Chocolate-Swirl Gingerbread

I could have sworn I had previously posted this recipe, but maybe I just talked about it before. Either way, this is a super yummy gingerbread from Martha Stewart's "Everyday Food: From the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living" cookbook, of which I am quite fond.

Chocolate-Swirl Gingerbread

Makes: 18-inch cake
Prep Time 15 minutes
Total time: 45 minutes

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 cup molasses
1 large egg, lightly beaten
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and slightly cooled

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch square pan. In a bowl, combine the flour, brown sugar, ginger, baking powder, salt, pepper, and cloves.
2. Melt the butter in 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan over medium heat, and stir the mixture into the dry ingredients until smooth. Stir in the molasses and lightly beaten egg.
3. Pour half the batter into the pre-pared pan. With a spoon, drizzle half the chocolate over the batter. Pour the remaining batter on top, and drizzle the remaining chocolate over the batter in a decorative pattern.
4. Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Drizzling the chocolate: Using a squeeze bottle is an easy way to drizzle chocolate over cake batter.