. Yummy.

Followed recipe exactly, and it is delicious..moist and spicy. Great with applesauce and/or whipped cream. Will definitely make it again.

I love this gingerbread! I sub refined coconut oil, chickpea brine and soy milk + apple cider vinegar to make it vegan and it has been absolutely perfect every time I've made it - which admittedly is not true of most vegan cakes.

Didn't have molasses, so made this instead with muscovado sugar (which is heavy in molasses) and honey. Cooking time was longer (about 40 minutes) but it came out well.

I like having buttermilk on hand in the fridge. Next time you use store bought buttermilk, leave a bit in the carton or bottle. Add fresh milk (however much you want) and return to the fridge. You will soon have buttermilk. It lasts forever and you can continue adding milk to keep it going.

I ordered Steen's cane syrup from Steen's. Because I'd seen the photo of the finished gingerbread on this website and felt it looked fairly pale, at the same time I also ordered Steen's Home Style Molasses. When I tried it with the cane syrup, it came out pretty much on the pizzaz-less side so I tried the recipe again using the Home Style Molasses and found it much more to my taste. Nothing wrong with the cane syrup other than it seems too tame. The dark molasses gives more punch.

Inspired by Dorie Greenspan’s bûche de Noël, I make a cake each year at the holidays but using this gingerbread recipe (Dorie’s genoise is a bit meh). Then mascarpone cream and an orange compote between each layer. Family favorite for sure!

Followed this recipe as written. I used vanilla because I didn’t have time to find lemon brandy, so added some orange zest. Baked right at 30 minutes and it came out perfectly, like a fluffy cloud of Christmas spices! I prefer mine dusted with powdered sugar, but my husband loved it as is!

I like having buttermilk on hand in the fridge. Next time you use store bought buttermilk, leave a bit in the carton or bottle. Add fresh milk (however much you want) and return to the fridge. You will soon have buttermilk. It lasts forever and you can continue adding milk to keep it going.

This turned out deliciously and was very easy to make on a cold, gray, after-Christmas morning. Laurie Colwin was my introduction to home-cooking when I was young after being raised, so to speak, by a slovenly mother who made things only out of boxes. Wonderful warming aroma emitting from oven in the morning as the children woke up. Grateful the NYT remembers and appreciates Laurie Colwin, too.

I'm not a big fan of the flavor of molasses, so I make this with half honey, half molasses. It seems to allow the spice flavor to come through better. And I did add salt.

This was wonderful. I used a combination of Lyle's syrup and molasses and it was a lighter-hued cake. It took 33 minutes in my oven.

Takes 40 minutes to bake

It takes 40 minutes to bake

Absolutely wonderful gingerbread and my oven is high quality and well calibrated. I have made it twice and always use the poke test and it takes at least 40 minutes.

I was too hasty in my review. This gingerbread needs to sit overnight to allow the flavors to meld which results in a slightly sticky spicy cake. So delicious!

Not a bad gingerbread but it needs some oomph. I added almost 1/2 tsp salt and it could use a bit more spices. Otherwise, the cake has a beautiful sponge and color.

Wonderful recipe! Used coconut sugar and gluten free AP flour. For spices just used the ginger and 1tbs cinnamon. Added 1/2 tsp salt to bring out flavours. Absolutely a keeper!

When it says light molasses... pay attention. I made this with regular dark molasses and it was inedible. Texture was great though - looking forward to trying it again when I can find some light molasses!

I used dark molasses and it is delicious. Intend to use Steen's next time. Had to wiki molasses. Steen's cane syrup is just the first pressing of sugar cane, thus light, but is molasses just the same. Baked almost an extra 30 minutes, but I only use baking times as a guideline. I always use the toothpick (or in my case a knife) method when baking. This is the perfect size cake for one (or more) person. The additional buttermilk left over will go into a buttermilk pie.