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This easy gingerbread cake is a fluffy, crowd-pleasing dessert with warm spices and rich molasses flavor. No mixer required!
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: just stir up the batter and bake it into this moist and spiced cake.
This cake has become famous in my family and 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 makes a big pan to feed a crowd. It’s truly my family favorite Christmas dessert (besides my Grandma’s classic cranberry pudding!).
Why You’ll Love This Gingerbread Cake
There are lots of gingerbread cake recipes out there, so why make this one? Here are a few things I 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.
Key Ingredients You’ll Need
Gingerbread is centuries old: did you know gingerbread cookies were sold in European markets back in the 17th century? The classic flavors are ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and the molasses, which adds rich, bittersweet undertones.
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.
- Molasses: Use unsulphured molasses here. I’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 adds a hint of richness.
- Granulated sugar and brown sugar: A combination of granulated and brown sugar brings nuance in flavor.
- Eggs: Eggs make a smooth batter and fluffy crumb.
Tips for Baking Success
This gingerbread cake recipe is very simple, but here are a few best practices to keep in mind:
- A 9 x 13″ pan with square edges makes the best look. I like when the pieces look nice and squared-off, and this 9 x 13″ pan does the trick. Of course, it doesn’t matter if you have a rounded edge one: it’s just as delicious.
- 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, 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.
Serving Suggestions 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): I 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 I recommend decreasing the granulated sugar in the cake to ½ cup.
- Cream cheese frosting: This cream cheese frosting also adds quite a bit of sweetness to the cake, but it does make a nice counterpoint to the bittersweet molasses.
- Ice cream: For a more decadent dessert, top with vanilla ice cream or peppermint ice cream.
Storage and Make Ahead Tips
Store this cake covered tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil at room temperature for up to 4 days. I usually don’t dust it with powdered sugar until right before serving so the sugar doesn’t absorb into the cake. You can also store leftovers refrigerated for 7 to 10 days.
If you’re making this for a party, you can bake it the day before. Let it cool completely, cover it, and leave it on the counter. Dust with powdered sugar 1 hour before serving.
Dietary Notes
This gingerbread cake recipe is vegetarian.
Seriously Easy 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. This cake has become “famous” in our family because they beg for it each year—it’s that delicious!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 12 large or 16 small pieces 1x
- 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
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Butter a 9 x 13″ baking dish.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and kosher salt.
- In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the molasses and boiling water. Whisk in the melted butter and sugar. Then whisk in the eggs.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
- 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.
Notes
Storing leftovers: Store covered with plastic wrap or aluminum foil at room temperature for up to 4 days. If you can, don’t dust it with powdered sugar until right before serving so the sugar doesn’t absorb into the cake. You can also store leftovers refrigerated for 7 to 10 days.
Make ahead tip: If you’re making this for a party, you can bake it the day before. Let it cool completely, cover it, and leave it on the counter. Dust with powdered sugar 1 hour before serving.
I made it with Bob Red Mill All Purpose GF flour, and substituted maple sugar for the white sugar and coconut sugar for the brown sugar. I served it with homemade whip cream (blended up organic whip cream and maple syrup). I served it warm, my family loved it, though was a dry without the whip cream. I will make it again though bake it for 20 minutes instead of 30 minutes. Thank you.
Can this be made a day ahead?
Yes
I see so many recipes that use lots of butter. I’m gf and I prefer to use a neutral oil instead of butter. What would be the conversion to oil?
Can I use a loaf pan instead?
Thank you 😊
This is a great question! I personally have not tried it but I assume you could. A quick Google search says that you could likely use 2 loaf pans for the same amount of batter as a 9 x 13, but I haven’t tested the volume so I’m not sure if I trust it :) You’ll have to bake it longer too — usually quick breads bake closer to 45 to 50 minutes, but it depends on how full the pan is. Let me know if you attempt!
This was absolutely delicious and I would love to make it again. Mine came out a little dry and a moister version would be perfect. Any thoughts?
Just cut the time by a few minutes next time!
I just took this lovely-smelling gingerbread cake from the oven. I imagine it will taste just as lovely. Besides smelling so wonderful it has a beautiful rise. I followed the recipe exactly as presented and it was quick and easy.
I know all ovens are different, but I wanted to post this heads-up about time in the oven. My gingerbread was done at 25 minutes, so you might want to check yours at an earlier mark than the 30 minutes of the 30-40 min. range. I use an oven thermometer so I know the oven was at 350 degrees for the baking time.
I can’t wait to dig in. Thank you for all your thoughtful recipes.
Just took this to our work holiday party. Everyone loved it. Favorite quote: I have to find out who made the gingerbread cake. It’s the best thing I’ve had today.
Love this! Thank you for making it :)
This looks yummy? Can this be modified for cupcakes?
Thanks
If I wanted to make it eggless… which substitute do you recommend?
I would try substituting the 2 eggs with 1/2 cup applesauce. Let me know how it goes!
Can you make this 1:1 with gluten free flour??
We have not tried it! It should work, but I know it can end up becoming dryer. After some research I would suggest adding 2 tablespoons neutral oil if you try it with GF 1 for 1 flour. Let me know how it comes out!
It seems like a good recipe, but how does it differ from “regular” gingerbread, which as we all know isn’t “bread” but a cake? The ingredients and steps seem the same. I’m certainly open to trying a new recipe (tried a new one recently from a familiar, never-failed me before cookbook, and it was a disaster).
Great question! This is very similar to regular gingerbread — however, we did sweeten it quite a bit more than a standard gingerbread so that you can eat it with just a powdered sugar topping (or whipped cream). Many of the older style gingerbread recipes are extremely bitter because they were served with a sweet butter sauce. Let me know if this helps to clarify!