Plantain Gingerbread

I love to bake.  Some could assume that, aside from my family, it is the one thing in life I love more dearly than anything else.  I love it when effort and precision is paid off with the promise of something great.   There is nothing finer, nor more poetic, than a baked goodie - an assembled mixture of loose ingredients combined to form one perfect slice of happiness on a plate.  Every culture has something that creates this level of pleasure.  Every cuisine has their version of baked bliss.  In Liberia, apparently this comes in the form of a treat called Plantain Gingerbread.

Not like the Christmas gingerbread we Americans are familiar with, the Liberian fare tastes a little less sweet though triumphantly just as decadent.  The rich molasses in the batter makes the stout cake hold a wealth of flavor while somehow remaining as a muted backdrop to the battery of spices housed in the mixture.  Butter, and lots of it, keep the cake moist.  And the plantains, thinly layered on top of the cake, are the unassuming star of the show.  Supple, sweet, with just a bit of tang, they play together with the gingerbread to form a nice and delicate symphony of flavors. 

Truly, as always, the best things in life are the most simple.  And nothing could be more simple (or better) than this recipe!

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups sliced half-ripe plantain
• 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/3 cup butter or margarine
• 1 cup molasses
• 2/3 cup boiling water
• Whipped cream (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix the sugar and water in a sauce pan over moderate heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil. Peel plantain and add to the boiling sugar syrup. Add the plantain and cook for about 5 minutes. Remove the plantain and drain. Butter a 9-inch square cake pan heavily. Spread the plantain slices evenly over the bottom.
3. Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg.
4. Place the butter and molasses in a sauce pan over moderate heat and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat. Combine this heated mixture and the boiling water and stir. Gradually add the sifted dry ingredients, stirring, and then beat vigorously. Pour the batter over the sliced plantain.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes, or until the cake tests done (Mine was done in 30 minutes). Let the pan stand for 5 minutes on a rack, then loosen with a spatula and turn the cake upside down on a serving plate. Cut into squares. The cake is topped with whipped cream. Serve warm or cooled.

(The original recipe came from this site: http://www.liberianforum.com/recipe.htm)