December 11, 2018 - 4:43am
Blackstrap Molasses for Gingerbread
Long story short, I have blackstrap molasses for making gingerbread cookies. I live in Nicaragua and getting that was a big enough challenge. People just don't bake here.
So, how do I use it? I'm thinking of mixing it half and half with honey, or maybe 2/3 molasses and 1/3 honey to balance it out.
Part of the problem is I've never really used molasses before, so I'm not sure what to look for in terms of consistency and flavor...
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Hi, you don't indicate what your recipe calls for, but I can appreciate that you would want to extend the lifespan of hard-to-find ingredients.
I looked at a couple of gingerbread recipes, and none seem to call for honey. This link gives a few suggestions for substitutions, which could be useful for you.
Enjoy your cookies!
Carole
It calls for molasses, but there are different types of molasses. When a recipe calls for molasses, it typically means a sweeter, more syrupy version than what I got... Blackstrap is darker, more bitter, and has less moisture content. That's why I'm hoping to mix it with honey to get the right flavor and consistency. I have a full gallon of the blackstrap molasses, so that's not a problem...
https://www.ehow.com/how_5640522_substitute-strap-molasses-light-molasses.html
https://www.chowhound.com/post/blackstrap-molasses-363125
Opinions are all over the lot about that. The two posts above talk about half blackstrap/half honey or light corn syrup (I'm not sure that's very healthy). There are also lots of others who say that blackstrap should never be used as a substitute for the lighter varieties.
I'm sorry, I wish I could've been more helpful!
Enjoy your cookies anyway :-)
Carole
I had a gallon of blackstrap molasses, once. It only took a couple of years to go through it all. ;->
Since it is a flavor that I like, I used it in any recipe that called for molasses. In a few, I found that I needed to increase the sweetener (sugar, honey, etc.) to offset the bitterness of the molasses. For most recipes, though, the food went from having a pleasant molasses flavor to tasting like MOLASSES! Which was all good, in my book. Your tastes may be different.
Here are some blackstrap molasses related links:
https://tastespace.wordpress.com/2014/11/29/how-to-use-blackstrap-molasses/
https://www.goldenbarrel.com/recipe/blackstrap-molasses-cookies/
https://ohmyveggies.com/ingredient-spotlight-blackstrap-molasses/
https://www.yummly.com/recipes/blackstrap-molasses
https://tastessence.com/blackstrap-molasses-recipes
Those should help you with ideas for using your molasses. Enjoy!
Paul
Hello, check out Floyd's recipe for gingerbread in the Favorites Section. Sure to please!
Chris