Learn how to make Gingerbread Cake, which is one of my favorite Christmas Recipes! This cake is moist and flavorful and makes the perfect holiday dessert.
Affiliates note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. My content may contain affiliate links to products and services. If you click through and make a purchase, I’ll receive a small commission. It does not affect the price you pay.
Table of Contents
Make a Gingerbread Cake with Whole Grain
This Gingerbread Cake recipe is completely adaptable to using all-purpose flour or whole grain flour. As with so many richly-flavored cakes, gingerbread lends itself beautifully to being made with whole grain flour.
I’ve explained the adaptation details in the recipe below, but here’s the quick tip. Whenever you want to adapt a recipe that calls for all-purpose flour and turn it into a whole grain flour recipe, just substitute 3/4 cup of whole grain flour for every 1 cup of all-purpose flour. Or you can keep the flour measurements the same but you’ll need an extra 1/4 cup of liquid for each cup of whole grain flour used.
What Spices Are Best for Your Gingerbread Cake?
In my recipe video, I’ll show you how to make this soft, spicy old fashioned gingerbread flavored with:
- Allspice
- Cinnamon
- Cloves
- Ginger
- Molasses
If you’re feeling a little experimental, you can add in other spices like nutmeg. Plus, you can even add chopped crystallized ginger for an extra kick of flavor!
How Can You Decorate Your Gingerbread Cake?
This gingerbread cake recipe creates a cake that has the taste of the holidays and is perfectly served topped with a dusting of powdered sugar or a dollop of homemade whipped cream.
But to make this a truly special Christmas dessert, be sure to add some adorable holiday cake toppers! My favorites include Santa and his sleigh, evergreen trees, and holly with berries.
Order YOUR COPY Now!
The Modern Pioneer Cookbook
Seasonal ingredients, traditional techniques, and nourishing recipes. Over 85 traditional, from-scratch recipes! Discover for yourself how you can use simple ingredients and traditional techniques to cook the modern pioneer way.
More Christmas Recipes
Now that you’ve learned how to make Gingerbread Cake, try your hand at some other wonderful seasonal recipes that are perfect for gift giving or entertaining.
Homemade Christmas Gifts
- How to Make Homemade Extracts – Flavored Extracts – Baking Basics
More videos for Holiday Entertaining
Grind Your Own Flour with the Mockmill
You can make your Gingerbread Cake with store-bought flour, and it’ll turn out great. But did you know that you can also make your own homemade flour for this recipe and all the baking recipes that you enjoy making year-round?
When it comes to electric grain mills, after I did A LOT of research, I decided to buy a Mockmill. And am I so happy I did! The Mockmill is a very affordable but beautifully crafted German-made mill that stone grinds grain with settings ranging from 1 to 10—fine to coarse ground grain.
Learn more about Mockmill electric grain mills for making fresh flour and their Flake Lover’s Flaker that flakes whole grain in minutes. (This is not a sponsored post, I bought the Mockmill products that I show you, and I’m a happy user of their devices in my kitchen.)
- Mockmill 100 Grain Mill unboxing
- Get the Mockmill 100 Stone Grain Mill (Same product I show you my unboxing video.)
- Flake Lover’s Flaker from Mockmill in action
Stay in Touch with Mary’s Nest
- Subscribe to My YouTube Channel for Traditional Foods Videos (Free) - When you subscribe, be sure to click on the notification bell that will let you know each time I upload a new video.
- Subscribe to Mary’s Traditional Foods Newsletter (Free) - Get a free 36-page eBook for signing up: How to Stock Your Essential Traditional Foods Four-Corners Pantry.
- Join the Traditional Foods Kitchen Academy - For more detailed videos and exclusive members-only perks, join my YouTube membership community.
- Order The Modern Pioneer Cookbook - Get a hardcover book of Mary's nourishing recipes from a Traditional Foods Kitchen. This bestselling cookbook is published by Penguin Random House with their DK imprint.
- Preorder The Modern Pioneer Pantry - Be one of the first to get Mary's hardcover book about preserving food and making delicious meals from your Four Corners Pantry. Mary's second cookbook is also published by Penguin Random House.
I look forward to having you join me in my Texas Hill Country Kitchen!
I’d like to receive more tips and recipes from Mary’s Nest.
How to Make Gingerbread Cake
Equipment
- 8×8 or 9×9 Baking Dish, greased and floured
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups Whole grain flour You can also use 2 cups all-purpose (plain) flour.
- 1/4 cup Dried cane juice (whole sugar such as Sucanat) You can also use 1/4 cup granulated sugar (white sugar).
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon Fine ground sea salt You can also use table salt.
- 2 teaspoons Ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon Ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon Ground allspice
- 1/2 cup Butter, unsalted This is equivalent to 8 tablespoons or 1 stick of butter.
- 3/4 cup Molasses Don't use blackstrap molasses.
- 1/4 cup Brewed coffee You can substitute this ingredient with instant coffee or water.
- 1 large Egg
- 1 cup Buttermilk
- Powdered sugar, optional You can sprinkle the powder sugar for a delightful snow decoration.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C).
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice.
- Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the molasses to the melted butter. Mix well and then pour this mixture into the dry ingredients in the bowl. Mix to moisten the flour.
- Add the water or coffee.
- Whisk together the egg and buttermilk, and then pour this mixture into the bowl. Stir the coffee, egg, and buttermilk mixture into the batter to incorporate.
- Once smooth, pour the batter into the prepared pan. (If preparing this by hand without an electric whisk, there may be some lumps in the batter. Press them out with your spoon or spatula the best that you can. But do not worry if a few lumps remain. The cake will bake correctly.)
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, or longer, until the sides of the cake pull away slightly from the edges of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
- Turn the cake out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Once completely cooled, transfer cake to a serving plater or cake stand and decorate with powdered sugar.
- Serve with just the powdered sugar or a dollop of whipped cream.
Video
Notes
Shop for items used in this blog post or video
Favorite Cake Making Supplies
- Favorite Aprons
- Glass Bowl Set
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Square Glass Baking Pan
- Whole Grain Organic Spelt Flour
- Organic Sucanat (Dried Cane Juice)
Favorite Christmas Cake Toppers
Amazon Shop and Shopping Guide
- Visit Mary’s Nest Amazon Shop
- Visit my Shopping Guide page
Get up to 15% off for stocking your Traditional Foods Pantry and equipping your Modern Pioneer Kitchen, including discounts from US Wellness Meats, Farmhouse Teas, Lehman's, Masontops, Cultures for Health, Survival Garden Seeds, Redmond Real Salt, Plan to Eat, and More!
Yummy! I did use black strap molasses and oat and coconut flours. I’m now making lemon sauce to pour over the cupcakes. Takes me back to Grammar School when they served that for dessert! Love it! Thank you!
Hi Blue Roses,
Thanks for your comment. I’m so glad you enjoyed this recipe!
Love and God bless,
Mary