Gingerbread Cake

This gingerbread cake recipe is moist and cozy-spiced! Its rich molasses flavor tastes like a soft and fluffy version of the iconic cookie.

Gingerbread Cake

Here’s the perfect easy holiday dessert: try gingerbread cake! This soft, moist version of the iconic cookie is so easy to whip up: no rolling or cutting out dough required! You don’t even need a mixer. Stir up the batter and bake it into this beautiful moist and spiced cake.

This cake has become “famous” in our family because my sister begs for it each year—it’s that delicious! The rich molasses flavor tastes like a soft and fluffy version of the cutout cookies, and it’s made in a big pan to feed a crowd. It’s truly our family favorite Christmas dessert (and we even used it as a birthday cake for our daughter).

Why to make this gingerbread cake recipe

There are lots of gingerbread cake recipes out there: so why make this one? Here are a few things we love about the recipe:

  • It’s quick and easy. This recipe uses melted butter, so you don’t need stand mixer or wait for the butter to come to room temperature—just mix together all ingredients by hand!
  • It has just the right flavor without a topping. Many gingerbread cake recipes taste bitter on their own, intended to be served with a hard butter sauce or cream cheese frosting. This is sweet enough to be topped with powdered sugar or lightly sweetened whipped cream.
  • It serves a crowd. This gingerbread cake is intended for celebrations, so it makes a big 9 x 13-inch pan to serve a crowd.
Gingerbread Cake

Ingredients in gingerbread cake

Gingerbread is centuries old—gingerbread cookies were sold in European markets back in the 17th century! The hallmark flavors are ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and the sweetener molasses, which adds rich, bittersweet undertones. Everyone knows gingerbread cookies—but what about soft gingerbread cake?

This cake tastes just like the cookie, but it’s soft, moist and fluffy. You can top it with powdered sugar or serve with whipped cream or cream cheese frosting. Here’s what you’ll need:

  • All purpose flour: All-purpose flour makes the backbone of this classic cake. Weigh the flour if you can for the most accurate measurement.
  • Baking powder, baking soda, and salt: Two leaveners make this fluffy cake rise.
  • Ginger, cinnamon, and cloves: The classic combination of these three spice heavy-hitters are required for this cake. Make sure the spices are fresh so they pack a flavor punch.
  • Molasses: Use unsulphured molasses here. We’ve adjusted the molasses flavor to make sure it’s enough to come through but not so much that it leaves a bitter aftertaste.
  • Boiling water: Boiling water helps to make a moist cake and help the molasses to dissolve.
  • Butter: Melted butter brings rich body to the cake.
  • Granulated sugar and brown sugar: A combination of granulated and brown sugar brings nuance in flavor and just the right sweetness.
  • Eggs: Eggs make a smooth batter and fluffy crumb.
Gingerbread Cake

Tips for making the cake

This gingerbread cake recipe is so simple, there aren’t many things to know related to technique. However, there are a few best practices to keep in mind when making it:

  • A 9 x 13″ pan with square edges makes the best look. We like when the pieces look nice and squared-off, and this 9 x 13″ pan does the trick.
  • Bake until the top is set and springs back lightly to the touch. You can use the toothpick test, but this cake is done when it’s fully set and springy to the touch in the center. If you use a toothpick to judge, it can be either clean or have a few clinging crumbs.
  • Allow to cool to room temperature before dusting with powdered sugar. Otherwise, the powdered sugar melts into the cake.
Gingerbread Cake Recipe

Toppings for gingerbread cake

This gingerbread cake recipe is unique because it’s sweet enough to enjoy without an elaborate topping. Some types of gingerbread cake are intended to be served with a hard butter sauce or cream cheese frosting to bring in the sweetness. You can do that here, but this cake can also be enjoyed simply. Here are a few of our top topping ideas:

  • Powdered sugar: Simply dust the entire cake with a generous helping of powdered sugar.
  • Whipped cream (recommended): We love this dessert with a dollop of homemade whipped cream.
  • Bourbon sauce: If desired, you can top with a hard sauce like this bourbon sauce. This will make the entire dessert much sweeter, so we recommend decreasing the granulated sugar in the cake to ½ cup.
  • Cream cheese frosting: This cream cheese frosting adds quite a bit of sweetness to the cake, but it does make a nice counterpoint to the bittersweet molasses notes in the cake.

Dietary notes

This gingerbread cake recipe is vegetarian.

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“Famous” Gingerbread Cake

Gingerbread Cake
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This gingerbread cake recipe is moist and cozy-spiced! Its rich molasses flavor tastes like a soft and fluffy version of the iconic cookie. This cake has become “famous” in our family because they beg for it each year—it’s that delicious! 

  • Author: Sonja Overhiser
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 50 minutes
  • Yield: 12 large or 16 small pieces
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Baked
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • 2 ½ cups [350 g] all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons ground ginger
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon ground cloves
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • ¾ cup unsulphured molasses
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • ½ cup butter, melted
  • 2/3 cup granulated sugar
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • Powdered sugar, to top
  • Homemade whipped cream, for serving (optional but recommended!) or cream cheese frosting

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  2. Butter a 9 x 13″ baking dish.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and kosher salt.
  4. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the molasses and boiling water. Whisk in the melted butter and sugar. Then whisk in the eggs.
  5. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
  6. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake 30 to 40 minutes until the center is set and springs back to the touch, and an inserted toothpick is clean or has moist crumbs. Allow to cool until room temperature before dusting with powdered sugar. Serve with whipped cream.

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More holiday desserts

We love serving gingerbread cake as a Christmas dessert: it’s like an easier version of our Christmas cranberry pudding and goes over well with everyone! Here are a few more holiday desserts to enjoy:



from A Couple Cooks
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Sonja Overhiser
December 12, 2024 at 09:30AM

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