Gingerbread is one of those smells that melts my heart. It brings up images of Laura Ingalls, Norman Rockwell, and Hallmark movies.
All fall and winter my simmer pot is filled with cloves, cinnamon, and ginger. It fragrances the air without chemicals (read the label of your air freshener!) and adds humidity to combat dryness due to the furnace constantly running.
Decades ago — yes, DECADES ago — I was served filmjölkskaka about a dozen different times, by about a dozen different people in Sweden. Every single variety was wonderful. Spicy, warm, smothered in whipped cream, and surrounded by friendly conversation.
Fast-forward to the year 2020. With my simmer pot going on the stove, I got an incredible craving to recreate this delicious treat. It took several tries to find the same cosiness that a memorable treat can bring.
- As the name implies, this cake gains its incredible moistness from Swedish filmjölk. I make it at home, but plain kefir from the grocery store works just as well. Buttermilk works in a pinch, but doesn’t provide the same consistency and taste.
- Gluten free flour is pretty easy to come by these days. I still prefer using my own blend – it’s cheaper, and I’m a creature of habit. Otherwise, a cup-for-cup gluten free flour works fine.
- Lingonsylt can be purchased at IKEA. Try cranberry relish as a substitute. As strange as the ingredient sounds, you don’t want to skip this!
- Use 1 tablespoon of butter to generously grease the bread pan. Sprinkle in a tablespoon of flour, shaking, turning, and knocking the pan to get a thin coating of flour on every surface. Discard any extra flour.
This truly is a simple treat to make, and will be adored by everyone.
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Mjuk Pepparkaka Swedish Gingerbread Gluten Free
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 8 1x
Description
A gluten-free treat to serve any time. Makes the house smell great!
Ingredients
7 Tbsp butter, divided
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup filmjölk (or kefir)
1/2 cup lingonsylt (or cranberry jelly)
1 1/2 cups gluten free flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
Powdered sugar for decoration
Instructions
Sift together dry ingredients and set aside.
Cream together 6 Tbsp softened butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, and mix thoroughly. Add filmjölk and lingonsylt, mixing well.
Gradually add in dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Cover and chill batter in refrigerator for at least one hour.
Preheat oven to 350℉. Grease bread pan with remaining tablespoon of butter, add a little flour and shake/bump the pan around until flour covers all the butter. Discard extra flour that doesn’t stick.
Pour batter into bread pan and bake for 50-55 minutes. Turn out gingerbread on a cooling rack, cover with a cloth and allow to cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar and serving with whipped cream.
Notes
As with basically any gluten free baked goods, this batter works better when it has a chance to absorb the liquids.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
