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Pain d'épices

Recipe for French gingerbread, a classic served around Christmas time, best made a few days before eating. Made with mainly honey and rye flour (no eggs or molasses), it's quick to make. Adapted and translated from Julien Cantenot's recipe in Nov/Dec 2021 issue of Fou de Pâtisserie Magazine and doubled the recipe for a larger loaf tin.

Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
30 mins
Total Time
1 hr 10 mins
Servings: 12 people
Calories: 254 kcal
Course: Dessert , Breakfast , Appetizer , Snacks
Cuisine: French

Ingredients

  • 250 ml (9 fl oz/1 cup) water
  • 250 g (9oz / ⅔ cup honey (Acacia or chestnut honey)
  • 4 cardamom pods, seeds only
  • 2 cloves
  • 2 star anise
  • 100 g (3.5oz/ ½ cup) cane sugar (unrefined brown)
  • 150 g (5.5oz / ⅔ cup butter, unsalted roughly chopped (use a little to grease the tin)
  • 250 g (9oz / 2 cups rye flour T85
  • 10 g (2 tsp) baking powder
  • good pinch salt fleur de sel, Maldon or Celtic sea salt
  • 4 g (1½ tsp) gingerbread spice see NOTES*
  • 1 tablespoon candied fruits (sliced ginger, orange) Optional for DECOR

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Grease the loaf tin with a little butter and preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/ 360°F/ Gas 4. Boil the water, honey, sugar and whole spices together in a saucepan until the liquids dissolve. Once all dissolved, melt in the butter. Turn off the heat and leave the spices to infuse for 5 minutes. Remove the cloves and star anise to decorate the loaf at the end.
  2. In a bowl, stir together the rye flour, baking powder, salt and ground spices. Gradually add the warm honey mixture and whisk or stir until the mixture is smooth. The result will be a batter that is quite liquid.
  3. Pour the batter into the loaf tin, ¾ to the top. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes or until dark brown.
  4. Leave in the tin for about 10 minutes to cool slightly before turning out on to a wire tray. Decorate with candied fruits and the leftover star anise.

Notes

  • Gingerbread spices: sold in France as 'melange de pain d'épices': a mixture of ground cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, aniseed. To make your own: 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg, ¼ teaspoon ground aniseed.
  • To serve: best eaten at least 1 to-2 days after baking and up to a week. I like to brush the top with more heated honey to give extra shine to the cake.Serve on its own, with jam or with foie gras.
  • Storage: Pain d'épices keeps at its best for about a week in an airtight container or covered in aluminium foil outside of the fridge (as contains mainly honey which retains moisture). Can freeze for up to 2 months.
  • Measures: Please note that all my recipes are best made using digital kitchen scales in precise metric grams. Both ounces (and cups) are given as a guide.