Ginger crunch
Also called ginger slice, this is a sweet treat that’s New Zealand through and through. Anyone that’s been to NZ has undoubtedly come across it at a cafe or convenience store. That hefty hunk of biscuit base that’s topped with a gingery, fridge-set icing.
Along with scones and lolly cake, I’ve had my fair share of ginger crunch in my NZ travels. Many variations are out there, so why not add my own to the mix?
Most ginger crunch that I’ve tried isn’t nearly as “gingery” as I’d like. One way to fix that, right? Add more types of ginger, I say. I want that burning sensation!
It took a few tests to get this recipe just as I like it. Sadly the first was a soft and sticky affair that was a cross between a soft ANZAC cookie and ginger crunch. Note to self, don’t grate frozen ginger into the icing mix without increasing the icing sugar content.
This one, however, is firm, very gingery and packs the same tooth-numbing sweetness the traditional ones are known for.
Many are topped with almonds, but it was salted pistachios for me. The salt calms the sweetness a tad.
It does say 10 servings for the recipe, but the slices I’ve done are pretty generous. The slab could easily make 20 squares. Use your own sweet tooth to figure out which slicing method is best.
| Servings |
bars
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- 175 g butter softened
- 170 g caster sugar
- 200 g plain flour
- 1½ tbsp ground ginger
- 40 g crystallised ginger finely grated
- 120 g butter
- ¼ cup golden syrup
- 2 tbsp ground ginger
- 2 tbsp fresh ginger finely grated
- 25 g crystallised ginger finely grated
- 2½ cups icing sugar (350 g)
- 30 g salted pistachios chopped
Ingredients
Base
Topping
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- Preheat oven to 180°C.
- Line a 22 cm square tin with baking paper, lightly grease with butter or oil spray.
- Place all base ingredients into a food processor. Pulse 5 or 6 times, then process until the mixture comes together. Pour the mixture straight into the lined baking tin and press evenly into the bottom.
- Bake for 25 minutes as you make the topping.
- Place topping ingredients, except the nuts, into a small saucepan over low-medium heat. Stir occasionally as it melts and simmers and all the icing sugar has dissolved.
- Pour the topping, while still hot, over the base. The base should also still be a little warm. Set aside for 5 minutes and then sprinkle over the chopped pistachios.
- While the slice is still warm, cut into portions and keep them in the tin as one slab. This makes cutting easier as it can be quite hard once completely chilled. Also, cutting it chilled runs the risk of it shattering into small pieces.
- Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. To serve, slice through the previous cuts and serve cold or at room temperature.
