This is going to be my last post of the year but yet very powerful.Today I am doing the “Jaffa Gingerbread man” I am sure you must have all heard the folktale of the gingerbread man.If not then you can read it here.
Run run as fast as you can.You can’t catch me.I am the gingerbread man.
Sad,but true I don’t know why they wrote such a sad ending for the story as I tell this story to my three year old as a bedtime story.Sipping my coffee and the gingerbread biscuits that I made, made me actually see the rationale behind the story.As many Men and women desire a child to make them complete and with great love and care they bring them into this world just as the old woman and old man in the story.A mother eats well and slowly nurtures its features and starts knitting mittens of pink and blue just as the old woman gave him currants for eyes and cherries for buttons.
Out of the womb “pop” comes the new baby a bundle of joy with all the fervor with which the gingerbread man ran out of the window.We keep running after them wiping their nose,weaning them and humming lullabies.Then comes one day when they are all set to go meet new people, share new thoughts,make new journeys and scale new heights.We always think that our biscuits were the best and we baked it to the right crispness and color.There would be millions of cow,horse and pigs in their lives.
But what I as a parent is concerned well…its the sly Fox.This is every parent’s nightmare.
Jump on my tail, and I’ll take you across the river. Jump on my tail, and I’ll take you across the river.Soon, the fox said, You’re too heavy for my back, jump onto my nose.” So the gingerbread man jumped on the fox’s nose. But as soon as they reached the riverbank, the fox flipped the gingerbread man into the air, snapped his mouth shut, and ate the gingerbread man . And that was the end of the gingerbread man
Every day I read of new crimes against children.A three year old was molested and hundreds of innocent children faced bullets.This new year I just want resolute that I want to let my gingerbread man never lose its natural outgoing but yet add ingredients to strike a tricky balance to help understand safety without making them wary of everyone they meet.That’s my new year resolution….What’s yours? Please leave your comments below I would to listen to you.
The term Jaffa is derived from the famous Jaffa cakes which is a Genoise sponge base, a layer of orange flavored jelly and a coating of chocolate.This biscuit has the best of both the worlds.
So lets get baking and welcome the new year with a Jive.Our humble family Man,Woman and Child. Amen!!
- 350g plain flour
- 140g 54% dark chocolate
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 125g butter
- 175g light soft brown sugar
- 1 free-range egg
- 4 tbsp Tangerine juice
- writing icing tubes
- Sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, ginger and pour into the bowl of a food processor.
- Add the butter and blend until the mix looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the light brown sugar.
- Melt the chocolate over the double boiler.Then pour the melted chocolate over the above mixture.
- Lightly beat the egg and tangerine juice together, add to the food processor and pulse until the mixture clumps together. Tip the dough out, knead briefly until smooth, wrap in cling film and leave to chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180C. Line two baking trays with baking paper.
- Roll the dough out to a 1/2 cm thickness on a lightly floured surface. Using gingerbread man cutters, cut out the gingerbread men shapes and place on the baking tray, leaving a gap between them.
- Bake for 10 minutes, or until lightly golden-brown. Leave on the tray for 10 minutes and then move to a wire rack to finish cooling. When cooled carve out the eyes,mouth and dress with the writing icing.
