Mini Holiday Gingerbread Loaves

• Produce

  • 1 tsp Ginger, ground
  • 1 Orange, zest of

• Refrigerated

  • 2 Eggs

• Canned Goods

  • 3/4 cup Applesauce, unsweetened

• Baking & Spices

  • 1 tsp Baking soda
  • 1/2 cup Brown sugar, light
  • 1 1/2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
  • 1/4 tsp Cloves, ground
  • 2 cups Flour
  • 2 cups Icing sugar
  • 1/4 tsp Nutmeg, ground
  • 1/4 tsp Salt
  • 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla
  • 1/2 cup White sugar

• Dairy

  • 5/8 cup Butter, unsalted
  • 1/2 cup Milk
  • 2 tbsp Whipping cream

• Other

  • Finely chopped candied orange, for decoration

Found on crumbblog.com

Description

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup light brown sugar
• ½ cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• Zest of 1 orange
• ½ cup milk
• ¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp whipping cream, divided
• Finely chopped candied orange, for decoration

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly butter and flour a mini loaf pan.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add milk, applesauce, vanilla extract and orange zest, and continue mixing until mixture is completely combined.
• Fold in the dry ingredients, mixing only until just barely combined. Pour batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top of each mini loaf. Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the loaves comes out clean.
• Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, the remove from the pan and allow to cool off completely.
• While the cake cools, prepare the frosting. In a mixing bowl, beat together icing sugar, butter, vanilla extract and 1 tbsp whipping cream until smooth and spreadable. (If the icing looks too thick, add more whipping cream, a teaspoon at a time, until it loosens up to the right consistency. If it looks too runny, add more icing sugar, a tablespoon at a time, until it thickens up.)
• Once the loaves have cooled, spread a thin layer of icing onto each cake and decorate with a few bits of chopped orange peel. Devour on the spot, or store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.