Gingerbread with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting

I'll admit, when I saw this recipe over on Jam Hands a few months ago I was far more interested in the frosting then the gingerbread.  It looks so ethereal and gorgeous!   I pinned it and just kept waiting for the weather to turn cold enough that it seemed reasonable to make gingerbread.

And finally it's cool (I won't say cold) here in the Bay Area, so I've been making plenty of Autumn treats, this recipe included.  And it's good.  The gingerbread is dark, moist and has a bold molasses flavor which I love far more than the Starbucks version.  It calls for cold tea, and since we're not tea drinkers I just used some English Tea I had on hand.  I'm sure you could get a wide variety of flavors if you choose stronger teas.

And the frosting?  Oh, it did not disappoint.  It is glorious.  I ate so much out of the bowl I should be ashamed of myself.  But I'm not.  :)

Cold Tea Gingerbread with Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
From Jam Hands

Makes one 9" x 5" loaf

1 1/4 cups plus 2 Tbsp. sifted flour
1 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup cold tea (I used Honey Ginger Peach tea)
1 scant tsp. baking soda
1 Tbsp. hot water
1 egg, beaten

 Set the oven rack in the middle position. Preheat the oven to 350-f degrees. Line the bottom and ends of a 9" x 5" x 3" loaf pan with a single strip of wax paper or parchment paper. Coat the pan and wax paper liner with vegetable spray.

 Mix together flour, ginger, cinnamon, and salt.

Cream butter and brown sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add molasses and combine.

Add sifted dry ingredients alternately with cold tea. Dissolve baking soda in hot water and add to batter. Add egg and combine thoroughly.

Pour batter into loaf pan. Bake 45 minutes, or until tester inserted into loaf comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Invert pan and place on rack to continue cooling. Serve gingerbread hot with lemon sauce or cold with whipped cream and chipped walnuts. Store loosely covered with wax paper at room temperature.

Gingerbread Source: Heirloom Baking with the Brass Sisters

Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
adapted slightly from Jam Hands

1/2 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1/2 cup white sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

In a small bowl beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form; set aside.
In a large bowl combine cream cheese, sugar, salt and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in whipped cream.  I found this required a good deal of folding, so don't worry if after a few minutes it doesn't seem to be combining.