Hermit Bars With Brown Sugar Icing And Candied Ginger Recipes

HERMIT BARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8-by-8-by-2-inch pan and line with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang. Butter parchment; set pan aside. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, salt, and cloves; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg; beat until combined, scraping down sides of bowl once. Add molasses; beat until combined and scrape down sides of bowl. Add the flour mixture and raisins; beat on low until dough just comes together, about 1 minute. Press dough into prepared pan. Bake until golden but still very soft to the touch, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into bars. Hermit bars can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 1 week.

HERMIT BARS WITH BROWN SUGAR ICING AND CANDIED GINGER

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 10 × 15-inch baking pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Butter the parchment, and set the pan aside. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, yolk, and molasses.
• Add the flour mixture; beat on low speed until combined. Add 1/2 cup candied ginger and the raisins; beat until combined.
• Spread the dough into the prepared pan in an even layer, and bake until firm to the touch, 18 to 22 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Remove from the oven; let cool completely in the pan before icing.
• Drizzle with icing, and then sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup candied ginger. Let stand until icing has set, about 15 minutes. Serve cut into squares.
• Brown Sugar Icing
• Combine the brown sugar, milk, and butter in a medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat; whisk in the vanilla and confectioners' sugar. If the icing is too thick to drizzle, stir in a little more milk. If it is too thin, add a little more confectioners' sugar. Let cool slightly before using.

SPICY HERMIT BARS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Place the butter and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 2 minutes, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, add the egg, scrape down the bowl, then mix in the molasses.
• Sift together the flour, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, mixing just until combined. Mix in the raisins and crystallized ginger. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Turn the dough out onto a very lightly floured board, form it into a disk with lightly floured hands, and cut it in half. Roll each half into a log 12 inches long and place them 3 inches apart on the prepared sheet pan. Bake for 20 minutes; the logs will still be soft in the center.
• Meanwhile, whisk the confectioners' sugar with 5 to 6 teaspoons rum to make a pourable glaze. While the logs are still warm, drizzle the glaze back and forth across the logs with a teaspoon and sprinkle them with the lemon zest. Allow to cool. Cut each log crosswise into 1 1/2-inch-wide bars.

ICED HERMITS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Butter a 10 by 15-inch rimmed baking sheet. Line bottom with parchment paper and butter parchment.
• Make cookies: Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, pepper, and cloves in a bowl.
• Put butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Add brown sugar; mix until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in whole egg and yolk, and molasses. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture. Mix in 1/2 cup candied ginger and the raisins.
• Spread dough evenly onto prepared baking sheet. Bake, rotating sheet halfway through, until firm, 18 to 22 minutes. Cool completely in baking sheet on a wire rack.
• Make icing: Put brown sugar, milk, and butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until butter has melted and sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat; whisk in vanilla and confectioners' sugar. If icing is too thick to drizzle, stir in more milk, a teaspoon at a time. If icing is too thin, stir in more confectioners' sugar, a teaspoon at a time. Let cool slightly.
• Drizzle bars with icing; sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup candied ginger. Let stand until icing has set, about 15 minutes. Cut into 2-inch squares. Bars can be stored in single layers in airtight containers at room temperature up to 5 days.