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Baby it’s cold outside….

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These Mini Gingerbread Men Cakes with Grand Marnier Chocolate Glaze have a moist gingerbread men shaped cake covered in glaze.

Mini gingerbread man cake with head bit off with a full cake behind it

We are having what one might call a cold spell around these parts.

Which makes me fear most for our ever controversial bikini baristas. 😉

They have been in the news around here as of late. In my area (note as I type this my heart swells with pride) we had 5 baristas get arrested for offering a little more than coffee…let’s just say extra whipped cream was an option. 😛

Then recently we had one open up in the uber-yuppie town of Bellevue near a park.

And oh the uproar that has caused.

But here’s my beef. I have no actual beef with the baristas themselves.

It’s a good marketing plan and they make lots of tips.

No, my beef is their actual name, Bikini Baristas.

As, I have never seen one in an actual bikini. All the girls they interview on TV all seem to be in lingerie.

No bikini.

So I am starting a movement to get them called Boudoir Baristas instead of Bikini Baristas.

I have a feeling it will catch on.

Mini gingerbread cake with the chocolate glaze everywhere

You may be asking yourself what this has to do with gingerbread?

Oddly enough, a lot.

I often joke with people that I am going to open up my own Boudoir Barista based coffee shack.

And I want the outside of the shack to look like a gingerbread house.

I won’t tell you the name I have in mind…it’s a little in the gutter. 😛

But I envisioned a little gingerbread girl in lingerie as our mascot of sorts.

Of course, instead of bikinis or lingerie, I would want the girls to wear cinnamon buns for tops.

Non-edible of course, as I feel if they were edible, a few health code violations might be in the works.

So I offer up what would surely appear on the menu of this fine coffee shack I would start.

They are little gingerbread men.

Mini Gingerbread Men Cakes with Grand Marnier Chocolate Glaze.

They don’t really have a ton of ginger in them, just a hint.

I did that so you could taste the hint of the liqueur and the chocolate.

You can certainly ditch the Grand Marnier if you would like, but I think it adds a little something special to these.

If you don’t have a mini gingerbread man pan (I bought mine at Target) then you can just use mini muffin pans.

Though clearly, not as festive.

Keep warm!

P.S. It’s a great day to buy my cookbook Holy Sweet!

Mini Gingerbread Men Cakes on a rack with the glaze dripping down.

Want More Gingerbread Recipes?

Gingerbread Cheesecake Cheeseball

Clementine Upside Down Gingerbread Cake

Chocolate Dipped Gingerbread Cupcakes

Mini Gingerbread Men Sandwich Cookies

Chocolate Gingerbread Layer Cake

Mini Gingerbread Men Cakes with Grand Marnier Chocolate Glaze

Mini Gingerbread Men Cakes with Grand Marnier Chocolate Glaze

Ingredients

  • For the Cakes:
  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 tsp ground ginger
  • ½ tsp fresh ground nutmeg
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup warm water
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 6 TBSP unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/3 cup mild-flavored molasses
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 tsp orange extract
  • For the Grand Marnier Chocolate Glaze:
  • 5 TBSP clarified melted butter
  • 8 ounces semisweet chocolate
  • 2 TBSP Grand Marnier
  • ¼ tsp ground ginger
  • ¼ cup heavy whipping cream

Instructions

  1. For the Cakes:
  2. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  3. Spray either mini gingerbread men pan or mini muffin pans (2).
  4. Whisk first 6 ingredients in medium bowl to blend.
  5. Mix warm water and baking soda in small bowl until baking soda dissolves.
  6. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, molasses, eggs, and orange extract in large bowl until well blended.
  7. Add dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with water mixture in 2 additions, beating until just combined.
  8. Pour batter into prepared pan.
  9. Bake for 12-14 minutes depending on your oven and the type of pans you used.
  10. For the Grand Marnier Chocolate Glaze:
  11. Over a double boiler add chocolate and butter in a bowl over simmering water.
  12. Melt until smooth.
  13. Remove from double boiler and add liqueur, ground ginger, and whipping cream.
  14. Whisk until fully incorporated.
  15. Place cooled gingerbread men on a wire rack with a pan below to catch the chocolate.
  16. Pour chocolate glaze over the gingerbread men.
  17. Let glaze set up for an hour.
© Peabody

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Comments

  4. Great post! I had to read it to my husband. Just like the football pool post. That was so funny;) How is the pool going this year? I was hoping for a 3-peat.

    Reply

  6. These look fantastic! I now need to be on the lookout for the little gingerbread man pan. The chocolate orange topping I’m sure was the icing on the cake (I couldn’t resist that…) 🙂 Here in NY we had a bikini deli which seemed really odd to me. I never found a place that sold cold cut sandwiches sexy. I can see coffee at least a little more sensual…

    Reply

  9. Those gingerbread men are so cute. I’ve never seen a pan like that either.

    In Austin, we have Bikinis-which is similar to Hooters. We also have Twin Peaks, which I believe is such a tacky name.

    So what happens to these scantily clad women when hot coffee sloshes on them? OUCH!!

    Reply

  12. Bikini Baristas? Really? If they can have that, then you should totally go with your idea. I’d visit your shop, regardless of whether there are cinnamon bun clad gals in there or not! 😀

    Reply

  14. LOL! Oh, this post is too funny. I can just imagine a boudoir barista with a gingerbread shack…but only if you gave me a job working there. Hee hee. 😉

    Those gingerbread men look insane. Everything you make looks insane. I am drooling, drooling, drooling.

    Reply

  15. Hmm, I like your business model. Maybe that would have gone over better in my home state of Maine. There was a topless coffee shop for less than a year, then someone burned it down. 🙁

    Reply

  17. Gosh, gingerbread. Mmm. I haven’t had any yet this year 🙁 I need to get to making some, but I keep forgetting to get molasses at the store haha.

    Beautiful pics and so cute!

    Reply

  19. Oh no! Mister Gingerbread is headless! Well, at least, when you bite into an arm, he won’t cry…

    I also baked gingerbread this week-end 🙂

    Reply

  23. You crack me up!!! I’ve been working on reports all morning – this was just what I needed – made me laugh! thanks!

    Reply

  26. oh my gosh those are adorable!
    my windshield was frozen this morning. if only i had one of these to keep me company (until eaten, of course) while waiting for the ice to melt off.
    take care <3

    Reply

  29. Bikini Baristas??? I’m sure your coffee place would be loads more interesting…with better food to boot 🙂 Heeheehee! You are the funniest Peabody 🙂

    Reply

  32. Thanks for giving me a good laugh! You should totally petition for the name change. The flavors in these cakes sound great and I agree with toning down the spice. If I use Grand Marnier in something, I definitely want to taste it!

    Reply

  33. A bit too chilly for bikinis or lingerie. Brrr. I think warming up with house with gingerbread sounds perfect. And my husband would throttle me if I tried to leave out the Grand Marnier. Let me know if you need a business partner on this venture – I’m in!

    Reply

  37. Wonders of the Northwest! Boudoir Baristas and smutty gingerbread shacks. Your little gingerbread men are certainly decadent enough to get fantasies going.

    Reply

  38. haha! I love your story… I just laughed out loud at work haha and Boudoir Baristas is a much better name…. a little more classy.

    Reply

  39. I love your Boudoir Barista idea…..if it ever comes to life, I’m looking for a career change and don’t mind dressing as a gingerbread girl 🙂

    Reply

  40. Thanks for making me laugh out loud today! Can I work in your gingerbread shop? I really want to wear the cinnabon bun tops! Hehehehe… I’m thinking all sorts of in-the-gutter things.

    Reply

  43. Oh, those dirty little ideas are wonderful, Pea – if you ever need a partner for the business, I’m here! 🙂

    The little gingerbread men are so cute! I love anything chocolate + orange, so I’m keeping the glaze.

    Reply

  45. Hey- I’m in Vietnam right now but was feeling like I needed a little shot of home so I came to check up on you. It’s definitely a hotspell here but I would still love some gingerbread, especially with chocolate sauce, (chocolate is not an easy to come by ingredient here…). This is going to be the weirdest Christmas ever- no snow. Keep baking so I have yummy things to drool over!

    Reply

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