Chewy Ginger Bars for the Dessert Plate

Chewy Ginger Bars for the Dessert Plate keeps the shopping list focused on all-purpose flour, ground ginger, and cinnamon. It serves 24 Bars.

Count on 25 minutes of prep, 30 minutes of cooking, about 55 minutes from the first measurement to the plate.

Ingredients Method

What goes in the bowl

For the Bars

• 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ cup molasses
• 2 eggs
• 1 ½ cups light brown sugar firmly packed
• ¼ cup butter melted
• ½ cup crystallized ginger chopped, make your own with this candied zest recipe

For the Crumble Topping

• 1 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
• ½ cup butter cold, cubed
• ½ cup crystallized ginger chopped

How the cooking goes

1. Warm the oven to 350°F and butter a 9-inch by 13-inch pan.
2. First prepare the bars. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, ginger, cinnamon, salt and soda; keep it to one side. In another bowl whisk together the molasses, eggs, sugar, and butter until homogenous.
3. Turn the flour mixture into the molasses mixture and stir just to combine. Fold through the crystallized ginger.
4. Lay into buttered pan with an offset spatula and keep it to one side.
5. Prepare the crumble topping. In a medium bowl combine flour, salt, and brown sugar; whisk to mix. Add the butter cubes and cut in the butter with a pastry blender or your hands. A pastry blender is best so that the butter doesn’t start melting.
6. Stir in the ginger and pour on top of the bar base in the pan. Spread out with your hands to distribute evenly.
7. Oven-bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes or until the bars begin to pull away from the sides of the pan. Run a knife along the edges and allow to cool until it is no longer warm before cutting into squares.

After it comes off the heat

Let the pan settle before you slice, so the crumb stays together. Cover leftovers once they are cool.

If you want another plate from Brownies and bars, open Blondies for the Dessert Plate and Banana Brownies with a Fudgy Middle.