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I love this Gingerbread Cake that I make throughout the fall season for my kids. The cake comes out fluffy, moist, and packed with warm fall flavors. Easy to make and so tasty.
I love every gingerbread flavor, and I look forward to the fall to make all these warm and cozy desserts using warm spices like gingerbread and pumpkin pie mix. This Gingerbread cake is so easy to make, fluffy, moist, and tasty. The cream cheese frosting is just the perfect touch to the cake, but it can be optional if you do not want the added calories.
You may also like my gingerbread muffins or my gingerbread pancakes. I also have a post on Christmas dessert recipes that I think you will love.
Recipe Overview
Ingredients needed
Below are the ingredients I used to make this recipe. Full measurements are listed further down in the recipe card.
- Brown sugar: you may use cane sugar or coconut sugar
- Baking molasses: a must ingredient that I don’t recommend you skip. If you cannot find molasses, you can you the dark Karo (corn) Syrup.
- Milk of choice: I mostly use 2% milk, but dairy-free milk like almond milk will work.
- Vegetable oil, or coconut oil.
- Eggs: used for binding.
- All-purpose flour: whole wheat, oat flour, or cake flour will work.
- Spices: pumpkin spice blend and ginger powder
- Baking powder and Baking Soda
- Boiling water
- powdered sugar: You can use a zero-calorie powdered sugar that’s widely available at most grocery stores.
- Cream cheese: you can use full-fat or reduced-fat.
- Vanilla extract
How to make Gingerbread Cake
Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a 9×13 cake pan with parchment paper.
Step 1: In a large bowl, whisk the sugar, molasses, milk, vegetable oil, and eggs until smooth.
Step 2: Sift over the flour, baking soda, and powder, plus the seasonings, and fold with a spatula until combined. Pour in the boiling water and whisk with the electric whisk for 30 seconds, just until the water incorporates and creates a smooth batter.
Step 3: Transfer the batter to your prepared cake pan and bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Make the frosting-Sift the 2 cups powdered sugar in a large bowl. Add the 8 ounces cream cheese and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and whisk until smooth.
Step 4: Once the cake has completely cooled, remove it from the pan and spread over the frosting. Cut into squares and sprinkle with pumpkin spice or cinnamon powder. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour!
Recipe notes
- Any flour works, like gluten-free, cake flour, or whole wheat flour. If using almond flour, you will need more binding agents, like more eggs.
- Sugar: Use any sugar of choice like coconut sugar, cane sugar, brown sugar, or even a zero-calorie sugar substitute option.
- The frosting is optional, but it adds a perfect touch. You can make the cream cheese frosting ahead and store it in the fridge until ready to use.
- You should not add the frosting to the cake until you have allowed the cake to completely cool. If in a rush, place the gingerbread cake in the fridge for 15 minutes until it is cooled before adding the frosting.
Frequently asked questions
This could be either because the oven is too hot and you over-baked it, or you added too much flour to the batter, and it doesn’t have enough moisture in it. You may also have overmixed the cake, or you didn’t use enough oil in the recipe.
If the batter is more on the runny side, add more flour. Star with two tablespoons at a time until you get your desired consistency.
Yes. You can definitely serve this cake without the frosting.
The gingerbread cake, if it has the cream cheese frosting, is ok to stay on your kitchen counter for a couple of hours, and then store in a container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
Recipes you may like
- Sweet potato pancakes
- Sweet Potato Brownies
- Easy Pumpkin Cake
- Pumpkin Banana Bread
- Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread
- Sweet Potato Muffins
- Brownie Cookies Recipe
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Gingerbread Cake
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Ingredients
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup baking molasses
- 1/4 cup milk of choice, at room temp
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil, or coconut oil
- 2 large eggs, at room temp
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin spice blend
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1 cup boiling water
Optional – Vanilla frosting:
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temp
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F and line a 9×13 cake pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk the 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 cup baking molasses, 1/4 cup milk of choice, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, and 2 large eggs until smooth.
- Sift over the 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 3/4 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/4 teaspoon baking powder, plus the seasonings (1 tablespoon pumpkin spice blend, and 1 teaspoon ginger powder), and fold with a spatula until combined.
- Pour in the 1 cup boiling water and whisk with the electric whisk for 30 seconds, just until the water incorporates and creates a smooth batter.
- Transfer the batter to your prepared cake pan and bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
To make the vanilla frosting:
- To make the Sift the 2 cups powdered sugar in a large bowl. Add the 8 ounces cream cheese and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract and whisk until smooth.
- Once the cake has completely cooled, remove it from the pan and spread over the frosting.
- Cut into squares and sprinkle with pumpkin spice or cinnamon powder. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour!
Notes
- Flour: Use all-purpose flour, cake flour, or whole wheat flour.
- Sugar: Use any sugar of choice- coconut, cane, or brown sugar.
- The frosting is optional but adds a perfect touch.
- Macros include the frosting.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This is my favorite thank you for this recipe keep us updated for your delicious recipes